One hundred and twelve years ago, the United States made it official: Moms deserve their very own holiday. Mother’s Day is coming up this weekend, and lucky for you, the next few days are chock-full of opportunities to celebrate the matriarchs, mentors and mother figures in your life — whether they’re with you in person or in spirit. Let’s dive in.
Thursday, May 7
Baltimore Wine Village
West Shore Park in the Inner Harbor transforms into a pop-up wine village until the end of the month. It’s more than just a spot to imbibe. With open-air movie nights, live music, floral design workshops and speed dating, there are plenty of ways to savor the village experience. Check the schedule here.
Time: 3-9 p.m. Thursday; 1-9 p.m. Friday-Sunday
Price: Free admission
Location: West Shore Park (401 Light St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Fells Point Flower Crawl
Some say the best bouquets are the ones you pick yourself. This event invites you to do just that. Grab a map from Su Casa Furniture, then wander through Fells Point collecting flowers from neighborhood spots like Arepi and Reversed Thrift Store. Return to the starting point and watch it all get wrapped into a lovely bouquet.
Time: 4-7:30 p.m.
Price: $40
Location: Su Casa Furniture (901 S. Bond St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Paint, Plant & Pamper: The Mother’s Day Edition
Are you a mom who needs some time to herself? Grab a seat at Creative Chaos Studio, a school bus turned mobile art and karaoke studio, to spend a few hours unleashing your creativity. You’ll turn a plastic foam head into a stylish planter, complete with earrings and eyelashes. If the spirit moves you, grab that microphone and bless your fellow passengers with a song.
Time: 6-9 p.m.
Price: $68.90
Location: Parks & People (2100 Liberty Heights Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Kelsey’s Annual Spring Sip & Shop
Your gift for mom might be waiting in the unlikeliest place: Kelsey’s Restaurant in Ellicott City. Stop by their pop-up market to shop handcrafted items by local makers. While you’re there, treat yourself to the complementary wine tasting with appetizers.
Time: 6 p.m.
Price: Free
Location: Kelsey’s Restaurant, Irish Pub & Banquet Room (8480 Baltimore National Pike, Ellicott City)
Family friendly? Yes
Charlie Porter Quintet
Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Charlie Porter drops a new album this summer. “Sci-Fi Standards, Vol. 1: The Future We Knew” is what it sounds like: theme songs from science-fiction movies interpreted as improvisational jazz. Think “Blade Runner,” “Alien,” “Dune.”
Time: 7 p.m.
Price: $17.05-$38.46
Location: Keystone Korner Baltimore (1350 Lancaster St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? All ages welcome, but children must be accompanied by an adult.
Friday, May 8
Rico Rico Fiesta
This traveling celebration of Latin cultures pulls into Baltimore for the first time ever. Expect over 70 food vendors, Lucha Libre wrestling, a car show, a samba parade and a petting zoo for kids. Want to be part of the entertainment? Create your best look for the Bad Bunny costume contest. That alone seems worth checking out.
Time: Entry times Friday, Saturday and Sunday vary by ticket tier
Price: $14-$48. Free for kids 10 and under.
Location: West Covington Park (101 W. Cromwell St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
VinylCon
Vinylheads and audiophiles, this one is for you. Dig through the bins at this two-day market where you’ll find records from a wide range of sellers, including professional dealers and individual collectors just looking to downsize. Enjoy a full bar while you shop, grab a burger from Carroll & Son Fine Foods and bop to DJs spinning nothing but vinyl.
Time: 5-10 p.m. Friday; 10-5 p.m. Saturday
Price: $9-$30
Location: Union Craft Brewery (1700 W. 41st St. #420, Baltimore)
Family friendly? All ages. Anyone under 21 must always be within 6 feet of their adult.
The R&B Lovers Tour
Before MTV had Dru Hill on constant rotation, the group was harmonizing at The Fudgery, the defunct Harborplace spot where they got their start. This weekend, they take the stage at CFG Bank Arena, joined by an impressive lineup: Joe. Ginuwine. Kut Klose. Keith Sweat. How could this not be a good show?
Time: 8 p.m.
Price: $80.40-$117.75, prices subject to change
Location: CFG Bank Arena (201 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? No age restrictions mentioned
Washington National Opera: ‘West Side Story’
After over 50 years of performances at the Kennedy Center, the Washington National Opera comes to Baltimore with “West Side Story,” a timeless tale of love and prejudice. The showings on Friday and Saturday offer a special treat: the conductor will be Marin Alsop, the first woman to serve as music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
Time: 7:30p.m. Friday; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Price: $40.25-$200
Location: The Lyric (140 W. Mount Royal Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
I Wanna Dance With Somebody … before 9 p.m.
Like to be tucked in by 10 p.m.? Same. This early-bird dance party is perfect for those who want to have fun without sacrificing sleep. Dance your butt off on two floors, with ‘80s hits upstairs and ‘90s tunes down below. A portion of the evening’s proceeds will benefit the Baltimore-based Human Trafficking Prevention Project.
Time: 5-9 p.m.
Price: $23.23
Location: Ottobar (2549 N. Howard St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? 21 and over
Cueva de la Cumbia
Local band Soroche brings their cumbia-ska-punk-folk fusion to Library Nineteen, a repurposed public library in Fells Point. Joining them: Colombian musician Yeison Landero of San Jacinto and Washington, D.C.-based deejay La Bodoquita. Stay energized all night with Mexican food from Cocina Luchadoras and beverages from Juicing with Jazz + Revel Productions.
Time: 7-11 p.m.
