The Rainy Season

The rainy season is upon us. For over 2 weeks it has rained ... POURED ... for a large portion of each day. There has been no need to water our butterfly garden because it is being well tended by Mother Nature and the Rain Fairies. Boo Boo knows very well now that if it is not raining we should get outside right away ;-) As soon as the sun pops out, our butterflies are flittering around the garden and over the pool. It has been great fun to watch them. We have two Black Swallowtail chrysalis left. Something seems amiss with them, but the chrysalis still looks healthy. So, we will wait a while and see.

In just a few days, we are off to Georgia for 10 days. Boo Boo is very excited about flying in an airplane. She is also making a list of all the things she wants to do on her big date days with daddy (while mommy is in the Waldorf homeschool conference). I'm hoping all goes well and I get to attend both days :-) After a long weekend in Alpharetta, we will be headed down to LaGrange to Pa's house. Boo Boo is very excited to see Pa and everyone else. She has great big plans for the week.

BUTTERFLY RELEASE: MONARCH AND BLACK SWALLOWTAIL

This morning Boo Boo hopped out of bed very quickly to see if any more butterflies had emerged. Who could blame her after such an eventful day yesterday. We were greeted by another (our third) beautiful Monarch butterfly whose little wings were still damp and fresh. Boo Boo thought she might like some watermelon and orange slices for breakfast ... so, she received a fresh fruit buffet. However, she was not quite hungry yet ;-)

We also noticed that our Black Swallowtail chrysalis was quite dark and detailed wings shown through. I was keeping a close eye on this little one (so I thought) but our amazing Black Swallowtail snuck up on us. These little creatures have not been quite as predictable as our Monarchs. We've missed the pupating, which has occurred in the middle of the night and now the first emerging butterfly. Hmmmm ... I may need to send a memo to the two remaining ones that we would prefer them to be on the same schedule as the Monarchs ;-)

Daddy came home just in time today to witness the release of our third Monarch. This lady was ready to fly. The moment I took her out ... off she went. I could see the disappointment in Boo Boo's eyes. She really did enjoy the slower process of separation yesterday. So, we took a peak at the newly emerged Black Swallowtail to see if she might be ready to venture into the garden. Her wings looked fairly dry and she readily hopped onto my finger and then Boo Boo's. She had not tried out her wings in the cage at all and was more than happy to crawl all over Boo Boo and I. She rested with us for a while, enjoying Boo Boo's flowered pants and dress. Boo Boo giggled as she crawled up her arm and called it "grandma tickle". (Yes, Grandma Leda ... she has named the infamous way you tickle her with your fingernails ;-) and now requests it all the time ... however, I think the butterfly was a bit too ticklish).

Needless to say, the whole family is really enjoying our adventures in butterfly rearing and we are looking forward to the first Zebra Longwing eggs and Painted Ladies to come. The garden is growing and we are really enjoying the process. After our trip to Georgia, Boo Boo and I will have to focus on expanding the ENTIRE yard to a butterfly garden ;-) Who needs Butterfly World ;-)

PHOTOS OF BLACK SWALLOWTAIL PROCESS

MORE BLACK SWALLOWTAIL PHOTOS

AND MORE BLACK SWALLOWTAIL PHOTOS

Can you tell that this little creature just loved hanging out with us for the afternoon ;-) We quite enjoyed it ourselves.

