Earn Your Stripes: Pass Our Candy Cane Quiz

Dec. 26 is National Candy Cane Day.

It's National Candy Cane Day, which seems fitting given that you likely have a surplus lying around at this point in the holiday season. We visited the National Confectioners Association website to gather the questions and answers for a quiz dedicated to the striped peppermint candy synonymous with the season. The quiz is available as a PDF so it's easy to print off and share with friends or family gathered at your house for the holidays. Or just test your knowledge below: Candy Cane Quiz 1. Legend places the origin of the candy cane in the: A. 1900s B. 1800s C. 1700s D. 1600s 2. According to legend, candy canes began as a means of: A. Rewarding shepherds for successfully guarding a flock. B. Bartering for the Christmas ham. C. Keeping …

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Share Photos and Videos of Your Kids Opening Their Christmas Presents

There's not much better than a kid's face when they run to the tree in the morning and start ripping into all the gifts Santa brought them. Share your moments of joy!

"Opening presents is like playing air hockey with God," is what Matthew Inman of The Oatmeal once wrote in trying to capture the joy of children opening gifts on Christmas morning. There's not much better than a kid's face when they run to the tree in the morning and start ripping into all the gifts Santa brought them. Let's share those moments here and put a smile on everyone's face with a gallery of Winchester kids opening their gifts on Christmas morning. Click the "Upload Photos and Videos" button to add your photo or video to our gallery. Who knows, your kid might go viral like the Nintendo 64 kid (see attached video).

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Show Off Your Spectacularly Decorated Christmas Tree

Snap a picture of your decked-out Christmas tree and send it in.

We spend hours hanging ornaments on and wrapping tinsel around our Christmas trees to make them sparkle. Show off your evergreen to those neighbors who won't be able to admire it in your living room by adding a photo to our gallery.  Just click on the "Upload Photos & Videos" button. Don't forget to tell us a bit about your tree by writing a caption. 

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Find Last-Minute Christmas Gifts in Winchester

If the holidays leave you with little time to shop for gifts, try these stores in Winchester for great last-minute gift ideas.

With all of the tree trimming, cookie baking and partygoing, there is so much to do during the holidays that it's easy to leave shopping for Christmas presents until the last minute. But by then, the malls and chain stores are usually chaotic and the mere thought of battling crowds is exhausting. Here are some ideas for easy gifts that can be bought locally and require little stress: Click on each store's name above for phone numbers and websites to see if online ordering is available. Tell us: What are some of your own last-minute gift ideas? Share in the comments below. 

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Last Day of Winton Club's Holiday Gift Fair

The annual Winton Club Holiday Gift Fair at the Winchester Hospital is open today from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Mahoney's Celebrates Ladies Night Out Tonight

Get started on your Christmas shopping at Mahoney’s Christmas Shoppe till 9 p.m.

Mahoney's Welcomes Holiday Season with 'Ladies Night Out'

Be the first of the season to visit Mahoney’s Christmas Shoppe on Nov. 14.

If an event’s longevity has anything to say about its appeal, then Mahoney’s Garden Centers’ annual “Ladies Night Out” is a hit. Held annually in Winchester, Tewksbury and Falmouth, the event has become a pre-holiday highlight for ladies to escape into a night of shopping and fun. On Wednesday, Nov. 14 from 3 to 9 p.m. at the Winchester location, be the first of the season to visit Mahoney’s Christmas Shoppe filled with all the glitz and glitter ever imagined, sip wine and sample food, and shop local fashion designers and sellers, salons, crafters and much more. “Mahoney’s Ladies Night Out is no ordinary night out,” says Bob Rocco, general manager of Mahoney’s in Winchester. “It has become a social event that ladies look forward to each …

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Week in Review: A Look Back at 2011

Here's some of the top stories that ran last week.

With 2011 officially coming to an end, we looked back at the year that was in Winchester. Also, don’t forget to check out our top five most expensive sold homes from 2011 in Winchester. A senior deputy sheriff in the Middlesex Sheriff's Office paid a $5,000 fine after admitting to soliciting donations for a campaign fundraiser for then-Sheriff James DiPaola from subordinate office employees during work hours, a violation of the state's conflict of interest law, the State Ethics Commission announced in a press release. With Christmas this past week, who could forget the holiday blizzard of 2010? In case you don't remember, here are some pictures of the snowstorm that hit the Commonwealth on Dec. 26, 2010. The Winchester Soccer Club has …

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What's Open and Closed on Dec. 26

Even though Christmas was Sunday, not everything will be open today.

Yes, Santa came and went, but unlike most years, the majority of residents won't be rushing off to work. Since Dec. 25 fell on a Sunday, that means the holiday will be celebrated on Monday. Winchester schools are on Christmas break, and if you plan on heading into the town center, here's some advice: Closed: All town, federal, state and county offices, banks, the post office, the Winchester Public Library, the Recreation Center and the Jenks Center. Open: Supermarkets, gas stations, restaurants, convenience stores and retail stores.* *Keep in mind, a number of the businesses in the downtown area are locally owned and operated, so call before you head over to do some shopping. If you decide to head into Boston, the MBTA Commuter Line is …

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