Price: $33.85
Location: Library Nineteen (606 S. Ann St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? No age restrictions
Donate & Dye
Planning to attend Station North Arts District’s monthly Art Walk? Make sure to swing by Blue Light Junction, a nonprofit dedicated to natural dyes, where artist Rosa Sung Ji Chang will lead a community dyeing session. Bring along a garment or piece of fabric to drop in the 30-gallon indigo vat.
Time: 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Price: $25
Location: Blue Light Junction (209 McAllister St., Suite A, Baltimore)
Family friendly? All ages. Children must be supervised and supported by an adult.
Community Mural Fundraiser
In Southeast Baltimore, a group of young immigrant artists is literally leaving its mark on the city. Meet the creators behind the forthcoming mural, “We Are Here: Our Colors, Our Stories, Our Community,” and bid on artwork to help make it possible. Hosted by Asylee Women Enterprise, the evening also features food prepared by some of their clients.
Time: 4-8 p.m.
Price: Free admission
Location: Unity Hall (1505 Eutaw Place, Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Saturday, May 9
Mother’s Day Tea & Garden Party
Tink, tink, ladies. It’s tea time at BLISS Meadows, a 10-acre campus in Frankford dedicated to food and environmental justice. This yearly fete not only pays tribute to the influential women in our lives but also honors the ultimate mom: Mother Nature. Come ready to make flower crowns and enchanted faerie wands between sips.
Time: 4-7 p.m.
Price: $30-$55
Location: BLISS Meadows (5111 Plainfield Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
What Medicine Took
Henrietta Lacks, whose cells were taken at Johns Hopkins Hospital without her knowledge, is still making headlines 75 years after her death. This panel brings together her grandson, Alfred Lacks Carter Jr., and three curators — Elisa Blunt Moorhead, V Walton and Gabrielle Whitehurst — to discuss legacies of medical experimentation and means of repair. Don’t miss the related exhibition “Pharmaco/Liberation.”
Time: 2-3:30 p.m.
Price: Free, RSVP required
Location: Making Space Bmore (709 N. Howard St., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Books in Bloom
In an era of book bans, this book festival celebrates diversity, inclusion and the unifying power of storytelling. Browse the outdoor bookstore curated by Busboys & Poets and hear from regional artists, including a live interview and book signing with beloved D.C. author Jason Reynolds. Check out the full lineup and RSVP before you go.
Time: 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Price: Free
Location: Color Burst Park (6221 Mango Tree Road, Columbia)
Family friendly? All ages
Pages & Pints
A book with a side of beer? Not a bad combo. Head to Heavy Seas Brewery to pick up something new from a local author, then settle into the on-site reading lounge, beer in hand. While you’re there, you can register for a Baltimore County library card and join a brewery tour to see how your pint got made.
Time: 2-7 p.m.
Price: Free
Location: Heavy Seas Brewery (4615 Hollins Ferry Road, Halethorpe)
Family friendly? An adult must accompany people under 21.
Remfest
Stroll down Remington Avenue, where over 100 vendors will line the street this weekend. Expect food and drink from neighborhood favorites like Ekiben and Peabody Heights Brewery, and music all day across two stages. On the family stage, you can catch children’s book author and puppeteer Kevin Sherry and the DMV’s Haus of What Drag Story Hour. Baltimore band Kenyatta closes out the day on the main stage.
Time: 12-9 p.m.
Price: Free
Location: Remington Avenue (27th to 29th Street, Baltimore)
Family Friendly? Yes
Cylburn Market Day
It’s peak gardening season — the perfect time to drop by Cylburn Arboretum’s annual one-day market. Shop plant and craft booths and take advantage of the horticulturalists who will be around to answer any questions you might have. If you’re bringing kids along, you’ll find face painting and a stilt walker, plus food trucks when they need a bite.
Time: 8 a.m.-2 p.m.
Price: Free; $10 for parking
Location: Clyburn Arboretum (4915 Greenspring Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Live! Night Market
Smoked skewers. Candied fruit. Mango sticky rice. Come hungry to this new night market spotlighting Asian street foods. It kicks off this weekend and takes place once a month through October. Entry is limited to two-hour blocks, so be sure to RSVP here.
Time: Noon-8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Price: Free
Location: Live! Casino & Hotel (7002 Arundel Mills Circle #7777, Hanover)
Family friendly? All ages
Sunday, May 10
STOOP Read
Gather around an indoor stoop at Charm City Cultural Cultivation for a new child-focused reading series. Author and illustrator Javaka Steptoe will read his book “Radiant Child,” which follows the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat through childhood. Stick around for a literary workshop, book signing and giveaway.
Time: 1 p.m.
Price: Free
Location: Charm City Cultural Cultivation (3100 Greenmount Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Yes
Mommy and Me: Partner Magic for Kids!
If your little one already adores you, wait until they see you do magic. Baltimore’s School of Magic Arts is hosting a class for kids and their grown-ups, where you’ll learn two magic tricks to perform as a duo. After the class, sit back and enjoy … wait for it … a magic show.
Time: 10-11 a.m.
Price: $23 for one student and a grown-up
Location: Creative Alliance (3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore)
Family friendly? Ages 7 and up. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Mother’s Day Jazz Brunch on the Water
Want to really score points with mom? Take her out on a private yacht. This three-hour sail comes with brunch, live music and all the “mom-osas” she can handle.
Time: 2-5 p.m., must arrive by 1 p.m.
Price: $119.22-$209.93
Location: Tickets include round-trip transportation from one of two pick-up spots: Southwest Park & Ride (1198 S. Rolling Road, Catonsville) and White Marsh Park & Ride (8475 Honeygo Blvd., White Marsh)
Family friendly? All ages
Nicole J. Caruth is a Baltimore-based freelance journalist covering the intersections of food, health and environmental justice.
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