With the December calendar speeding by the Opera House at Boothbay Harbor announces the final events of the 2022 season. With the hope that no one misses out on the fun, all these events are free for community members and visitors.

Confirmed gingerbread professionals and closet bakers, young novices, masters of the dough and others throughout the Midcoast have begun design and construction work on their confectionery entries for the 16th annual Gingerbread Spectacular being staged at the Opera House in Boothbay Harbor Friday through Sunday, Dec. 16-18.

Help spread the magic of Christmas from Scandinavia to India at Pumpkin Vine Farm’s special Yule Goat celebration, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 11.

On Saturday, Dec. 10, from 1-3 p.m., Sherman’s Books and Stationery, 5 Commercial St., in Boothbay Harbor will host authors Claire Ackroyd, of Orono, and Laurie Apgar Chandler, of Bremen.

‘Tis the season for Mrs. Santa’s Kitchen. It will be a grand morning from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Dec. 10, with homemade cookies and baked goods being sold by the pound during the Friends of the Bristol Area Library’s annual fundraiser.

Start the Christmas fun with a visit to Historic New England’s 1807 Nickels-Sortwell House Friday, Dec. 2, Saturday, Dec. 3, and Sunday, Dec. 4, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

On Thursday, Dec. 1 from 3:15-4:15 p.m., Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust is hosting a family program all about Maine mammals at Coastal Rivers Salt Bay Farm.

Following a two year COVID-19 caused hiatus, the annual Christmas Tree lighting service returns to Bristol Mills on Saturday, Dec. 3, at 5 p.m. The theme is “Carols, Cocoa & Cookies.”

The pop-up holiday gift shop in the Nickels-Sortwell House barn on Federal Street has become a Christmas season tradition in Wiscasset. For several years now, the old barn is temporarily transformed into a cheery and inviting shop full of artisan wares, antique items for ­­­­­­­­­­­ambiance, and a happy place to find unique, useful, and one-of-a-kind gifts.

New Hope Midcoast is holding a holiday sale of Maine-made gifts from now through Thursday, Dec. 15 with pick up from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16, or Monday, Dec. 19, at 5 Beech St., Rockland or at 18 Belvedere St., Damariscotta.

Beacon Chapter #202, Order of the Eastern Star, will hold the chapter’s annual Christmas Bazaar at the Alna-Anchor Masonic Lodge, 529 Main St., Damariscotta, Saturday, Nov. 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The sixth annual Villages of Light Festival in the Twin Villages of Damariscotta and Newcastle will be held on Saturday, Nov. 26. The elves are hard at work to ‘Spark Your Spirit’ this holiday season.