KT’s Favorite Showdown + The Most Unique Event Yet

Topics: Garden Show, Live Competition, Fun Community, Flowers, Conventions, Manifestation, Mindset, Vendors, Dance Exercise, Dancing, Healthy Food, Bingo, Community

It’s my third year at the NW Garden Show, and I can hardly wait! Why? Do I love gardening/flowers MORE THAN ANYTHING? Not exactly. But the best thing ever happens at this event - a live competition called “Container Showdown”. It’s super fun/funny. In front of a live audience, competitors have to decorate potting containers with flowers - though plenty of chaos ensues, and then, by the end of the event… the audience votes on the best one. It’s just super funny and lively and amazing every time I’ve seen it… and it’s really something I look forward to each year. Beyond that, there’s another event this weekend which I have no idea about, except the name, “Mix and Manifest,” which falls right in line with my goals/mindset lately. Plus, it's at a cool venue and I like getting myself into surprises.

Why Attend: I love to take my daughter to conventions, so we’ll go to this one. And then the next event is downtown, in the mid-afternoon, and it seems like something I will enjoy/learn from. So, absolutely worth the effort.

Photo Collage and Commentary:

Notes from the Events:

- Garden SHOW:

• I was taking my daughter around her stroller so I didn’t take too many notes.

• But we got SUPER LUCKY because right on our way in, a lady shouted at us and asked if we were going to the show. I hesitantly said, “yeah…” and she asked if we’d already purchased our tickets. I said, “not yet”. Then she told me she had an extra ticket! So we went up with her, went to Will Call and she gave us her etra ticket (kids are free) so that saved me about $30 and I was thrilled. I was already excited for this event and then it was even more.

• We visited lots of booths, got candy, snacks, and samples. There were a lot of the same people from a convention my daughter and I went to two weekends ago (which I realize now I didn’t blog about!!!! lol. It was the “Home Remodeling” show. Lots of the same people were here doing flooring, windows, and roofs. But also there were lots of garden-artists, flower-themed artists, and lots of the same vendors from last year that I recognized.

• My favorite event is the container showdown.

- Mix and Manifest:

• This event had lots of surprises. They started off super friendly and then gave you a yoga mat. She’s like, “what’s your favorite color?” and then once you tell her, she turns around and gives you the yoga mat of your color choice!

• There were lots of vendors, lots of dancing and dance competitions

• A yoga activity

• A dance-off

  • This was SO funny cause people went into the circle and showed off their moves, and then one lady who was the masseuse, older than me and a lot shorter than me… she was BUSTING MOVES - like she did the splits suddenly and then was humping the ground while in the splitttsssssss. I was jaw-dropped.

• A dance exercise activity led by this guy who kept being like, “THIS IS NOT A DRILL!” and “Janet Jackson precision in your moves, people!”

  • Only me and a few other people did it. Literally at one point, during his three songs, it was one other guy and me. This guy had done a rap ealier with his wife, a rap that was his business’ commercial about home inspections!

  • I got as involved as I could (minus socializing too much) because I learned at church earlier this morning that, when you are in discomfort, that’s when you grow the most. So I did the dancing and all sorts of activities that make me feel embarrassed, cause you’re scared others will judge you - but on purpose. To keep working on my bravery and self-assurance.

    • Also, lately my goal is to teach myself to dance (maybe starting with all my favorite classic Britney Spears choreography) hahah. Cause I want to get more exercise, and I’ve seen videos of people who teach themselves to become epic dancers.

• Lots of food… but a lot of people there didn’t know what caprese salads were. I told many people.

  • This made me think… like, am I more cultured/exposed to foods than I realized?

• And at this event, there was a teenager who talked to me quite a bit. During the social bingo, she didn’t know what some things meant, like “what’s your best self-care routine?” and “what are you most passionate about?”

  • I was really shocked she didn’t know those phrases, and it made me so interested in figuring out if there’s a way I can be more helpful and involved with kids her age in the future. Teaching them these things and their meanings. Not knowing what “self-care” and “most passionate about” means!? Wild.

• The event ended with a sound bath… which I wasn’t quite in the mood for, but it was still alright. She said, especially when you’re angry, sound baths can help.