Kid's Books
Studying caterpillars and butterflies is part of our summer science. A beautiful part of summer science. (You may have noticed monarch photos showing up in posts this month).
Each summer for the past few years the kids, predominantly Laurent, have collected and identified caterpillars. The kids keep the larvae in jars, determine their diet and feed them until they develop into a chrysalis or cocoon (chrysalis for butterfly, cocoon for moth). Alternately, the kids will keep a critter for a short time, research its natural habitat and observe its behavior then return it to our backyard.
We have had the most success with studying monarch caterpillars and keeping them till they emerge as beautiful butterflies. Two years ago Laurent wrote How to Keep Monarch Caterpillars and How to Feed Them. That same year I wrote Raising Monarchs with photos of the complete life cycle, minus the egg stage which is minute and could not be photographed with my camera.
Each summer we are inspired by these beautiful creatures and their marvelous transformation, not to mention epic migration.
If you'd like to read more about these amazing insects and butterflies/caterpillars in general we recommend the following books:
An Extraordinary Life: The Story of a Monarch Butterfly
The Journey: Stories Of Migration
Now if you'll indulge me a bit here's some photos from this month of monarchs flitting through our backyard, doing what appears to be a dance. Perhaps mating?
Some days there have been three at a time sucking nectar from the butterfly bush (Buddleia), a plant I highly recommend for it's intoxicating fragrance that attracts beautiful butterflies.
I've taken hundreds of photos trying to get a clear, crisp flight shot but I think these soft movements are beautiful and tell the story just as well.
This past weekend we took a whirlwind trip up into New Brunswick to pick up Laurent from my parents. We were supposed to meet in Maine and be hiking Mt. Katahdin with them (and a bunch of other people) but the rain and thunderstorms thwarted those plans. So instead we were gone a mere 28 hours; spent the night at a campground visiting my folks and came back home a complete family again.
The girls are happy to once again have their brother, friend and playmate back. Although we had some good times while he was gone I'm sure our days were not as special as being the only grandchild spending two weeks with your adoring grandparents. Quite predictably, Laurent had a fabulous time and (not so predictably) honestly didn't miss me a stitch (I just made up that phrase).
He's a live-in-the-moment kind of person and had just too much fun with Nana & Papa to think twice about missing life at home. I'm happy for this time he had and the memories, handbuilt wooden boats, beach stones and thrift store clothes Nana bought him that he came home with.
But while he was away the girls and I made a few memories also. And we even made some wardrobe updates of our own.
Pretty Sewing
One project I started that I haven't yet completed was to sew simple sundresses for the girls. I hope to finish these by next week and post my progress. Even more simple than those dresses though was making flouncy skirts out of existing sundresses.
The girls both owned sundresses with bodices that were either too small, itchy or just plain uncomfortable. After a few easy measurements I cut the tops off, sewed a casing, inserted an elastic and viola... pretty skirts. The perfect project for the girly groove we had going on.
A Paper Doll Craft
The main creative project of the last couple weeks has been paper dolls. And in Celine's case magnetic dolls. What started this crafting was the store bought magnetic doll set (pictured below) the girls were given on our trip to Gaspé. Celine originally thought she'd like to buy herself a tin, so the girls would each have one, but changed her mind to making them herself. That's my girl!
Celine made magnetic paper dolls and their clothes using two methods:
- Drawing and coloring designs right on the magnet sheet (purchased at the craft store).
- Printing paper designs and glueing on the magnet.
Brienne stuck to printing paper dolls and their clothes to play with and add to her collection.
Liana's Paper Doll Blog was our go-to source for the past two weeks. The girls spent hours surfing her hand drawn designs, picking and choosing their favorites to print. Celine prefers medieval-like designs and Brienne likes anything pink or purple!
The fashions on this blog are definitely womanly and not little girl paper dolls but they were perfect my girls' interest in grown-up gowns and period costumes. It's a very cool blog with many, many dresses and dolls.
Celine's own medieval dress design
A Princess Story
Knowing that I'd have just the girls for a couple weeks I even picked up a princess read aloud for bedtime. The Ordinary Princess is the delightful tale of a princess who is given the gift of "being ordinary" by her fairy godmother, much to the dismay of the royal court. She grows up looking rather ordinary, loving nature and the outdoors, not at all interested in normal princess life. When she is threatened to be married off to anyone who will take her (she is very ordinary looking after all) she runs away to live in the forest and eventually finds employment as a kitchen maid in the castle of the neighboring kingdom. While employed there she unwittingly falls in love with the young, very nice, "man-of-all-work" king, whose real identity is hidden from her, as hers is from him.
The story ends as you might expect, with a royal marriage - but this one based on loving each other for who they are, not their royal identities or pretty complexions. I personally loved the honeymoon in the small forest cottage.
This was the perfect princess story to read to my outdoor loving girls with just the right amount of girly romance, being who you are and "finding one's true love". All three of us loved it.
And there you have it. Two weeks of pretty, dolls, pink and princesses. Now that Laurent is back the days are more rambunctious, goofy and filled with insects and fantastical creatures once again. Family life as normal. It feels wonderful.
PS. Please see FIMBY mainpage or click the button below to find my updated resource page for all our household and kiddo craftiness.
This is the last Friday's Flowers for the month of June. We will resume the first friday in July. At which time I will also be drawing a winner for my soap giveaway from the May and June participants of Friday's Flowers.
I'll be totally honest with you, the photo of my picked lupine, the one in the bouquet is just a lame excuse to share the photos of the lupines growing wild and in our yard. I know Friday's Flowers is all about bringing the beauty indoors but sometimes the natural beauty that is only found uncut and untamed is so much more stunning.
So that's how I feel about these photos. Lupines in a bouquet - blah. Lupines out of doors - spectacular.
I put this little bouquet together to brighten our guest/sewing room. This week a childhood friend of mine and maid of honor at our wedding, whom I have kept in touch with over the years despite thousands of miles of distance between us, came to visit with her family. They were here for a couple nights on an east coast vacation. Catching up with her, getting to know her husband a bit, meeting her children - all of it so delightful.
There was a lupine for guest room (a little touch of Maine) but I personally think this view out the guest room window is much more beautiful.
This is Brienne's lupine plant in her little garden. She is very proud of its beautiful flowers. I am so happy for her that this plant did not fall prey to the aphids that destroyed the lupines in front garden. It was disgusting.
This is what lupines look like growing wild in Maine. They have been blooming since early June and should last a couple more weeks along the roadsides if I remember correctly.
While we're talking about lupines I'd like to recommend a good book, Miss Rumphius by author and illustrator Barbara Cooney.
The children and I loved the story's message to go to faraway places, live beside the sea and do something to make the world more beautiful. For Miss Rumphius that means planting lupines all over the country side in her later years.
Adventure, nature, finding home and creating beauty. What's not to love in a story like that? I've always said and I will repeat it again, one of the joys of raising children is the opportunity I get to read good children's books.
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- Your post should have a photo of a bouquet in it. I'm not going to be a rule task-master about this but the idea of Friday's Flowers is to bring them into our homes, or share them with others; to enjoy the bounty of summer's blossom both indoors and out.
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