OUR MONARCHS

What an amazing experience it has been to rear Monarch butterflies. Boo Boo and I collected three caterpillars from our garden and one egg. Over the past couple of weeks, we have watched them grow, eat milkweed, grow, eat more milkweed, and grow some more. Boy, The Very Hungry Caterpillar sums it up well ;-) We have been able to see up close the process by which these cute little guys grow and grow, although we missed the actual molting. However, we got very early morning displays of the chrysalis process ... truly amazing. The Monarch chrysalis must be the most beautiful of all the butterflies. They look like jade pendants with gold beading detail. Yesterday, we noticed that two of the four chrysalis were turning very dark. When taking a closer look, we saw the actual wings of the Monarch butterfly all folded up inside. So, we knew that it would emerge at any time. This morning, we were blessed with two beautiful Monarch butterflies as breakfast guests. We put them right in the middle of the kitchen table so we could keep our eyes on every move while eating our breakfast. In just moments, this little creature went from a folded, crumpled-up little lump to this amazing creature with beautiful wings. It pumped its wings for a while and then later in the morning took it's first little flight around the cage. Once we knew they were ready to fly, Boo Boo and I took them outside to set them free in our garden. She absolutely loved how they perched on her finger for a while before deciding to take flight. It was as if they knew how much she loved and cared for them and not real sure they were ready to "leave the nest" (hmmmm...). Just as quickly as they flew away, they came right back and fluttered all around us to sip nectar from the garden. It was quite a fun day!

THE PROCESS OF BECOMING A MONARCH BUTTERFLY

MORE MONARCH PICS

SPRING FUN

We've been having wonderful days outside in the sun and breeze. Today, we spent a good portion of the morning and afternoon expanding our butterfly garden. We planted more milkweed ... those little tiny caterpillars become big, fat caterpillars in no time and really start going through the milkweed ;-) We also planted lantana, salvia, marigold, zinna, pansy, vinca and cornflower. A lot of which we've started from seed or transplanted. A mama Monarch was not interupted at all by our gardening. She flittered around our heads and right up under us to lay eggs on the very milkweed we were moving from puts and putting in the ground. Not a very patient butterfly ;-) ... but, I guess when it's time, it's time. She must have been just waiting for us to bring home more milkweed. We have almost a dozen little caterpillars already ... one or two very big ones ... and quite a few tiny ones. We placed three caterpillars, ranging in size, and one egg in our nursery we purchased at Butterfly World. The little egg hatched the very next morning. So, now we have four caterpillars that we are watching closely in our nursery ;-) Boo Boo just observes them with awe ... not even the zillion questions like normal ... just peaceful awe.

We've also been creating little feeding spots for our birds and hoping to invite hummingbirds ... keep your fingers crossed ;-) We do have two little squirrels that just love our platform feeder ... and the other feeders also. We joke that each time I put up a more difficult feeder, the little squirrels sit back for a day or two (with their maps, drafting tools, etc.) and observe and then the little "engineers" go to work on developing a catapult to fly through the air and reach those feeders ;-) What fun to watch!

After a day gardening, we are hot and sweaty and a chilly pool feels nice (okay, so I realize that 80 degrees really isn't chilly, but I like mine like bathwater ;-)). So, that's where we've been spending the afternoon.

Boo Boo is sound asleep now. I sure hope she is having enchanted dreams of caterpillars, butterflies, fairies, squirrels, birds and all the amazing creatures in our yard. She told me today that she thought the fairies would probably come to live in her garden soon since we are getting it all pretty and now the butterflies and birds want to live in it ;-)

HAPPY SPRING everyone!

BUTTERFLY WORLD

Well, with all this talk of gardening and butterflies, we decided it was time to finally go for a visit to Butterfly World. All I can say is that it was absolutely enchanting. Over 1000 species of butterflies fluttering all around us. The little hummingbirds were also darling. Boo Boo very much enjoyed the day. We spent lots of time sitting on a bench and just enjoying them flutter about. We also took many pictures. Boo Boo loves the camera! We may have to add photographer to her list of hobbies.

More Butterfly Pics

More Butterfly Pics - and Hummingbirds

MAY DAY at Sea Star

We had an enchanting day at Sea Star (the Walorf school in BocaRaton). Boo Boo spent the morning creating a crown from fox grape vine and fresh flowers. Then the children got a chance to dance around the May pole. It was beautiful. Following the dance, we were entertained by a mesmerizing marionette play. Boo Boo, and most of the other children, were in awe. Within moments, she was asking if I can make those kind of puppets with strings ;-) Hmmm ... we'll see what we can do. Maybe the fairies can help ;-)