Butterflies!

I purchased one of the Butterfly Gardens for my nephew for his birthday and I wanted one for Madeline soon after.  Madeline started getting paranoid this spring as the bugs came out and I remembered the butterfly kit and purchased one for her in hopes of alleviating her fear of bugs.  Turns out it did nothing to do this, but it was loads of fun and something I know we'll continue to do yearly from here on out.  Truth be told, Craig and I were fascinated by it as much - if not more - than Madeline.

She would check on the growing caterpillars daily, but once they formed chrysalids she wasn't nearly as interested in them.  We watched videos of the transformation and she seemed to get it even though the activity was nil.  But then one day, a butterfly emerged.  And. she. was. hooked.

We kept them for about a week and then released them out back.  I opened the top and a brave Madeline happily pointed them out and they flew off one by one.

Oh, and Aunt Katie was here for the grand release.

 It was funny though, because every time a butterfly would flutter, she'd jump back.  But she always returned to the habitat to peer in to see her little friends.

 All five caterpillars turned into chrysalids, but only four butterflies formed.  I could tell one had died because instead of a golden chrysalid, he was black.  But Madeline didn't notice because of the four fluttering creatures had her attention.

Until next time...