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I've been curious about using cloth pads since I first read a post about them on Becoming Crunchy. In fact, Kelly had an entire week devoted to "mama cloth" and wrote up reviews for different brands of pads and even tampons, plus she had giveaways. I love entering giveaways, but I shied away from these. I wanted NOTHING to do with having to wash blood out of pads everyday for a week straight. Plus, my periods are so very heavy. This means that 1) I didn't think these things would manage to keep me from having even bigger messes to clean up, and 2) I get so very tired and lazy from the onslaught of blood-loss that I do the bare minimum around here for at least the first couple of days. I don't want to have to clean these pads out (and just how much work will that take?!) everyday or else fall back into using disposables. And there's no way I could afford to make the initial investment to go all-cloth and then not use them.
Then, last night, on my Facebook News Feed, I saw a post about Party In My Pants' Cloth Pad Curious giveaway. Anyone who is interested can order a cloth pad of their choice (fabric color/print will be a surprise) for only the cost of shipping. You can choose between different sized pads, from thong pads to the "maxi liner". You can choose whether you want to try flannel or cotton fabric. And, if you want to spend an extra $0.25, you can get a pad that has snaps on the wings to make you feel more secure (I chose that option!) The one thing is, if you've ordered from Party In My Pants before, you cannot take part in this giveaway. It is restricted to new customers only.
For US residents, shipping will cost a mere $3.99 - not bad for a chance to try out a cloth pad! For those who live in Canada and Mexico (yes, this offer is open to you, too! Amazing, huh?!), the shipping will cost only $5.99. And, if you live anywhere else in the world, don't think you're being left out. You can get the same offer for $9.99 shipping.
When I get my pad, which I was told will be in the mail ASAP, I'll write you a little review and show you some of the cool stuff on their site, like the PIMP Prescription Quiz! And, come on, you gotta love a company that makes cloth menstrual pads naming themselves "Party In My Pants", right?!
A special thanks to all who entered. Don't forget about the KY Brands Intimacy Experiment giveaway. You can access the giveaway through the link at the top of the page.
So, yeah, it's been kinda weird around here lately. And this is the song that is on constant replay in my head - from the time I wake up until I finally manage to fall asleep. I feel like I'm hanging on by a thread. No, a hair. I really don't know why - that's the really strange thing about it. If you've been keeping up on my Intimacy Experiment posts, things are going well there. LOL - No, not just in the bedroom! All around OK - we're talking very openly about everything. Even when what is said could potentially hurt the other person, it's all taken in stride. It's so important that we are able to get everything out into the open and then work on it from there. So, like I said, the flip-out thing isn't coming from that part of my life.
Little Guy is becoming more and more challenging. He's not like other kids, at least not the ones I have known. He's really confident and that can cause a ton of problems. He is great at helping out because he loves doing the things he sees everyone else doing. Problem is, he tries doing these things on his own. Dangerous things. Today, for instance, he was outside with my husband. They were fixing something and Little Guy was given a screwdriver and a wooden mallet to use. He was very serious about his job and worked hard. My husband turned around to grab a few more nails and when he turned back, Little Guy was GONE!
He was found heading through the woods behind the house (the grass is 1/2 foot taller than him!) We found out he was on his way to the library. He knows the way and must have figured he was capable of going there on his own. Understandable from his point of view. Why couldn't he go? He knows how to look both ways for cars and all that stuff. When he learned that we weren't going to let him traipse off to the library on his own, he had a tantrum. The only words my husband got out were, "You need to wait for me or Mommy to go to the library," before the tantrum started.
