Weekend Plans: Easter fun, spring celebrations, vet college open house, autism awareness

Happy weekend! Here’s what’s happening on the family fun front. As always, check WRAL.com’s Out & About calendar for more ideas. Also, be sure to check out Out & About's listing of farmers' markets, which start opening this weekend across the region.

The Easter Bunny is at the mall - and hiding eggs across the Triangle. Next weekend is the big weekend for Easter egg hunts, but we have some this weekend. Our Easter events database has the details, along with information about egg hunts across the region.

N.C. State Veterinary Medicine hosts its very popular annual open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. It’s free and you’ll find all kinds of activities for all ages, including behind-the-scenes tours, dog agility and lots of opportunities to see animals.

Also at N.C. State, JC Raulston Arboretum, just down the street from the vet college, hosts its annual Raulston Blooms from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday. Take part in games and nature activities and learn more about gardening. There will be activities for all ages. Tickets are $10 per family and $5 for individuals. The arboretum is beautiful right now!

Also, just down Blue Ridge Road from the vet college and the arboretum, the N.C. Museum of Art hosts its annual Art in Bloom festival. The weekend includes lots of activities that focus on the beauty of flowers - real and in art. Family activities include a scavenger hunt from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday; pop-up art from noon to 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday; and family tours at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. The scavenger hunt and tours are free with Art in Bloom admission, which is $18 and free for kids 6 and under. Pop-up art is free for all ages. The tour is best for kids ages 5 to 11 and their adults.

The Museum of Life and Science in Durham and the University of North Carolina TEACCH Autism Program will host Autism Awareness Day on Sunday. The museum will open early, at 10 a.m., exclusively for families with children and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The museum will open at noon, Sunday, to all visitors, but will remain sensory friendly until closing. Cool-down areas and visual supports will be available throughout the day, along with programs where visitors can learn more about living with ASD. Tickets for the general public are $10 per person between 10 a.m. and noon, Sunday. Regular admission rates apply after noon.

And Marbles’ IMAX theater will host a special, sensory friendly lights up, sound down viewing of Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” at 10 a.m., Saturday. Tickets are $7.

The massive Kids Everywear Consignment Sale at the Morrisville Outlet Mall runs Saturday to Monday.

Raleigh Little Theatre’s “When She Had Wings,” part of its youth series, runs through Sunday. The show tells the story of a young girl, who dreams of flying, and runs into a mysterious woman, who might be Amelia Earhart. The show is a lot of fun! Tickets are $14 for adults and $10 for kids 12 and under.

And Theatre Raleigh presents “The Wolf,” the second show in its youth series. “The Wolf” is a mash up of various fairy tales - and a lot of fun. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for kids. The show, at the Duke Energy Center for Performing Arts in downtown Raleigh, runs through Sunday. For $5 off the ticket price, go to Theatre Raleigh's website and enter code FriendsandFamily at checkout.

Durham County Library presents the fourth annual Storytelling Festival from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, at Durham Arts Council, 120 Morris Street, Durham, NC 27701. The event celebrates the rich oral tradition of storytelling and features local storytellers, refreshments, crafts and more. It's free.

Cary's USA Baseball National Training Complex hosts the National High School Invitational, which runs through Saturday. See top high school teams from as far as California compete for the title. Tickets are $10 per day and free for kids ages 12 and under.

Saturday is Dirt Day in Wake Forest. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, in downtown Wake Forest, kids can dig in a sandbox, hunt for shark teeth and make their own wheatgrass containers while adults learn more about gardening, composting and related topics. It’s free.

Northgate Mall in Durham will host musician and storyteller Alex Weiss, who will perform multicultural music and cultural stories from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., Saturday. It’s free.

From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, Ellerbee Creek Watershed Association will celebrate its newest nature preserve - The Rocks - with tours, a one-mile hike and kid-friendly activities. Park at Central Professional Park, 2609 N Duke St., Durham. Signs will guide you, according to the website.