A family favorite, popular date night, and just plain fun, is the Atlanta Botanical Garden's annual Scarecrows in the Garden exhibition! It officially opened today and will be on display through Sunday, October 29. Come out and see the more than 100 totally awesome scarecrows!
Every Tim Burton fan will know this "scarecrow" from The Nightmare Before Christmas, one of my favorite Halloween movies!
Did you know that the Atlanta Botanical Garden has been the film site for numerous movies and television shows? A few of them include The Vampire Diaries, Endless Love, and Devious Maids...all with wicked and/or scary scenarios!
I'm amazed year-after-year by the talent that goes into making the scarecrows for this exhibition. Some are made by families, some by clubs, some by companies...anyone can submit a scarecrow, as long as it won't scare the dickens out of the little ones.
On this visit to the Garden, a new friend Jeff joined me. Jeff is an Atlanta native who just moved back to Atlanta from St. Simons Island—which I visited for the first time earlier this year. We met through our mutual friend Nikki—my dear friend, social media influencer, and partner on our "By the Numbers" restaurant series.
Jeff and I went to the Chef Demo in the Edible Garden where Chef Megan was making an amazing Brussels sprouts dish. We said "Hello" before she started and it turns out that she and Jeff had met back in St. Simons Island at a chef event!
Small world.
You don't have to be a fan of the 1970s group Three Dog Night to get the humor of the totally brilliant "III Dog Knight" scarecrow. I've said it before and I'll say it again and again...I love clever! And the knight seems to think it's pretty funny, too.
I didn't catch the name of this one, but it makes me think it's what Maria von Trapp from The Sound of Music would look like if she were a scarecrow...as beautiful as always, even if Maria was wearing a Carmen Miranda headdress! This one should have come with a soundtrack!
Just as we were coming up on "Labrador Crowtriever", a youngster came up behind him and touched him. There was no button, no "touch here", but this kid discovered that this "scarecrow" has an audio feature! Barking! I'd have been on the floor if it had broken into Who Let the Dogs Out!
Ice cream!!! Ice cream!!! We all scream for ICE CREAM!!!
I don't know that I'd ever indulge in Stinky Strawberry, Nasty Neapolitan, or Wormy Watermelon, but you'd order it and ask someone else to try it, right? I come from a family of practical jokers. I try not to over indulge in the practice, but sometimes it just accidentally happens. That's not a warning, just saying.
I won't share a link here, but if you're a grownup and you've never seen Eddie Murphy's 1983 "Delirious" concert, check it out. The ice cream sequence will have you laughing so hard you'll spit out your ice cream!
I mentioned that companies can submit scarecrows. There are professional (designers) and non-professional categories. This one is from Georgia Public Broadcasting ... Masterpiece's Queen Victoria. Brilliant, isn't it?
Steampunk! I'm a fan. I've not done steampunk cosplay, but I've bought a couple of pieces—a stunning pocket watch for one—just in case I ever go in that direction. I could see the Atlanta Botanical Garden being the setting for a gorgeous Steampunk wedding, as well as nearby Rhodes Hall.
Did I ever tell you that I was on three bowling leagues at the same time? And that sometimes we would also practice a fourth day during the week? It was great fun. We traveled the U.S. going to tournaments and playing tourist. We won a few times, too!
My average was okay, but my biggest win was right here in Atlanta when I bowled a game, at a tournament, and made the first eight strikes in a row! I was sooooo close to a 300, but ended with a very respectable 244.
One of my bowling buddies is Chef Phil, a pastry chef whose delicious work can be found in the Garden's gift shop. He was in a "market" at the Tuesday night member event and after a tiny taste of his Rosemary-Ginger Shortbread, there was an immediate purchase. I shared the box with co-workers and EVERYONE raved about how delicious they are!
All the scarecrows in this exhibition are awesome...love them!
THIS particular "scarecrow" is also an opportunity to be a humanitarian, to help those affected by the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico, which is a United States Territory, for anyone who doesn't realize.
For every picture of "Frida Kahlocorn" posted on Instagram and/or Twitter with the hashtag #ATLunicorns, DigitasLBi will donate up to $500. Snap away, tag, and help those who are in desperate need, please.
There was PIE!
So, the evening we went was the Fall Member Evening. We each got a coupon for a free mini pie! I had the apple and Jeff had the blueberry. I wish I knew who made them (anyone know?), because they were AMAZING! The flakiest crust and the filling was perfectly flavored...not too sweet, just wholly balanced fruit flavor.
One of the perks of membership, in addition to visiting the Garden during daytime hours and Thursday evenings during the summer, is that we get to experience exhibitions before they open to the general public and we get Gift Shop discounts, too! That's only some of the membership benefits.
Make your way to the Atlanta Botanical Garden to see this year's totally fun "Scarecrows in the Garden" exhibition, now through Sunday, October 29.
