Downtown Beeville was packed Saturday with children playing in the snow, taking carriage rides and telling Santa Claus what they wished for this Christmas season.

The Beeville Main Street Program held its annual Holly Jolly Christmas event, and from the looks of the closed-off streets filled with families, it was a great success.

The weather was in the mid to upper 70s which was perfect for the kids to dress in shorts and short-sleeved shirts, but didn’t bode well for the hundreds of pounds of snow trucked in for children’s winter fun.

But, somehow, it lasted all day and into the evening, with snowball fights lasting until then.

The Velcro wall was a hilarious surprise. Kids, wearing the appropriate vests, would launch themselves on to the wall and stick.

And sometimes they would flail their little arms about as they stuck to the wall, needing some assistance getting down.

From water balls, inflatable slides, a snow-covered slide the children slid down on tubes and moon bounces, there was plenty for kids of any age to do.

And parents got in on the action by taking their kids on carriage rides, which seemed like a welcome gift for their parents’ feet.

Some youngsters preferred to enjoy a good laugh at what the horses decided to leave behind them on the streets.

When the sun began to set, families flocked to Washington Street and filled the sidewalks for more than four blocks as they awaited the annual lighted parade.

Of course, it was a gorgeous display of the community coming together, bathed in blinking lights, flashing sirens and the sounds of high school bands.

It was a long day of festive fun for everyone. And though the event seems to be growing every year, most of the attendees are more than likely already waiting to see what next year’s Holly Jolly Christmas in Beeville will bring.

Paul Gonzales is the entertainment writer at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at 358-2550, ext. 116, or at thescene@mySouTex.com.