Dull’s May Merry Market: Rain, Retail Therapy & Peak Midwest Spring Energy

If you’ve never been to Dull’s Tree Farm, imagine if a Hallmark movie had a budget, better food, and significantly more hanging baskets. I spent Mother’s Day weekend parked out at Dull’s for the May Merry Market, and honestly? The place is offensively charming. Fresh flowers everywhere, handmade goods, kids running feral in open fields, music drifting through the air—it’s the kind of place that makes you briefly believe you, too, could become a person who owns decorative throw pillows labeled “Fresh Eggs.”

Friday evening brought rain. Real rain. The kind where everyone insists they’re “totally fine” while quietly accepting the sacrifice to beat the crowd. People wandered through with umbrellas and hot drinks, stopping into me to dry off, browse books, and avoid spending another $14 on artisan soap they absolutely did not need but were probably still going to buy.

Then Saturday rolled in looking like a tourism commercial for Indiana spring. Perfect weather. Sunshine. Flowers flying off carts. Families hauling home plants they’ll spend all summer trying not to kill. Kids bounced between games, butterfly feeding, snacks, and generally living their best little outdoor lives while adults entered that dangerous “just browsing” phase of a handmade market where suddenly you own candles, earrings, local honey, and a wooden sign that says something vaguely inspirational. Inside me, things were busy in the best way. I had kids sprawled out reading on the floor, siblings arguing over graphic novels, and multiple adults walk in saying some version of: “Okay WOW.” Which, frankly, never gets old.

And there’s just something about Mother’s Day weekend at a place like Dull’s. Moms getting five uninterrupted minutes to look at books while someone else handled the children. Grandmas buying stacks for grandkids. Families slowing down long enough to actually hang out together instead of sprinting between sports practices and Target pickups. The whole weekend felt like a reminder that sometimes the best things are actually pretty simple: good weather, good people, flowers, food, and books. And maybe one unnecessary handmade purchase you absolutely justified by calling it “supporting small business.” Huge thanks to Dull’s for hosting such a magical weekend and to everyone who stopped by The Book Fairy. You all made this shiny silver bookstore feel very loved.

XO-Sylvia