She's Not Wrong

I've been throwing around broken promises like confetti lately, so by the time Sunday rolled around, it was time for The Alexis Show. Whatever she wanted all day long. All of it. No matter how insane it sounded.

Her list: Phipps, library, and the zoo. Oh, and a picnic lunch.

The amazing part is that it was all accomplished. Part of the magic became possible when she made her own picnic lunch and then ended up eating it in the car because she was too hungry to wait, but the other part was just a matter of her making good decisions.

She decided to check out 8 books at the library and not read a single one while we were there. That made it a very efficient stop.

Then, there was Phipps, where the efficiency came to a screeching halt. Because ... butterflies.

We have a Phipps membership because the best way to survive a miserable winter is to spend part of it staring at pretty flowers. The month or so when the butterflies are there is just a bonus.

My plan for the butterfly room was to use my longest lens to get as many butterfly photos as possible before Alexis turned into a pumpkin and demanded that we move on. She does that a lot at Phipps--she wants to explore every inch of it at mach speed. She meanders around as fast as she can, somewhat like something out of a Family Circus cartoon.

The best laid plans are often ruined, though.

Ruined in a good way, that is. Rather than getting a ton of photos thanks to preparation, I was caught on my heels and trying to take a totally different type of photo because Alexis discovered that a Phipps employee was standing guard over the newly hatching butterflies and was letting kids hold them.

Which, of course, turned into Alexis holding a butterfly. Or three.

She pretty much thought it was the greatest thing ever. I dare you to disagree with her. Be warned: she'll cut you.

As we were walking out of the butterfly room, Alexis had a question. "How can you tell if a butterfly is a boy or girl?" she asked.

My mind went places that it shouldn't have, but my mouth was wise enough to cover for my immaturity. "I don't know," I said. "Maybe you should ask the woman by the chrysalises."

Alexis darted back to ask her. It was explained to her that most of the butterflies at Phipps are boys because the don't want a bunch of eggs all over the place and because boys have brighter colors.

"Why do the boys have brighter colors?" she asked.

Of course, the answer was so that they can have better luck attracting a mate.

Alexis pondered that little bit of trivia for a bit. She pondered and she pondered and she pondered. Then she said, "Momma, it's a good thing human boys don't have to be pretty to find a mate because they would all be in BIG trouble. They don't even know how to wear clothes that match!"

So there's that.

A Fairy Garden Buying Guide

It seems that somewhere along the line, I became a Fairy Garden hipster. I can tell you for an absolute fact that there were only a handful of photos of them online back when I first posted about ours, but now there are hundreds. And hundreds. And hundreds.

Get off my fairy garden lawn, you whippersnappers.

Or ... join in on the fun. Whichever you prefer.

The thing is that I've been asked a bunch of times for a list of places to find fairy garden supplies. Rather than continuing to answer each person individually, I figured it was time to put together a handy dandy list.

If you do make a fairy garden (or have already), please to be sharing a photo? Just email it to me or share a link to a photo or blog post with it in the comments and I'll add it to my fairy garden Pinterest board.

Fairy Garden Furniture/Accessories/Houses

Fairy Garden Kits: The lazy way to go is to buy a fairy garden kit from Alexis. She's restocking her store this weekend (seriously -- she's WAY excited about this whole thing now that she only owes me $150 for cheerleading), but there are a few kits left right now.

Pat Catan's: There is a decent selection of items at Pat Catan's. Check the seasonal aisle, the dollhouse aisle, and the miniatures aisle.

Michael's: The only thing they have is the unfinished birdhouses that can be decorated to be fairy houses, but they have the best ones for the price (under $10). Note: When decorating, look for the paint that says it's good for outdoor use. It will hold up better. Sealing the finished product is a really good idea as well.

Plow and Hearth: The only thing they really have is a furniture kit. It's expensive, but better quality than any of the things I've found elsewhere.

Target: They also have a fairy garden kit. I've seen it in a few stores and it's available online.

Hobby Lobby: They have a few things that work in the dollhouse section, and there are a few fairy garden specific items in the seasonal/gardening aisle.

