Eat a pickle. Pet a llama. Thank a veteran.
If any of that is on your weekend bucket list, there's a festival for you.
Themes run the gamut. You can find a community arts celebration in Chattanooga, a Veterans Day parade in Fort Oglethorpe and a nod to history in Soddy-Daisy. Plus the wide array of Christmas-themed events shows the holiday season is at hand.
Here's a look around the region.
- Beginagin Farm arts & crafts festival: 391 Chloe Drive, LaFayette, Georgia. Arts and crafts vendors and demos, live music, animals, food, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Also includes Ron Johnson Memorial Classic Car Cruise-In and silent auction to raise funds for the family of Ron Johnson, owner of Johnson's Auto Repair and pastor of Lake Howard Baptist Church, who died of COVID-19 complications in September at age 49. Free admission. Facebook.com
- Christmas at Eddie's: Eddie's Florist, 9112 State Highway 40, Henagar, Alabama. Open house to debut store's holiday vignettes, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, 1-4 p.m. Sunday (all times CST). Facebook.com/ChristmasAtEddies
- Christmas open house: The Barn Nursery, 1801 E. 24th St. Place. Merchandise discounts, giveaways, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; Santa visits 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Facebook.com/thebarnnursery
[READ MORE: See a list of 90+ festivals this season.]
- Christmas open house: Grit & Grace Market, 445 Church St., Cleveland, Tennessee. Merchant expo, 6-8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, 1-6 p.m. Sunday. gritandgracemarket.com
- Christmas village festival: Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex, 1 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. N., Birmingham, Alabama. Includes 750 booths with arts, crafts, clothing, food, jewelry and other gifts, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday (all times Central). $12 adults, $5 children. christmasvillagefestival.com
- Downtown Dalton holiday open house: Downtown Dalton Development Authority merchants event, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, noon-6 p.m. Sunday. Also: Kiwanis Club of Dalton Pancake Day 7-11 a.m. Saturday in Burr Performing Arts Park, 101 S. Hamilton St.; $7 in advance, $8 Saturday. Seating available under the parking deck; drive-through service available. downtowndalton.com
- Fall and Christmas market: Mountain Heights Venue, 1298 Hendon Road, Soddy-Daisy. Fifty-plus vendors, food trucks, mini photography sessions, music, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. Facebook.com/mountainheightsvenue
File Photo by Staton Breidenthal/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette / Learn the difference between an alpaca, above, and a llama Saturday at Fiber in the Boro in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The festival highlights various animals and plants used for fiber.- Fiber in the Boro: Lane Agri-Park, 315 John Rice Blvd., Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Tenth annual fall fiber festival highlights sheep, alpaca, goats, rabbits, cotton and other fiber-producing plants, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. CDT Saturday. Includes 60+ vendors, demos, animals, children's activities, door prizes, food trucks. Free admission. Facebook.com
[READ MORE: See a roundup of other events this weekend.]
- Fried Pickle Festival: Greenway Park, 775 Raider Drive, Cleveland, Tennessee. Arts, crafts and food vendors, kids zone, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Free admission. (Event was originally scheduled for September in Athens; has been combined with Southern Pie Festival.) bit.ly/SPieFest
- Glass Street Live Block Party: 2500 Glass St. (at North Chamberlain Avenue). Glass House Collective and Chattanooga Neighborhoods Arts Partnership event, noon-4 p.m. Saturday. Includes art installations, live mural painting, music, dancing, children's activities, T-shirt screenprinting, antique car show, food trucks. Free admission. Facebook.com/Events
- High Cotton Christmas Market: Ringgold Feed & Seed Antiques, 403 High St., Ringgold, Georgia. Indoor/outdoor vendors with vintage finds and Christmas decor, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Facebook.com/Events
- Holiday Open House: East Ridge Antique District, 6501 Slater Road (behind Cracker Barrel). Merchandise discounts and giveaways at Bushel & A Peck and SugarPlum, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. Facebook.com/bushelandapeckstore, Facebook.com/SugarPlumEastRidge
- Holiday Open House: Vinterest Antiques Hixson, 2105 Northpoint Blvd., and Vinterest Southside, 2121 Chestnut St. Merchandise discounts, music, refreshments, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Facebook.com/Events
- Honoring Those Who Serve Parade and Festival: Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia. Inaugural event Saturday starts with 10:30 a.m. parade from Big Lots, 558 Battlefield Parkway, traveling LaFayette Road to the festival site, the polo field at 6 Barnhardt Circle. Includes vendors, live music, food trucks, flyovers by Museum of Flight, military vehicle display, fireworks finale. fortogov.com
- Oktoberfest: Festhalle, 1074 Edelweiss St., Helen, Georgia. Traditional music, dancing, food and beer, daily through Sunday; doors open at 6 p.m. during the week, 1 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. $8 during the week, $10 Saturdays, free on Sundays. helenchamber.com
- Pioneer Day: Poe's Tavern Historical Park, 9817 Dayton Pike, Soddy-Daisy. Soddy, Daisy & Montlake Historical Association hosts annual celebration of old ways, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. Includes demonstrations of basket making, quilting, blacksmithing, open-fire cooking, corn shelling, log hewing, apple cider press (circa 1877), display of old rifles and Revolutionary War and Civil War encampments. Program honoring veterans at 1 p.m. Children's activities include sack races, jacks and marbles. Concessions for sale. Free admission. Facebook.com
- Smoky Mountain Christmas: Dollywood, 2700 Dollywood Parks Blvd., Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Award-winning festival features more than 5 million lights, themed shows, food, fireworks set to Christmas music, Saturday through Jan. 2 (hours vary). $84 ages 10-61 (discounts for children/seniors). dollywood.com
- Warrior Market: Lakeview Middle School, 416 Cross St., Rossville, Georgiaa. Craft and food vendors, business marketplace, kids zone, silent auction, free pictures with Santa, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. 706-866-1040
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281.