For Kyndra's birthday, Ronda found a Live Butterfly Treehouse. Our entire family had fun with this project. I have been trying to document it and I have to tell you...taking pictures of butterflies in a butterfly treehouse is not so easy. But, blurry pictures are better than no pictures.
When you get the package, you get a postcard that you send in and specify when they should arrive in your home. Because our June and July were so busy, we set the arrival date for August 8. Right on time, the box of live Painted Lady caterpillars were delivered to our doorstep.
Inside the box was a larval culture cup containing 5 caterpillars with some nutrient.
We watched the caterpillars eat and grow for about 3 days.
They started to get fat and hang from the top of the cup. Once there, they hardened into chrysalids. It was so fast, almost happening overnight.
The chrysalids were then transferred to the treehouse. One fell off while in the cup, it was just set on a napkin on the bottom. 
It took about a week before the first butterfly hatched, the others soon followed. We fed them sugar water and oranges. I don't think I ever saw them eat but I trust that they were. One of the butterflies had a danaged wing. It may have been one of the ones that flew out in the kitchen, or t could have been hatched like that.
We watched and played with the butterflies all week. Kyndra named them...Crazy, Love, Una, Lily, and Pretty. As the ween went on they got stronger and flew around the treehouse more.
Today was the day. It was perfect outside, not too hot, windy, cold, or rainy. We brought them out and opened the tent by the butterfly bush. They flew away so fast that I didn't get any pictures! Can you believe it? Once they got out, they were just gone, over the fence, gone. 
Except for Crazy. She was the lame one. She couldn't fly too high and the kids played with her out in the grass for the next hour.
When Crazy was "resting" on a rock I feared the worst. Joe moved her up high to a flower and we'll hope she survives. Maybe she will hang out and thrive on the Butterfly bush. Who knows.I loved this gift! I want to do it again!
Thank you Ronda!
8 comments:
What a wonderful ending to your summer vacation!
What a GREAT gift!! I love the pictures and the ones of the girls at the end are beautiful!
Happy End of Summer & Start of a NEW school year!!
Wish I had had that project for my preschoolers when we read The Hungry Caterpillar! I will remember the gift for my grandkids!
Love,
California Patty
I have see that done at school...but never thought to do it at home. Duh. My girls would love it.
So very glad Kyndra has enjoyed her gift. They grew fast! I didn't know what to expect but I am glad it ended in happiness! Loved the names!
What a great idea! You got some fantastic pictures too!!!
How cool!! I want to give and get one of those gifts!!!
Great pics and great fun!
this is so great! My boys would love this!! what a fantastic job of documenting the whole thing!
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