Mia Scissorhands

Mia has always had a fascination with plants.  From the time she could crawl she has always found a way to remove all the soil from our potted plants quicker than I could say "Miracle Grow". Now that she is older, and apparently more advanced, she has graduated to "pruning".  Mia can strip a plant bare in 30 seconds flat.  I'm talking leaves, buds and branches-- all gone.  Unfortunately, I only catch her after the deed is done, chlorophyll under her fingernails and surrounded by a sea of greenery.  The state she leaves our house plants in would make Charlie Brown's Christmas tree look like the one in Rockefeller Center.  One would expect the poor plants to be so post-traumatically stressed that they just die, but they always grow back for more.  And if anyone is looking for a sturdy flower, try marigolds.  Two minutes after they were freshly planted in the front yard, Mia ripped off half of the flower tops and they're still blooming strong, so I am looking on the bright side: Maybe this year Santa will bring my darling daughter some pruning shears and a book on topiary.