Sunflower Playhouse

At the Sabin Orchard neighborhood meeting, everyone shared what they wanted out of their neighborhood park orchard, and they even gave the kids a forum to share what they wanted.  They wanted a tire swing.  Of course, they want to play!
What if at the orchard there was a play house that was a living structure designed with plenty of twists and turns to increase both the edges and little imagined scenarios.  A water catchment system could be included to educate young minds while they play (bwa-ha-ha! the sinister mind of an educator strikes again!) and they could use the system to water the herb garden that borders their living play house.
Oh yeah, there should be a tire swing, too.  Edible shrubs could line the outskirts of the park.
So Rebecca mentioned that a seven year old requested fairy houses so I looked it up and here they are!

 There should be fairy house workshops in the orchard where the neighborhood fairy enthusiasts show us how to make fairy houses!

Instructions to make your Fairy House:

1. Using serrated knife, cut a small slice from wide end of foam egg to make the form for the Fairy House; angle cut slightly to egg tilts to the back. (HINT: For smoother cuts, wax the knife blade with an old candle.) Glue egg to the back corner of the foam sheet.

2. Paint egg and base brown; let dry. Glue on small pebbles to form walkway, front door, and two windows; as you glue, press pebbles firmly into foam.

3. Create a fine "dust" from the sphagnum moss by forcing several chunks through a strainer; the moss dust will be used to texture the surface of the base and house. Spread a thin layer of glue on house, avoiding the door and windows, and on the base, but not on the walkway; sprinkle moss dust over glue.

4. Slice branch in half by pounding a screwdriver into one end. Using saw, cut the following pieces from the halved branch: • One 1" piece (door step) • Two 3/4" pieces (window boxes) • Two 1-1/4" pieces (walkway steps) Glue pieces in place, using utility knife as needed to cut away foam.

5. Glue small dried flowers in window boxes. Glue small seed pods on either side of window for shutters

6. Cut apart pinecone; pinecone scales will serve as the shingles. Glue scales around narrow end of egg, overlapping scales as you go. (The model's roof has five layers of scales.) For the final layer, trim to a point the stem ends of three scales and glue to the very top with points touching. Add mushroom chimney.

7. Spread glue on walkway; sprinkle with sand.

8. Create a garden by adding small dried flowers and greens on either side of the walkway; use a skewer or sharp pencil to poke holes in foam first, then add glue and insert stems.

9. Glue reindeer moss around the base of house, creating "bushes".

10. Using sphagnum moss and deer moss, fill in bare spots and cover sides of base. Add fungus and mushrooms as desired for accents.

11. Create a backdrop around the Fairy House by adding dried flowers and greens of various sizes and textures; use a skewer or sharp pencil to poke holes in foam first, then add glue and insert stems.

12. Glue berry or small bead onto door for doorknob.

These fairy houses are such beautiful representations of how we can get back to living in harmony with nature.  We are just one of the species on this planet and we possess the power to destroy or cultivate.  In relation to harvesting trees for our energy source, this is most apparent.  We could easily wipe out entire forests if we make it a policy to use trees as our "sustainable" energy source because it is seen as renewable because we can just grow more.  I've already become cynical with the use of sustainable and I've only recently become comfortable even using it correctly.  It's become the new word to bastardize and pervert in the name of money.  In a budget proposal issued from the district I work for they introduced "sustainable cuts" for the district and they were deemed sustainable because these cuts to personnel such as teachers or counselors would not have to be cut the next year.  I guess they are choosing to see these as sustainable cuts because it's a cut that won't go away.  WTF?  Are they kidding?

No.  They are not.    These are not sustainable cuts in the spirit of or the actual definition of the word.  Let's see:  Sustainable- Capable of being sustained, to supply with necessities or nourishment; provide for.
Well, cutting teachers, raising class sizes and taking away counselors doesn't seem to nourish or provide for our children.  This is a going to be a trendy wave businesses and government entities are going to ride in the near future and even closer present.  They will use the word sustainable to sell their unsustainable practices in order to package a rotting a piece of legislature and call it a fresh idea.  These types of relabeling is reminiscent of the "healthy forests" act during the George W. Bush regime.  By the way, the proposed budget from the district was a glossy full color print with little copper pennies with silver dimes and nickels falling down the bottom right corner of the page!  What the...?