I don't give in to tantrums. I don't punish him when he has them. I merely try hugging him, talking to him quietly, or ignoring him - based on what he seems to need at the time. If he hugs back, it usually means he's tired and needs a nap or a rest time. If I talk quietly and he wants to hear what I have to say, he'll quiet down, too. He understands that, sometimes, we can discuss the disagreement and he might get his way - even partially (like, we can go to the library after we have a snack.) If he's being stubborn or insistent upon getting what he wants NOW without and compromise whatsoever, I have to resort to ignoring him. Every once in a while, I'll say, "I can't understand you when you're whining/crying/yelling." If he starts kicking or throwing things, I simply pick him up and move him to a safer location (the bed is great because he can jump his anger out and hit or throw the pillows all he wants!) For any tantrum, I keep my voice steady and a straight face the whole time.
It's not really working. You see, I thought that after a while, he would see that acting this way would not get him what he wanted. Sometimes the tantrums are out of his control - he's frustrated and just loses it. I get that. But the majority of the time, he's doing it to see what he can got out of it. He'll stop for a minute and, totally calm, say something like, "I want go library - NOW!" All I have to do is say anything but, "OK! Let's go!" and he starts the whole tantrum all over again. These thing last, on average, 20-30 minutes. And he's loud. And he sounds like he's being beaten. I'm waiting for the cops to knock on my door. Seriously.
It's a daily thing, usually we get three or more in a single day. I know how it started - hubby hates it when he cries. He doesn't want his kids to be sad or angry with him. Heck, I've seen his 23 year-old daughter pout and cry at him to get her way! (Ridiculous, I know!) I caught him "making deals" with Little Guy a few weeks ago. "If you help me pick up your cars, we'll have some ice cream! Is it a deal?" Oh. no. he. didn't...
So, I asked Hubby about it. You see, Little Guy's tantrums quadrupled about 6 weeks ago - the same time he started to hang out with Daddy for longer periods of time and on a regular basis. I suspected something might be up, but just wasn't sure what - until I overheard the ice cream thing. Here's what he said to me, "It works for me, so that's what I'm going to do. If I have to bribe him to do things or promise something fun in exchange for what he wants and it keeps him from crying or screaming, I'm doing it."
Anyway, it took until yesterday for my husband to admit his way was making our child become a spoiled brat. Don't get me wrong, he has his good moments, too, but it feels like my entire day consists of nothing but trying to get this kid to learn that he cannot have or do anything he wants. Now my husband thinks that maybe a smack on the butt will show him how to act. I laughed at him! No one is hitting anyone around here. No, wait a minute, Little Guy has been hitting. He hits Hubby, my oldest, and the cat. He likes getting a reaction out of them. He doesn't hit me because I calmly grab his hand, put it down to his side, and tell him that hitting hurts and it makes me angry and sad. End of story. They make a big deal out of it - either by getting angry or lecturing a 2.5 year-old who is ignoring them. As soon as the anger dies down or they stop telling him all of the reasons that hitting is wrong, he does it again. It eventually ends up with Little Guy having a tantrum and either my oldest stomping out of the house or my husband saying that he can't take this anymore and leaving the room. Thanks guys. The cat usually just leaves - he's no idiot. But sometimes, he'll turn around and scratch Little Guy. Good. It always stops him in his tracks. I will usually ask him if he liked it when the kitty scratched him and explain that hitting hurts the kitty just as much. For some reason, he still hits him.
There are more things, but these show the major problems. I don't know what else to do. I talk to him to make sure he understands he's being heard. I explain in short and simple terms why he cannot get his way. I let him get his frustrations out. I try to figure out if he's hungry or tired or not feeling well. I've changed his diet. I'm at the end of my rope. I literally cannot keep this up.
In the morning, before I open my eyes, I swear I can hear the click-click-click of a roller coaster going up that first big hill. By the time I sit up, the roller coaster has taken the plunge. You know how you can't breathe in when the coaster first flies down the hill and those butterflies in your stomach are now in your throat and you can't even get out a good scream? It's fun once or twice on that one day a year that you go to the amusement park. I feel that from the time I sit up in bed until I manage to fall asleep at night. I know it's anxiety. I keep it at bay with an arsenal of teas, homeopathic medicines, and sheer willpower. But I am so afraid that I'm going to go into full panic attack mode and never come out of it. At least not without a lovely 72-hour "observation" stay at the local nut house. That just adds to the anxiety. What will happen to the kids if I end up losing it? Hubby just can't do it (No, I know this. If you've read some of my older posts, you understand why.) What if I lose it and we're at the park or the library? What if I lose it and I never get "it" back??? All of these questions (and more) just add to the anxiety.
