bugs

I have been taking the kids around White Oak Mountain (via Southern's biology trails) every week or so lately.  Last time we came across wild blueberries.  Seth and I gathered enough to make muffins while Paige very industriously used the empty pretzel bag to stalk and catch a butterfly - her heart's desire.  She got to keep him until she showed Dustin.  The poor thing was probably very thirsty after bouncing around in that salty sanctuary.  Thankfully, he landed on her hand before flitting off - so she got to touch him and bonus! he didn't die.

She caught herself a caterpillar at the park last week.  Her name is Sally Crawly and Seth promptly scampered upstairs to outfit our guest with her very own car and casa.  She enjoyed the house immensely (it had a climbing wall inside with handholds, so accommodating), but perhaps the car - being driven by Adam - was a little too much.  We agreed she would stay with us for 2 days before being set free.  She unfortunately left with a less fuzzy back (Noah is not so good with caterpillars yet) but whew, was also still alive.  Right after we delivered her out of doors, we saw this very happy bee bopping around in the garden.  Oh, they loved watching him dance in the squash blossoms.

And the photo above the bee is a total time suck.  I *ahem* somehow went from 41-sized squares to 40.  Do you know what happens when your blocks are all off by one row?!  Nothing good, let me tell you.  I  have spent the last two weeks ripping it out, counting it out, basting it out, and correcting it all.  Always good to have a work in progress.  Even if the progress is absurdly slow due to user error.