Painted Ladies Emerging

Our membership to the Houston Museum of Natural Science is coming to an end.  Over the past year we've had an awesome time learning about the world, both past and present.  One of our favorite things to do when visiting the museum is the Cockrell Butterfly Center.  For a small price we can learn all the yucky bug info that we can stand and walk among beautiful butterflies.  The cost of the membership was well worth it and I'm sure that we will renew.

 The kiddos received a butterfly garden kit for Christmas.  We really couldn't wait to send away for our caterpillar, but decided that we should wait for warmer weather and a period of time where we knew we wouldn't be travelling.  Who really wants to take their "pet" bugs on vacation, right?  Finally, about three weeks ago, we sent away for our bug friends.  In the mail we received a small container with 5 Painted Lady butterfly caterpillars and their food for the next week.  As the week wore on, we watched these tiny thing grow in size and hang upside down to become chrysalises.  The actually process of changing into a chrysalis is quite amazing and mysterious (to me at least).  We were so lucky to actually watch one shed its skin and become a chrysalis.  The process took about 3 minutes and it was a wonderful 3 minutes full of excitement and wonder.  Then came the anxious waiting.

Once in their chrysalis state, you have to wait about a week to see them emerge.  My week was spent checking every day for some sign of change that could signal our attention.  But none came.  One morning we woke up to find a butterfly.  Oh our amazement!  Here was our friend, back again; this time greeting us with fluttering wings and an out of this world proboscis.  As the days went on we never did catch a glimpse of one of our ladies coming out of her shell, so to speak.  In the end we had 5 beautiful butterflies.  Hearing them flying around in the mesh cage was a surprising treat.  Watching them suck from slices of orange was another. But the day finally came for us to let them go.  Orry quoted the Wild Kratts by saying that the butterflies should be "living free and in the wild".

Our kids' love of animals, even bugs (shudder), is a great thing to encourage.  Along the way I have learned so much pertaining to the world around me.  I tend to notice nature everywhere I go.  Butterflies flying through the parking lots, birds swarming around the intersections downtown, small woodland creatures (squirrels) hoping for a morsel from our picnic.  Getting involved in the things our kids are interested in is a big step in keeping them interested.  It also validates their feelings about the amazing and wonderful things this world has to offer.  Never in a million years did I think that I would be interested in mole crickets or the difference between a Stegosaurus and a Kentrosaurus, but here I am.  And I have my kiddos to thank for it!