The weekend after Earth Day coincides with Arbor Day this year, meaning there are kid-friendly festivals in honor of nature to attend all over Chicagoland. The Morton Arboretum hosts a weekend-long Arbor Day fest, the Chicago Botanic Garden lights up with cherry blossoms and other spring blooms, and kids can learn how to protect our planet at Earth Day celebrations at the Cosley Zoo in Wheaton, as well as fests in Naperville, Oak Park, Glen Ellyn, Skokie, and Schaumburg, among others. Plus, the whole family can get involved with cleaning up our environmental act at an annual parks department cleanup event, or learn about how ancient civilizations recycled their trash at Ancient Earth Day. 

Ninja warriors-in-training won't want to miss the kid-friendly challenges at the Addison Youth Obstacle Course Race this Saturday, and bookworms will love digging into the Independent Bookstore Day celebration in Glen Ellyn. The whole family can get their Mother's Day and Father's Day shopping done at the Spring One of a Kind Show at the Mart.

Oh, and there's a bit of a thing opening this weekend about this super-obscure little musical—you probably wouldn't heard of it, it's about the American Revolution, but with rap? Just a little bitty show called Hamilton: The Exhibition. No big whoop. (Wink, nudge.)

For even more spring fun, see our roundup of spring fairs and festivals, plus our Chicago playground hall of fame, and our ever-expanding calendar.