I recently realized that I've been through a LOT of bad stuff. More than people could imagine. There is only one other person in the world who knows (most of) my life story and he finds it hard to believe that all this stuff has happened to me. But I've held it together well through everything. I might have cried, been scared, or flipped out for a second, but I kept it together and got by. And now tantrums are going to bring me down??? I don't think it's just that. I think that maybe my mind just needs a little vacation. A week or two of not worrying about everything. The question is: How do I get that? I seriously think that, if I don't get some kind of relief, I'm going to be heading to the funny farm.
(Oh, and I tried a psychologist. He referred me to a psychiatrist who suggested Xanax. I don't want to drug my problems - they need to be fixed the old fashioned way. I took some "chill pills" to get through cancer and death with my first husband and they made me careless about a lot of important things. I never even had a chance to grieve properly because the pills made it 'OK'.)
So, if you don't get anything but the sporadic posts that I've promised to write for a couple of companies, I'll still be around. I just need to chill out some.
This is not a post for you. Please hit the back button, close the page, or anything else that will get you away from this page!
Sincerely,
ME!
Can you guess what Day 3 of the KY Intimacy Experiment is all about from the title of this post? It's one of the oldest pick-up lines around. There are others that really stand out to me, too: 1) "Your feet must be tired because you've been running through my mind ALL day!", 2) "Do you come here often?", and 3) "Did it hurt?" Did what hurt?! "Did it hurt when you fell from heaven, 'cause you must be an angel!" <Insert eye-rolling here>
Today's exercise is all about going back to the time when you both first met. The excitement of learning all about this new person. The little chill that ran down your spine by a mere brush against his arm. The novelty of flirting with someone new and not knowing quite where it may lead. As time goes by, this shiny new relationship tarnishes until the shine is completely gone. You know each other so well that there just isn't anything new to discover. Getting the laundry folded and put away before hitting the hay is just as desirable a prospect (maybe even more so) as stealing a few minutes of one-on-one time with your partner. You probably can't even remember what it was that first sparked your interest in your partner.
So, as per the instructions in our KY Intimacy Experiment booklet, hubby and I got out the journal and each made a list of the things that turned us on about the other when we first felt those turned-on feelings for one another. After writing all of these things down, we circled the ones that were still true. NOT an easy task to be honest about! Then, we made two more lists that had to do with the present - the positive and negative attributes we felt the other had. These lists took time. We decided to give it a full 24 hours. Both of us carried little note pads with us the entire time so we could write down something as soon as we thought of it (Hey - we're getting old and the memory thing really applies here. I can have a thought and lose it all in a few seconds!) After the 24 hours was up, we made a "date" to go over our lists and talk about them.
I was pretty apprehensive about sharing my lists. The first one was rather easy. I remember many of the things that first attracted me to Hubby. The negative and positive attributes right now worried me. My negative list for him was twice as long as the positive one. Should I rewrite them, leaving a bunch of the negatives off this time? It wasn't honest and we promised to be completely open while doing this experiment, so I left the lists alone. Here's the funny thing - he had the same thoughts. While I can tell you that I'm so great that his negative list wasn't twice as long as the positive one, I have to admit that the positive one wasn't all that long and it mainly centered on things like, "You're a great mom."