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
Every Tim Burton fan will know this "scarecrow" from The Nightmare Before Christmas, one of my favorite Halloween movies!
Did you know that the Atlanta Botanical Garden has been the film site for numerous movies and television shows? A few of them include The Vampire Diaries, Endless Love, and Devious Maids...all with wicked and/or scary scenarios!
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
I'm amazed year-after-year by the talent that goes into making the scarecrows for this exhibition. Some are made by families, some by clubs, some by companies...anyone can submit a scarecrow, as long as it won't scare the dickens out of the little ones.
On this visit to the Garden, a new friend Jeff joined me. Jeff is an Atlanta native who just moved back to Atlanta from St. Simons Island—which I visited for the first time earlier this year. We met through our mutual friend Nikki—my dear friend, social media influencer, and partner on our "By the Numbers" restaurant series.
Jeff and I went to the Chef Demo in the Edible Garden where Chef Megan was making an amazing Brussels sprouts dish. We said "Hello" before she started and it turns out that she and Jeff had met back in St. Simons Island at a chef event!
Small world.
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
You don't have to be a fan of the 1970s group Three Dog Night to get the humor of the totally brilliant "III Dog Knight" scarecrow. I've said it before and I'll say it again and again...I love clever! And the knight seems to think it's pretty funny, too.
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
I didn't catch the name of this one, but it makes me think it's what Maria von Trapp from The Sound of Music would look like if she were a scarecrow...as beautiful as always, even if Maria was wearing a Carmen Miranda headdress! This one should have come with a soundtrack!
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
Just as we were coming up on "Labrador Crowtriever", a youngster came up behind him and touched him. There was no button, no "touch here", but this kid discovered that this "scarecrow" has an audio feature! Barking! I'd have been on the floor if it had broken into Who Let the Dogs Out!
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
Ice cream!!! Ice cream!!! We all scream for ICE CREAM!!!
I don't know that I'd ever indulge in Stinky Strawberry, Nasty Neapolitan, or Wormy Watermelon, but you'd order it and ask someone else to try it, right? I come from a family of practical jokers. I try not to over indulge in the practice, but sometimes it just accidentally happens. That's not a warning, just saying.
I won't share a link here, but if you're a grownup and you've never seen Eddie Murphy's 1983 "Delirious" concert, check it out. The ice cream sequence will have you laughing so hard you'll spit out your ice cream!
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
I mentioned that companies can submit scarecrows. There are professional (designers) and non-professional categories. This one is from Georgia Public Broadcasting ... Masterpiece's Queen Victoria. Brilliant, isn't it?
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
Steampunk! I'm a fan. I've not done steampunk cosplay, but I've bought a couple of pieces—a stunning pocket watch for one—just in case I ever go in that direction. I could see the Atlanta Botanical Garden being the setting for a gorgeous Steampunk wedding, as well as nearby Rhodes Hall.
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
Did I ever tell you that I was on three bowling leagues at the same time? And that sometimes we would also practice a fourth day during the week? It was great fun. We traveled the U.S. going to tournaments and playing tourist. We won a few times, too!
My average was okay, but my biggest win was right here in Atlanta when I bowled a game, at a tournament, and made the first eight strikes in a row! I was sooooo close to a 300, but ended with a very respectable 244.
One of my bowling buddies is Chef Phil, a pastry chef whose delicious work can be found in the Garden's gift shop. He was in a "market" at the Tuesday night member event and after a tiny taste of his Rosemary-Ginger Shortbread, there was an immediate purchase. I shared the box with co-workers and EVERYONE raved about how delicious they are!
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
All the scarecrows in this exhibition are awesome...love them!
THIS particular "scarecrow" is also an opportunity to be a humanitarian, to help those affected by the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico, which is a United States Territory, for anyone who doesn't realize.
For every picture of "Frida Kahlocorn" posted on Instagram and/or Twitter with the hashtag #ATLunicorns, DigitasLBi will donate up to $500. Snap away, tag, and help those who are in desperate need, please.
 |
| Scarecrows in the Garden 2017 | Atlanta Botanical Garden | Photo: Travis S. Taylor |
There was PIE!
So, the evening we went was the Fall Member Evening. We each got a coupon for a free mini pie! I had the apple and Jeff had the blueberry. I wish I knew who made them (anyone know?), because they were AMAZING! The flakiest crust and the filling was perfectly flavored...not too sweet, just wholly balanced fruit flavor.
One of the perks of membership, in addition to visiting the Garden during daytime hours and Thursday evenings during the summer, is that we get to experience exhibitions before they open to the general public and we get Gift Shop discounts, too! That's only some of the membership benefits.
Make your way to the Atlanta Botanical Garden to see this year's totally fun "Scarecrows in the Garden" exhibition, now through Sunday, October 29.
