Mobot festivals

Garden Glow 2016

On Friday, for the second year in a row, we attended the member preview night of the Missouri Botanical Garden “Garden Glow.” Some of it was the same as last year, and a few things were different, which I thought was the perfect combination. There were things we were really looking forward to seeing again (like the “light saber garden” and the tunnel of lights), but we also got to see some new things, too.

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This is an incredibly beautiful and well-organized event, and now that we’ve been to it twice, I’m pretty sure it’s a new family tradition!

Garden Glow

I realize we haven’t even made it to Thanksgiving yet, and here I am posting pictures of Christmas lights. But the Missouri Botanical Garden had a members’ preview night of the Garden Glow last Friday, and of course we were there!

It’s just as beautiful as you might expect, and then some!

It was fun seeing the homes on the property, from the gatekeeper’s cottage to Henry Shaw’s town house, to Tower Grove House, all decked out in white lights:

The tunnel of lights was a huge hit…we went through it twice!

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I really loved seeing the gazebo lit up…and the upside-down tree hanging in the middle looked like an over-the-top Victorian kissing ball!

Of course, the crown jewel of the event is the Climatron. You can’t even imagine how it sparkles!

I’m so glad we finally got to see the Garden Glow for ourselves…I hope you get a chance to see it, too!

The Lantern Festival: Magic Reimagined

It’s almost impossible to describe how beautiful and amazing the lanterns at the Missouri Botanical Garden Lantern Festival are. They’re so detailed and colorful, massive yet delicate, and some of them include changing colors, movement, water, steam, or fire features, plus music playing in the background. It’s an amazing experience to walk through and see them, and you really should go do so. Just in case you can’t make it, though, I’m just going to let the pictures speak for themselves, so you can get a glimpse of each beautiful creation.

Phoenix Reborn

Sun Yatsen Gate

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Full Bloom Peonies

Porcelain Elephants: Toward a Better Time

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Wetland Wonders

Lotus Girl and the Dragon King

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Soaring Dragon Horse

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Crane Paradise

Chrysanthemum Pathway

Dandelions and Pandas

Cherry Tree Arches

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Double Ninth Festival

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Construction of the Great Wall

Flower Fairies

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Lantern Way

Porcelain Stupas Pagoda

Birdland

Joyous Greeting

Giant Penjing

Year of the Sheep

Peacock Vase

Now you have an idea of what kind of amazing things you can expect to see at the Lantern Festival. But pictures are no substitute for seeing and experiencing the whole thing for yourself, so please visit the Missouri Botanical Garden one evening this summer!

Nature Connects

We finally made it to the Nature Connects exhibit, which is in and around the Climatron at the Missouri Botanical Garden!

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It’s simply amazing to see what can be done with Lego bricks. We were especially fortunate that we were there on the day that the artist, Sean Kenney, gave a presentation about his work. It was fascinating to see how he builds his way larger than life-size creations!

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I highly recommend a visit to the Botanical Gardens before the sculptures leave in September. And if you’re not in the St. Louis area, don’t worry…it’s going to be traveling the country (and visiting Canada!), for the next few years, so it may be stopping in your area soon!