The lists ended up being a great thing for us. The negatives were especially good. Rather than going about sharing them in a nagging way, or receiving them in a defensive way, we did a good job of being objective. For every negative, we each had a chance to say why we act or behave in such a way and then shared possible solutions or compromises. By the time we were done, we both felt a great connection and understanding with each other. And the first list - the one about what first attracted us to one another - was a wonderful reminder of our beginnings. I can say that we were both feeling turned on after sharing those lists and reminiscing over some of our first encounters!
And that brings me to part two of Day 3. This was really weird for me (hubby loved it!) We were supposed to go somewhere public, act like we didn't know each other, and pick each other up! Yes - you hear about people doing this stuff, but I never considered actually doing it. I am so glad that the booklet mentioned dressing attractively, not in your everyday garb. I'd have probably done this in my torn up jeans and stained T-shirt. Instead, I dug to the bottom of the closet and found an old mini skirt that hadn't seen the light of day for years. I even broke out the make up and attempted to do my hair.
We arranged for a neighbor to come over and hang out with Little Guy (the oldest is visiting his grandpa for a couple of weeks). We walked toward downtown all fancied up (we don't have a car - it's cheaper and greener and we live close enough to places to walk nearly everywhere.) When we got close to the bar we agreed on "meeting" in, I kept walking and Hubby walked around the block so we didn't walk in together. It would have made pretending not to know each other a little weird, you know? I went in and pretended to order a beer like I did it every Friday night - really, I can't remember the last time I was in a bar! I have to say that it made me feel pretty sexy to have a bunch of guys looking me over as I walked from the door to the bar. I'm used to just being "Mom", not "that chick over there".
I was kind of feeling weird about being so... well, sluttyfeely, and then we left holding on to one another. You should have seen to looks on some of the barflies' faces! They had been watching us all evening and I made sure to ask Hubby loud enough for them to hear, "Do you live far from here? Should we go to my place? Let's just go wherever is closer - I can't wait any longer!" I think I heard at least three jaws hit the floor before the door closed behind us - LOL!!!
All the way home, that new, excited, flirty feeling stayed with us. We had a slight downward spiral when we got home and had to say good-bye to the neighbor and put Little Guy to bed. Hubby managed to get it going again when he used his pick-up line in the kitchen as I was pouring myself some coffee (it was going to be another late night.) I'll leave the story there. Any more and my blog's going to get moved from Google's SafeSearch mode. Suffice to say, we had fun!
Would I do it again? Probably not. It certainly was worth doing this time because we really needed to go back and remember what it was that attracted us to each other in the first place. Talking about it with the lists was a good starter, but actually going to a bar and "meeting" each other all over again really helped us not just remember but experience all of those attractions all over again. We each kept our lists and look at them once in a while just to remember. I don't walk past my husband without getting a little chill down my spine nowadays! It's a wonderful feeling to be in "lust" with each other all over again.
Time For Extra Entries!!!
For TWO MORE ENTRIES, comment below and tell me whether you think that picking each other up in a bar, restaurant, etc. would spice up your relationship. Do you think you could actually go through with it??? Answer the question in your first comment, then just type "Entry 2" in your second comment for two entries. Don't forget to leave your email in one of your comments.
You must have done the Mandatory entry on my original giveaway post, HERE, in order to receive the extra entries on this post. I will add these entries to the original entries when I choose a winner.
This is open to US residents. YOU MUST BE 18 OR OVER TO ENTER! Giveaway will end on July 30, 2011, at 11:59 pm EST
*I received no monetary compensation for this giveaway, this blog post, or the blog posts that will follow. I did receive a K-Y Brands Intimacy Experiment package in order to fully participate in the program and tell you about it.
This is not a post for you. Please hit the back button, close the page, or anything else that will get you away from this page!
Sincerely,
ME!
I know, once again it has been too long between posts. It's not that we aren't... um, being intimate. It's just that life has been getting in the way of posting. You know, going outside to play, making new recipes, and this Intimacy Experiment really has us making extra time for each other, too. The making time for each other has a lot to do with Day 2 of this whole thing.
