A whimsical fairy path kids can create…
Sue Jordan is a Grandma Extraordinaire! All this year, as her garden woke up in early Spring to when the grandkids get out of school, she has been working with them on a wondrous fairy garden path.
I can only imagine what enjoyment these kids will have throughout their lives,…no matter how cool they believe they are, at some point I bet they find themselves out in the garden because of this introduction to gardening.
Creating a fairy path
How the idea came about
“A memory still lingers of when I was a child that adventures were shared with a tiny plastic Tinkerbell. I wanted fairy adventures for my grandkids and great-nieces and nephews…. so an idea began forming.
I began searching last year for fairies and dwellings. I chose child friendly fairies made by Safari Ltd.” Find Safari Ltd Fairy Fantasies on Amazon.
The fairies Sue Jordan found started off everyone’s imagination
“The real fun began after I spotted a cute painted flower pot toad house. I decided to make “just one” fairy flower pot house. The grandkids’ excitement was amazing as a fairy and her house appeared on the pathway.
These are the 10 fairies (and their friends) that are living on my porch now. These are very child friendly – the Fairy Fantasies collection by Safari Ltd*. When the grandkids visit we’ll play along the fairy pathway with them. These will be with the fairy houses and driftwoods. (Golf ball shown for sizing)”
*Search for many more fairies from Safari by clicking on this link, Safari Ltd Fairy Fantasies, then search for the entire selection “Safari Ltd Fairy” in Amazon’s search box. Fun!
“The thirty foot pathway originates under my front porch’s shady wisteria arbor – a perfect spot to sit and watch as little ones play. Originally it led to a birdbath – which has been replaced by a “toad pond”…perfect spot for shallow splashes and water play on a warm day.”
The toad pond at the end of the pathway, a couple months later
“As we have a toad pond…. AND toads….. of course we had to add a toad house…. and then another…. and another.”
That green frog isn’t nearly as fun as the one that really hops
“The grandkids, have helped paint most every little house. Should one accidentally get broken – it will just be a happy accident and reason to *gasp* make another!”
Pot painting supplies were set up
It seems yellow paint… is funny!
My grandson was full of ideas for more “flower pot” houses, (seems we need one he can actually enter! THAT will prove interesting.)
Placing the houses in the new neighborhood
“He and my granddaughter showed me all the best locations for all the dwellings, as we continue building the “fairy kingdom.”
Painting pots for the fairies’ gardens….. and finishing the fairy queen’s house…
Mushrooms, houses, perches and ponds made from flower pots with sealer for protection
Splish, splash in the frog pond at the end of the path
Fairies love the flower pot houses!
Adding a butterfly to the fairy Queen’s house
Working on Trader Toad’s Market
“Trader Toad’s Market is offering a special on cicadas this summer, by the way”
Many bugs, dime to half-dollar size, were added to the path and buzzy bees can be made from smooth stones.
Each visit, they discovered another fairy house
The two youngest boys, ages 2 and 4, love to dig…. so I usually ask for their help with planting seedlings.
How’s that for an outdoor theater screen?
Sue says, “It’s a thirty foot path, ending at a toad pond…. and we are “pausing” at 28 ‘dwellings’ or 29 if you count the “Toad Theater” now showing “The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad”
Sue Jordan’s painted leaf and bugs
“I just listen to my grandkids,” Sue says, “… and show excitement when they have an accomplishment. I always try to have a gardening or crafty thing “to do” when they visit.” Why does Sue do all this? “I just want them to remember me fondly in their adult years.” What Grandma wouldn’t want that?
Watching the kids, happily wandering down the path, makes it all worth while!
Safari Ltd Fairy Fantasies Price: $13.99
More on gardening with kids:
Kids in the garden: 11 projects!
1 Comment
Oh boy … what memories in the making …. when these kids are adults, I bet the love of nature …. some type of gardening will continue on into their future. Geeze, I want to be a ‘kid’ on Sue’s path!! Sweetness! TFSharing Sue & Sue!