Weekend Plans: 'Maker exhibit,' toy exchange, moonlight in the garden, more

Happy weekend! Here’s what’s happening on the weekend family fun front! As always, check WRAL.com’s Out & About calendar for more.

Sassafras All Children’s Playground at Laurel Hills Park, 3808 Edwards Mill Rd., Raleigh, is now open. This is a fantastic new playground, the biggest in Raleigh and the largest inclusive playground in North Carolina. The playground is designed so children of all abilities can play together.

The Museum of Life and Science in Durham’s pop-up exhibit called Tinker Works is open through Nov. 20 inside the museum’s main building. Best for kids ages 7 and up, it offers all kinds of ways to build and create with a variety of materials.

Kids Exchange’s Christmas Toy Exchange is Saturday and Sunday at the N.C. State Fairgrounds. You’ll find gently used toys, gifts worthy of re-gifting and holiday decor for sale at great prices.

Octonauts Live!, based on the Disney Junior show, will be on stage at 6 p.m., Friday, at the Durham Performing Arts Center. Tickets start at around $30.

Raleigh Little Theatre presents two holiday shows in one - “Charlie Brown Christmas” and “Jingle Bell Jukebox.” The shows, part of the theater’s youth series, run just one hour total. They were supposed to close this weekend, but it's been so popular, it’s been extended through Nov. 20.

JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh has Moonlight in the Garden this Friday and Saturday. For the first time in more than a decade, visit the gardens in Raleigh in the evening and see thousands of luminaries. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under. I went last weekend. It was beautiful!

Wakefield High School’s PTSA hosts it annual Mistletoe Market from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturday, at the north Raleigh school. Get a head start on holiday shopping and support a local school.

Morehead Planetarium and Science Center will present the seventh annual “Storytelling Under the Stars” at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, featuring Professor Brian Sturm and several storytellers from his storytelling class at UNC’s School of Information and Library Science. The storytellers will tell a “star story” that focuses on the stars. It all takes place against the backdrop of the “sky” projected onto Morehead’s fulldome theater. It’s free and best for ages 7 and up.

Mallarme Concert Players will present Brilliant Brass, a family concert, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, at Kirby Horton Hall, Duke Gardens in Durham. Learn about the brass family. Best for ages 5 and up. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under.

Dory from “Finding Dory” will be on hand during N.C. State women’s volleyball team’s game against Clemson at 2 p.m., Sunday, at Reynolds Coliseum. Tickets are $5 for kids and $7 for adults.