Weekend Plans: Marbles' birthday, Caniac Carnival, Titanic opens, fall festivals!

Wow! It is a huge weekend of festivals and family fun. Let’s get started! As always, check WRAL.com's Out & About calendar for more weekend activity ideas.

Marbles Kids Museum in downtown Raleigh celebrates its fifth birthday on Saturday with lots of events and special activities from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Best of all, admission to the museum (normally $5) is free! And tickets for all showings of The Avengers, Iron Man 2 and various documentaries at the IMAX theater is just $5 all day! That’s a great deal. As part of the celebration, you’ll find music, games, activities and lots of birthday surprises, along with, I’m told, a few special guests. The party spills outside in the Marbles courtyard and onto Hargett Street, which will be closed off for the event. I’ve heard a little bit about what Marbles has in store and this should be a lot of fun.

By coincidence, six museums in the Triangle are participants this Saturday in Museum Day Live!, a national event that allows free admission to those who sign up ahead of time. Read Out & About’s post for details on that.

The 13th annual Caniac Carnival is 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Sunday, at the PNC Arena. Admission and parking are free to this very popular event that celebrates the Carolina Hurricanes and its fans. The event includes more than 25 inflatables, interactive games and booths, a toddler zone, a sports area, live music and DJ, appearances by Stormy and the Storm Squad and more. The inflatables include large slides, an obstacle course, moon bounce, sports challenge, velcro wall, mechanical bull and more. Inside the arena, fans can play street hockey on the arena floor and take their picture on the team bench and penalty box. Stormy and the Storm Squad will be posing for pictures and signing autographs at select times. The day also includes the Crazy Caniac Challenge IV, a two-lap race around the PNC Arena, which is about two miles. As part of the challenge, participants must eat two hot dogs and drink a 12-ounce soda before running the final lap.

The N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences opens its new exhibit Titanic on Saturday. The exhibit features 200 exhibits retrieved from the wreck. Tickets for the special exhibit, which will be here through the holiday season and beyond, are between $8 and $14. Kids under 5 are free.

The region’s pumpkin patches are in full swing. And some haunted houses will begin opening this weekend. Check our Halloween and fall fun database for details. One note: A local group will be raising money for the Children’s Miracle Network on Friday at Ken’s Korny Corn Maze. Read my earlier post for details.

There are two children’s consignment sales in Raleigh. Click here for more information.

Take a Child Outside Week runs through Sunday and local outdoor spaces are hosting some special events, including at the Prairie Ridge Ecostation on Friday and at JC Raulston Arboretum daily. Read my earlier post for details and recommendation on other outdoor spots for kids. One addition: The N.C. Botanical Garden will have a children’s violin concert at 2:30 p.m., Saturday.

The International Festival of Raleigh runs Friday to Sunday at the Raleigh Convention Center. Tickets cost between $5 and $8. Kids 6 and under are admitted for free. You’ll find food, entertainment, crafts and the special Sophia’s Corner for kids.

Celebración!, a celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, is 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, at the N.C. Museum of History in downtown Raleigh. It’s free. The event includes music and dance, craft demonstrations and hands-on activities for kids.

Dorcas Ministries in Cary opened its Cary Plaza Carnival on Wednesday. It runs through Sunday. the event at 187 High House Rd., Cary, features carnival rides, games and more. Admission is $2 for adults and kids 5 and up. Carnival hours are 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday; 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., Friday; 2 p.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday; and 2 p.m. to close, Sunday. Individual ride tickets are $1, 19 for $20 and 38 for $40. Rides will require three to five tickets each.

Oktoberfest in downtown Raleigh is 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday, at Seaboard Station (near William Peace University). It’s brought to you by the guys who do Music on the Porch, a really popular outdoor concert series in the spring and summer. Guy, one of the guys behind the event, tells me that the event moved to this new spot so there would be more room for kids. There will be some large inflatables and an open grassy area for kids to run around. Tickets are $5; free for kids.

Raleigh Irish Festival is from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, on Moore Square (across the street from Marbles). The event includes live music, performances, food, children’s entertainment, inflatables and more.

Durham’s annual Latino Festival is noon to 5 p.m., Saturday, at Rock Quarry Park, 701 Stadium Dr. You’ll find music, food, crafts and hands-on activities for kids.

The 30th annual Storytelling Festival is at Historic Oak View County Park in Raleigh from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday. The free event includes a hayride, storytellers, music from the Sandbox band and much more.

The Carrboro Music Festival starts at 1 p.m. Sunday. The 15th annual event includes music at indoor and outdoor venues across Carrboro. You’ll hear all kinds of music - jazz, rock, folk, country, classical and more. It’s all free. To avoid parking hassles, it might be best to hop on a free shuttle, operated by Chapel Hill Transit. It will provide service from the Carrboro Plaza Park & Ride at Highway NC 54 and Old Fayetteville Road to various stops along Main Street from noon to 9 p.m., Sunday.

For families with older kids, The ArtsCenter in Carrboro will present "44 Plays for 44 Presidents", described as a “zany, fast-paced take on the lives and presidencies of each of the 44 men who have held the office so far. This chronological, biographical survey is told with 44 very, very short plays dedicated to each of the 44 presidencies.” This sounds like fun (of course, I’m a history buff). Shows are Friday through Sunday and next weekend. Tickets are $16 in advance or $18 the day of.

The second annual WakeMed Scrub Run, a 5K and 10K event benefiting WakeMed Children’s, is Saturday morning on Fayetteville Street in Raleigh’s City Plaza. The day includes competitive races, a 100-yard kids dash and a family fun fest with face painting, arts and crafts and more.

And Allie Miszewski, 15, will read from her new book “Peanut Butter Toast,” at a special event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, at the Halle Cultural Arts Center in downtown Apex. There will be crafts, along with readings at 11 a.m. and noon. Bring a jar of peanut butter for donation to Western Wake Crisis Ministry.