Cabbage Whites VI

We now have three pupae! 

We lost another little guy last week. Phoebe buried him in the front yard.

They start out a bright green and then darken.

Ours haven't darkened a lot though. 

It could be because their background is clear container on light brown carpet against white wall.

The kids at co-op playing while we wait for olders to finish class.

All three chrysalides are securely fastened and performing metamorphosis. Truly securely fastened. I won't say how many times little hands dropped them on this day. Or tell you that two of them became insecurely unfastened and had to be taped back on and we really, really hope they survive the trauma. 

This is why we can't have pets, ya'll. 

Heating up a nail to poke a hole in a film canister to make....

..... a food container for the adult butterflies. 

That's a solution of sugar, water, honey and yellow food coloring.

More radish seeds planted for the butterflies to lay eggs on. We're living on hope. And a little bit of prayer. Surely we'll have a male and female out of the three survivors.

The net home is ready.

Microscope picture of an exoskeleton that was shed for the last time.

Autumn Greetings

My favorite season! 

Crisp, brisk, spicy, cozy.

We don't do this every year, but we did pumpkin carving this year. 

Elizabeth decoupaged hers with diamond cut-outs.

Phillip did Harrison's. I'm not sure Harrison did much to his pumpkin. 

He's not one to get his hands messy.

He sure loves it though.

And dressing up for Halloween. 

(The trailer park of the holidays, is what Phillip called it. I hope that doesn't offend anyone. I thought it was hilariously true.)

 We have a fisherman. 

 Something about Harry Potter and Ravenclaw.

 An old fashioned girl.

 And something that Jonathan came up with last-minute. 

I don't have pictures of the apple cider, apple slices with caramel, pumpkin muffins, baked nuts and seeds, and other yummy fall delicacies we've been partaking of. Fall foods are one of the top reasons I love autumn. A warm oven when it's brisk and windy outside is another. Ooh, and a sparky fire in the backyard. Blue jean jackets and warm knitted sweaters are enough to stave off the nip of cold before we have to don the bulky coats of winter. Taking a hike in the sunshine without all the sweat. 

Autumn is that last enjoyment of the summer and the anticipation of what's fun about winter. 

Cabbage Whites V

They're growing and growing. I found the head of an exoskeleton. The larvae molt 4 or 5 times before they pupate. They eat the exoskeleton but leave the head. So this is a picture of the head through our microscope. Pretty cool, huh?

I think this guy is about to form a chrysalis.

Cabbage Whites IV

We've been watching these cuties grow. They start out very tiny, blending into their leafy food. They've been hatched about a week and some are over 1 cm now.

Phoebe got a picture of the PDF instructions we're using from our iPad.

Poking holes in the Brussel Sprout Barns.

 Filling film canisters with sand to weigh them down so they can hold 

brussel sprouts that are stuck on furniture tacks.

 We looked at a radish leaf and frass (caterpillar waste) through a microscope.

 Here's the centimeter-long larvae.

They should pupate in here.