The Fairest of Them All

June 19, 2015

There are tooth fairies, and pacifier fairies, the fairies in Ireland who make shoes for the leprechauns, Disney fairies, and even Barbie. And my youngest loves them all. Her interest peaked last year and we started with fairy houses, and fairy gardens that she would create and leave in the yard. This past year for her First Communion, my Aunt Betty, who as she said “always finds super fun presents” gave her a Fairy Hunting manual along with a coveted children’s bible.

And the fairy interest exploded with this new book. The How to Find Flower Fairies book is complete with all things fairies – where to find them, how to hunt for them, what they do and why. Think of it as a corporate overview for the magical world of fairies. Aunt Betty didn’t stop there. At my eldest birthday dinner she gave everyone books from her childhood, that her mother gave her, including Christopher Robin, the poems of Robert Louis Stevenson, and of course fairy books. There is something so intrinsically special about books being shared from generation to generation, and when you open them, it is as if everyone who touched it, and read it is there with you, sharing the same story. My Aunt Betty does select the most wonderful gifts and I believe it is her ability to see and value the uniqueness of each person, and her fun and creative spirit. She is an old soul who still values long conversation, and handwritten notes, books in hard copy form (never electronic) and in may ways, all the wonderful traditions of our past, traditions centered on human connection. And when she speaks to you, you feel as if you are the only person in the room. Her generous focus and kindness is lavished directly on you. I am grateful for the books and fairy stories she has shared and kept alive. And dream, someday, we will share them with another generation.

Fairy books, old and new.

My youngest with my brother, reading through the manual, prepping for fairy hunting.

And they are off!

One of our favorite movies, a gift from my mother, is Fairy Tale. A true story that takes place in Ireland about children finding and later proving the existence of fairies. With our love of fairies, you can imagine our delight when, while visiting dear friends in Riverside, CT we came across this fairy tree! The story is that a mother, with older children, decorates the tree for the neighborhood children. It is decorated for holidays as well and has seasonal themes. (I mean how cute is this!) And this past week, my youngest began writing to her tooth fairy, and pacifier fairy, and leaving notes for them under her pillow while she sleeps, and amazingly – they write back! Considering it was the last week of school, and her sister had a 5th grade graduation, it was especially amazing. Thank goodness for helpers.

Fairy tree, Riverside, CT

For all you fellow fairy lovers out there, here are some of our ideas, and others found on Pinterest:

My youngest attended a Mid Summer Night’s Dream party last June and all the girls made fairy gardens. They wore fairy like clothes, and took home their own magical plot for their yard. It.was.adorable.
Fairytopia was one of our favorite movies for quite some time. All the Barbie movies were. Which are basically the same movie repeated with different characters. And then of course there are the Disney fairy movies.
Pinterest (my latest obsession – was into it, not into it, back into it) has many ideas around fairy houses: here and gardens here
Both my girls read every one of the Rainbow Magic Fairy collection (also purchased by Aunt Betty!): here
Fairy fun is every where. I love this mailbox I pass on walks.