By Caroline Luzzatto
The Virginian-Pilot
It's a question adults can't help asking children: "So - what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Why do adults really need to know? Are we concerned that there are a lot of aimless 5-year-olds whose lives would be happier if they knew from the get-go that their destiny was to be a patent attorney or a dental hygienist?

The Association for Research and Enlightenment will hold an open house and Parents Day Out from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 to celebrate its fourth year of programs for children ages 5 to 12.

In any season of the year, there is pop music, theater, dance, classical music and most of the other types of entertainment featured in this section.

Only in the Christmas season, however, do you find the sort of spectacles listed on this page. They are part of what makes this, as the song says, “the most wonderful time of the year.”

Dinner and a show sounds like a nice treat for the holidays, doesn’t it? Here are some pairings of restaurants that have been reviewed in Pulse with nearby holiday events.

When you go:
The Olde Towne Candlelight Home Tour provides a walking tour of historic Olde Towne Portsmouth, including music and decorations, from 5 to 9 p.m. Dec. 11 and 1 to 5 p.m. Dec. 12. 943-8088.

Norfolk State University's annual tree-lighting ceremony planned for this evening has been rescheduled to 6 p.m. Nov. 30 at the L. Douglas Wilder Performing Arts Center.

A first bite of brined bird is akin to taking that inaugural sip of quality coffee - nothing else will ever do.

Face it: Those cute little pumpkins that have been decorating the house since Halloween will be dated when the Thanksgiving dishes are done. So why not serve them instead?

Pumpkins make the perfect serving vessels for soups, side dishes and desserts. The following recipe combines many flavors of the season , and the bonus is that you don’t have to wash the dish when dinner is done.

"The Goops they lick their fingers

And the Goops they lick their knives:

They spill their froth on the tablecloth

Oh, they lead disgusting lives!

The Goops they talk while eating,

And loud and fast they chew;

And that is why I'm glad that I

Am not a Goop, are you?" Well, are you?

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Rhiannon Hastings gives you the step-by-step process for making giant paper snowflakes that are sure to impress. (Archive video by Craig Kimberley | The Virginian-Pilot)

Deck the halls
 
This fall the Gracious Living section of The Virginian-Pilot will publish a list of holiday home tours taking place throughout Hampton Roads and northeastern North Carolina. If your club or neighborhood is planning one, we'd like to know about it.
Please send us the following information: