Weekend Plans Mothers' Day Edition: Trains, improv, Disney music, and more
Happy Mother’s Day weekend! There will, I hope, be lots of pampering happening on Sunday, lots of homemade cards and hugs and (fingers crossed) absolutely no whining, complaining, meals to make or dishes to wash (at least that’s my hope for myself).
I shared my five Mother’s Day wishes on WRAL.com’s Out & About blog the other day. You also can check the Out & About calendar for more weekend activities.
But we do have lots of special events this weekend to highlight, including a few aimed at celebrating mom. Here’s your weekend family fun!
Strawberry season is in full tilt right now. Check our database on strawberry farms in the area to find one close to your home.
Saturday is National Train Day and a big event is planned at Cary’s Downtown Railroad Depot on Academy Street. The free event includes displays, videos, food vendors and giveaways. Kids can take home free train whistles, conductor hats, coloring books and other items. There’s a trackless train and more. Amtrak is offering special $5 tickets for kids on Saturday to ride anywhere in North Carolina. See my earlier post for all the details.
Wake County libraries' annual and massive book sale opens Thursday and continues until Sunday at the N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh. This is a giant sale with many, many books of all kinds. It's a great place to stock up on some summer reading for you and the kids. On Saturday, they'll have some special activities for kids and families.
The Raleigh Little Theatre continues its run of The Brementown Musicians, part of its youth series. The show runs through May 19 at the Gaddy-Goodwin Teaching Theatre in Raleigh near Cameron Village. The musical tells the classic tale of a donkey who wants to become a famous musician. Tickets are $10 for ages 12 and under and $15 for adults and teens.
Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh celebrates moms from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, with special activities and opportunities to make some special gifts for mom. Perhaps a great opportunity for dad to take the kids while mom enjoys a little quiet time … The activities are free with admission, which is $5 per person.
If you’re looking for some laughs this Mother’s Day, head over to The ArtsCenter in Carrboro to see Transactors Improv: For Families! The 45-minute show is 6 p.m., Saturday. Tickets are $8 in advance and $10 the day of or $5 for students and seniors and $8 the day off. The show features short-form improv with individual scenes running 5 to 10 minutes and based on audience suggestions.
The N.C. Symphony celebrates music from Disney classics such as Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Mary Poppins and more. Singers and storyboard art and video projected on a big screen are part of the performance. Showtimes are 8 p.m., Friday, and 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., Saturday. Tickets start at $18 (though there may not be many left in that price range). There also weren’t many of any tickets left for the Saturday afternoon performance, at last check. The concert is at the Duke (formerly Progress) Energy Center for Performing Arts in Raleigh.
Holly Springs’ annual Turtle Fest is from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, at Bass Lake Park. The afternoon includes interactive exhibits, crafts, games, hayride tours and more. It’s all free.
And in Durham, the Big Splash on the Eno is from noon to 3 p.m., Saturday, at West Point on the Eno, a Durham city park. You’ll find hiking, fly fishing information, the West Point Mill in operating, canoeing and paddling, food trucks and a natural play area for kids.
Downtown Raleigh will have a food truck rodeo from noon to 5 p.m., Sunday. More than 40 food trucks will be there across five city blocks. The Raleigh City Museum will be open with some special activities. Admission is free. I suspect this will be packed. If you’re going with children, I might recommend getting out there a little early so you can be the first in line. Looking forward to this one and the other three scheduled through October.
If you’re a pop-up book fan, you should head over to Quail Ridge Books & Music in Raleigh at 2 p.m., Saturday. The store on Wade Avenue will host David Carter, one of the big names in the world of pop-up design. He’ll be there with his new children’s book “Princess Bugs: A Touch-and-Feel Fairy Tale.” Great for ages 3 to 7 and adults. Quail Ridge has a bunch of family activities coming up.
Run Like a Mother, the 5K and one-mile fun run at the Kerr Family YMCA in Wakefield, starts at 8 a.m., Sunday. Race day registration will be available if it hasn’t filled up. The morning includes some fun activities for families too.
UPDATE: This was rescheduled to noon to 7 p.m., June 22, because of the threat of bad weather. Ritmo Latino, a free annual family festival featuring Latino music, dance and arts, is noon to 7 p.m., Saturday, on Dry Avenue in downtown Cary. There will be music, food, dance lessons for adults and activities for kids.
Comedian and juggler Mark Nizer will stop at the Garner Performing Arts Center, 742 W. Garner Rd., for a 7:30 p.m., Saturday, show. Nizer has opened for the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Hope, George Burns, Gladys Knight and Barry Manilow. Tickets are $15.
As always, the N.C. Museum of Art will offer its regular weekend family tours at 10:30 a.m., Saturday and Sunday. These free 30-minute tours are great kids ages 5 to 10 and their adult. Follow up the tour with a walk through the museum where you can see plenty of family-themed pieces such as this one by Mary Cassat and stroll around its museum park. (Sadly, Iris, the art museum’s restaurant, is completely full for Mother’s Day brunch, or I’d recommend that too).
And we have at least two free concerts on Mother’s Day.
Wake Forest’s Six Sundays in Spring continues with a free concert featuring
And the N.C. Museum of History in downtown Raleigh will have two free concerts on Sunday. At 1 p.m. the Triangle Youth Jazz Ensemble will perform, and at 3 p.m. the mother-daughter duo Myrna Bascunan and Claudia Lopez Bascunan will sing Chilean folk songs, play drums and tell stories.
Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!
