Family Picks: Spring into NCMA festival of art and flowers

Spring! Finally! It’s here! The daffodils are in full bloom, the birds are singing and I’d do a back-flip if I physically could. Of course you should go outside, and of course you should take your kids with you.

I think that about covers it. On to the picks for the week:

▪ “Humpback Whales,” a 3-D film exploring the habits and habitats of these tuneful creatures, opens Friday at the Marbles IMAX Theater in downtown Raleigh. It’s only about 40 minutes long, so it won’t keep you and your family out of the sun for too long – though it should be a fascinating detour. Tickets are $6 for children and seniors and $7 for adults – or add $3 to make a combo movie and museum ticket. Visit imaxraleigh.org for showtimes.

▪ “Art in Bloom,” the North Carolina Museum of Art’s festival of art and flowers, runs through Sunday. Master flower designers have taken over the West Building, and some 45 interpretive arrangements are displayed throughout its galleries. Through this event, admission to the West Building is $10 for members, $15 for nonmembers and free for kids 6 and younger, while admission to the East Building and Museum Park remains free. Visit ncartmuseum.org.

▪ Duke University’s Brain Awareness Week is wrapping up this weekend with hands-on demos at Durham’s Museum of Life and Science Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and an open house at Duke’s Levine Science Research Center Sunday from 1-4 p.m. At the museum, learn how the brain is built and how it works; at the research center, tour labs, engage with scientists and check out kid-oriented activities. Admission to the Museum of Life and Science ranges from $10-$14.50, with kids 2 and under free, while the Levine open house is free. Visit lifeandscience.org or dibs.duke.edu/brainweek.

▪ This Saturday and again on March 28 and April 18, the State Capitol’s “Under the Dome” tours will focus on women in North Carolina history. These tours are best for big kids – in fact, there’s a 10-and-up age cutoff – and start at 10 a.m. (Note: the March 28 tour starts at 3 p.m. and the April 18 tours are at 10 a.m. and noon). Call 919-733-4994 to register and prepay the $17 ticket. Visit nando.com/11y for more details on the tour or nchistoricsites.org/capitol to learn about the building itself.

This story was originally published March 19, 2015 at 3:00 PM with the headline "Family Picks: Spring into NCMA festival of art and flowers."