This is the weekend summer actually starts. No long-weekend asterisk, no waiting for school to let out. The weather's going to be beautiful, Weber's Farm has a kickoff festival, four different free summer series all launch their first night, and the O's have a Star Wars giveaway. Here's where to point the family.

Top Pick

Strawberry Festival at Weber's Farm at Weber's Cider Mill Farm, Parkville Sunday (also Monday) | All ages | $8, kids under 2 free

Weber's annual Strawberry Festival is the kind of farm day that does the work for you: strawberry shortcake and fresh treats, food trucks, live music, barnyard animals, hillside slides, and barrel train rides. The barrel train and animals are included with admission; the gem mining and face painting cost extra.

Note: Tickets are sold in advance online, and the morning hours are the calm ones.

More info

Quick Weekend Wins

Just show up

Howard County AAPI Festival at Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods, Columbia AAPI Heritage Month closes with a free afternoon of cultural performances, food vendors, and family activities on the open lawns at Symphony Woods. Kids can eat their way through it and watch the stage without anyone needing to sit still. Free registration is open now. Saturday, 12-4pm | All ages | FREE
Anne Arundel Asian American Festival at Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds, Crownsville The Heritage Month finale on Sunday: food, live entertainment, and cultural demos at the fairgrounds, where the flat, wide lanes are easier on strollers than most festival grounds. Tickets are $10-15, and kids under 14 get in free. It opens at 11am. Sunday, opens 11am | All ages | $10-15, under 14 free
Autism Family Fun Fest at Aberdeen Festival Park A free, sensory-aware community event built for families of kids with autism and special needs, with quieter zones, structured activities, and entertainment designed to lower the overwhelm. Genuinely welcoming for any kid who gets overstimulated at a louder festival. Saturday, 10am-3pm | All ages | FREE
Touch-a-Truck at St. Francis de Sales, Abingdon Fire trucks, diggers, and things to climb on, plus face painting and games. For any kid who has ever made a truck noise, this is the whole morning. Saturday, 10am-2pm | Best for ages 1-8 | $10
Festival of India & Chariot Parade at McKeldin Square, Inner Harbor A free downtown festival with a chariot parade, live music and dance, cultural exhibits, and a free vegetarian feast. A genuine Inner Harbor spectacle, and an easy free morning in the heart of the city. Saturday, from 10am | All ages | FREE

Ticketed This Weekend

These need tickets

Orioles Star Wars Weekend (Oriole Park at Camden Yards). The O's are home against the Blue Jays all weekend, and it's Star Wars Weekend in the city. Friday's 7:05pm game ends in postgame fireworks, Saturday (4:05pm) hands out a Jordan Westburg Star Wars bobblehead, and Sunday's 12:15pm game has a Star Wars kids poster giveaway.
Annapolis Irish Festival (Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds). Carbon Leaf, Gaelic Storm, and a full lineup of names you'll actually recognize, outdoors at the fairgrounds. It runs Friday evening and Saturday.
Shrek the Musical (Bowie Playhouse). A full production of the Tony-winning musical in a 150-seat house, so it tends to sell out. Shows Friday 7:30pm and Saturday/Sunday 2pm. $30, less for kids.
Music on the Lawn at Captain Avery Museum (Shady Side). Waterfront sunset music with food and drinks on the museum lawn, Friday evening. $10.
Breakfast with the Chimps at the Maryland Zoo (Druid Hill Park). A buffet breakfast with a keeper chat while the chimps watch you eat, Sunday morning, with same-day zoo admission included. It's a splurge ($60-70/person) and it sells out, so it's the one to book if it's on the list.

Budget-Friendly Finds

Drop-in Art Making at the Walters. Make art for a community garden project at one of the best free museums in the country. Saturday 10am-1pm, no reservation, stroller-friendly. A great shorter-format option if you're in the city, and the reliable backup for any plan that falls through.
Black Birders Week Art Event. Live bird-banding demos and creative bird-building at the Masonville Cove waterfront, Friday evening. Free, registration open now.
Family Fun Day at Armory Marketplace. Face painting, live music, and a community mural at the Bel Air Armory. Sunday 12-3pm, free.

Summer Series Alert

These launch this weekend and run all summer. Add them to your calendar now.

The first weekend of summer is also the launch pad for the free events that'll fill your next three months. These all kick off this week:

Summer Block Party at Columbia Lakefront. Kids' activities, food trucks, and live music from Tap Band on the lakefront. The season opener. Saturday 4:30pm, free.
Summer Sunset Concerts at Allen Pond Park. Free Sunday evenings in Bowie, all summer. First one is this Sunday at 6pm.
Flavor Friday at Prigel Family Creamery. Food vendors, live music, and farm ice cream on Friday evenings in Glen Arm. Free to walk in.
Summer Movie Nights at The Wine Bin. Free outdoor films on Saturday nights in Ellicott City. Back to the Future kicks it off at 9pm.

You don't have to decide which to attend this week. Just put them on the calendar so you have the option all summer.

For Toddler Families

Weber's Strawberry Festival (above) — barnyard animals, hillside slides, and barrel train rides are squarely toddler territory.
Walters Drop-in Art (above) — free, indoor, drop-in, no reservation. An easy one with little ones.
Skip for the under-3 set: the Irish Festival, the Annapolis Greek Festival, and Shrek's evening shows are all late-running, older-kid events.

Tween-Approved

Wreck the Ride at Wreck Creation Rage Room (Bel Air). Smash a car with a sledgehammer for an Alzheimer's fundraiser. It's the rare event a 12-year-old will actually tell their friends about on Monday, and the charity angle makes it an easy yes. $20 to participate; best as a parent-plus-one outing.
B&O Railroad Museum (Baltimore City). Go see the biggest things in the room: full-size steam locomotives in the roundhouse and a live turntable demo. Genuinely impressive if you've never stood next to a locomotive. Saturday.

Mark Your Calendar

Coming up in the next few weeks

June 24-30: Sail250 Maryland & Airshow Baltimore. Tall ships, Navy ship tours, and the Blue Angels over the harbor for the country's 250th, free and centered on Fort McHenry. Worth sorting out transit and parking early; the airshow days draw big crowds.
June 3-7: Paint Annapolis. A week of artists painting all over the city; easy, free wandering for families.
Summer: Lutherville Music School's Summer Rock Camp (mid-June). Local music camps tend to fill by early June if a band camp is on your list.

Local Intel

Combo move: Weber's Strawberry Festival in the morning, then the Columbia Lakefront Block Party in the late afternoon. They're about 30 minutes apart, and the timing lines up without rushing.

In the city for the Orioles game or the Festival of India? Port Discovery Children's Museum is right there in the Inner Harbor (Sun 11am-5pm, $24.95, under 1 free), an easy add-on.

Also This Weekend

More events that almost made the cut

Crofton Farmers Market — Saturday morning, FREE
Bel Air Farmers' Market — Saturday morning, FREE
Prince George's County Block Party — Saturday 11am-3pm, FREE
Garden Impressions: Plant Prints on Cloth (Cromwell Valley Park) — Saturday 10am-12pm, FREE
Hatton-Regester Green Concert — Sunday, FREE
Hamilton lawn screening at Belair Mansion — Sunday 9pm, FREE

Strawberry Season Kicks Off Summer in Baltimore