Elizabeth received a "Butterfly Garden" for Christmas from her Aunt Debie. Now this was a really cool gift that we all enjoyed! We chose to wait until the weather warmed up and then sent for the mail-order Painted Lady butterfly larvae. We received a small plastic cup with 5 bristly caterpillars that we watched spin silken webs and eat special food for about a week or so. They then climbed to the top of the container, each suspending themselves from a single silk thread, and formed cocoons. Once all of the caterpillars were in the pupa stage, we carefully removed the top of the container that held the chrysalids and pinned it inside the Butterfly Garden to a mesh wall. And then we waited ... and waited ... and waited ... at least it seemed that way. 
About 10 days later, 5 Painted Lady butterflies emerged and the metamorphosis was complete! It was quite amazing to see, but "kind of yucky" according to Elizabeth (the butterflies excreted meconium and she thought it was blood). We placed fresh-cut flowers and watermelon doused with sugar water inside the Garden and watched as each one dropped onto the food and used their proboscis to drink. They fluttered about and we enjoyed them for a couple of days before deciding to release them, so that they could live out the remainder of their life cycle (about 2 weeks) as nature intended.
The first 4 butterflies left us without looking back. The last one had to be coaxed out of its artificial habitat and then just sat on our deck seeming to think about things for a bit. When we picked it up to try and encourage it to follow its siblings, it flew to Jim and sat on him for a bit. I was beginnning to think we had a "special needs" butterfly. Finally, it seemed to grasp the concept and took a leap of faith. It didn't follow the others, but instead headed off in its own direction, against the wind and into the sunset. It was odd, but I felt a sense of concern as it initially struggled and then a sense of pride when it finally succeeded. Maybe I've taken this motherhood gig just a bit too far ...
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