Amazon: Pretty much everything is available on Amazon at a great price. Here are a few of my favorite things. Just click the images to view them on Amazon.

Vine bench:

Garden tools:

Bird bath:

Patio table and chairs:

Arbor:

Wheelbarrow:

Birdhouse that would make a great fairy house:

And a bird feeder that makes a perfect fairy house:

Locally, I've found various items at two garden centers -- Reilly's Summer Seat Farm and Brenckle's.

Fairy Garden Trees/Shrubs

Anything that is super small and super slow-growing will work. Think bonsai. Locally, I've found Bedner's to be the best source, but there are some online stores that have a pretty solid selection.

Two Green Thumbs

Miniforest.com

Ascus Nursery

Fairy Garden Plants

The key to the plants is to think small. Walk through any garden center and you are bound to find things like alyssum, lobelia, etc. If you seek out the part of a garden center where they keep the "Stepables," you're guaranteed to find some good things. Some of my favorite plants for fairy gardens are:

Irish Moss (Lowe's and Home Depot usually have this) (perennial)

Sea Thrift (perennial)

Erodium Charm Alpine Geranium (perennial)

Dwarf Mondo Grass (perennial)

Rockcress (perennial)

Dianthus (annual)

Wooly Thyme (perennial)

Rosemary (Herb -- different varieties can be used in different ways. Some are perfect for training into a tree, others are dwarf and make good shrubs, others can be trained to go over an arbor.)

When all else fails, go to a really good garden center and ask for help. An employee will be able to show you some things that will do well and stay relatively small. Keep in mind, nearly every plant that is a perfect miniature will spread. You'll have to thin it out once per year or more. For example, I started with two little tiny pots of Irish Moss. I now have three fully stocked fairy gardens just from dividing the Irish Moss every spring.

Holler if you have any questions, and make sure you share your fairy gardens!

The Special People Need to be Reminded to Shut Up

They were there to see Mary. I know that because they said so. "Is Mary in this one?" "Is Mary coming up soon?" "Does Mary dance soon?" and on and on.

And on and on.

AND ON AND ON.

The nonstop chatter moved from Mary to retirement to walking dogs and back again. It meandered down a path of mayoral election debates followed by a pro Tea Party rant. There was talk of appropriate attire for walking the dog, how great Netflix is, and plenty of words that would make anyone look around and ask, "Did I seriously just hear that?"

You know how sometimes you stumble upon a Facebook update and you're like, "Why the hell did you put those words where others could see them?" THAT. EXACTLY THAT. All those things that make you flinch were said.

Every last one of them.

Out loud.

DURING the dance recital.

It's really very fortunate that the fates lined Alexis' performances up towards the end of the nearly four-hour long recital. The first half wasn't the time for paying attention because CLEARLY it wasn't the time for paying attention. They said so. With all of their words that were about everything and nothing, the two older women who were seated behind us at the recital made it well known that the show wasn't for watching. Rather, the loud music was a nuisance that they had to raise their voices to cover. They chatted and chatted and chatted.

I glared.

The didn't flinch.

I glared again.

Nothing.

I threw more dirty looks over my shoulder than would seem possible, but they just kept on talking.

Frustration mounted. I couldn't understand how they weren't shutting up and began to consider ways to force it to happen. One of the women had a cane, so I thought about ways it could be used to put an end to the talking. Then I considered how we all seem to think teens are so very rude these days, but no. NO. It's the older generation that thinks it's OK to go to a dance recital and talk loudly through the entire thing.

Only, they didn't.

Because at the intermission, I said something. I don't really know what exactly I said because I was flustered and annoyed and trying very hard not to say things that rhyme with duck as I told them to shut up.

Which, really? Why is it that *I* felt bad about even considering asking them to stop talking? Why do we do that? I can't possibly be the only person who falters doing something reasonable in the wake of something so very rude.

But, hey. I said something and the talking stopped. Apparently there are people who have to be told specifically that their behavior is rude. Once you tell them, they stop it.

Just like that.

Thank goodness. If it had gone on much longer, that cane would have been in big trouble.