I guess that, when you get farther into your relationship, you move past the hot & heavy, hanging all over each other stage. Maybe you have kids and they take the place of your significant other in your arms. Maybe you just feel as if you've "matured" and don't need to have all of those public displays of affection like you one did. I don't know... whatever the reason, it seems that nearly every relationship has a cooling-off period. It can become a way of life. One day you stop and wonder why you never embrace each other just for the heck of it... Has the steam gone out of your relationship?
So, I was really surprised to see that Day 2 of the KY Intimacy Experiment is labeled "It's Not Just About Sex" - yeah, it does end up with sex (I mean, it's KY!), but there is a lot more you need to do first. "Day 2" actually took us a couple of days to get through. It had to do with "transferable desire", or those connections you make with your partner everyday - little hugs as you pass in the kitchen, helping one another with chores, holding hands while going for a walk... Not things we really did anymore. As I thought it over, it seemed that we were more like roommates than a married couple!
We were really out of touch with each other. The first exercise asked us some questions that we were to write the answers to in the journal. Since we're both really trying to get back into our relationship on the right foot, we were very honest in our answers. I wrote mine on one page and hubby wrote his on another - neither of us looked at the other's answers until we had some alone time to discuss them. What were the questions, you ask? Here are the questions:
To what extent are you stuck in a "non-transferable" relationship?
Is it rare for you and your partner to have any sort of non-sexual physical intimacy?
What are the challenges you face to transform your relationship into a transferable one?
If you find yourself reacting negatively to non-sexual intimacy, why do you think this is?
It took both of us a couple of days to truly think over these questions and give real answers. It's really hard to be honest about these things with one another - neither of us wanted to hurt the other. But, in order to get past this giant bump in the road, we knew we had to be open about our answers. Once we both had written the answers in the journal, we had to wait a little longer to find the time to discuss what we had written down. Not easy when the kids are up late and you both have a million things to do all day long. We finally decided to make a pot of coffee at midnight and get our talk over with - what's one night of lost sleep and one day of being tired when it comes to making your marriage work better?
It seemed that many of our answers were identical! It was such a relief to get our conversation going and realizing that we both felt the same way. I can't tell you how in-tune we felt with each other - while one of us was talking, the other was eagerly nodding our head and saying, "Yeah! Exactly!" By 3am (yeah, that late!), we were finished talking and holding each other - in a NON-sexual way. It just felt like we were really in on our relationship together - something that we had both felt was not ever going to happen again.
The KY Intimacy Experiment book also gave some suggestions on ways to help us both with our transferable desire. These were very simple little acts that could be done throughout the day to help us feel closer to one another. Some of my favorite were: Say "I love you", Email each other, Watch favorite TV shows together, and Do chores together. It was amazing how much closer we felt to each other just by doing these little acts.
The second exercise (night time!) was really great, too. The exercise was in two parts. First, we were supposed to just hold each other. When it got uncomfortable, we were to keep on holding... until all the tension disappeared and we were just melded into one another - comfortable. It took a while. We're so used to having to hurry up. It's usually late, Little Guy might wake up at any minute and snub out the fire, we have to get up in the morning... you know how it is. But, once we both had reconciled that we were going to go through with this, no matter how long it would take, we both relaxed a little. It was nice to just enjoy being together. Neither of us talked, we just concentrated on how it felt to be in one another's arms. Eventually, we were both in a nice state of bliss.
Force yourself to be completely in the moment, despite how uncomfortable it feels." It was uncomfortable... at first. But as we got used to the idea of being together - here and now - and keeping our eyes locked, our desire skyrocketed. I may sound like I'm a guy bragging, but that was some of the best sex we'd had in years!
Here's the PRIZE!
Extra Entries!
For TWO MORE ENTRIES, give me some more ideas on everyday things that hubby and I could do to increase our transferable desire. I listed a few in this post, but am open to any ideas you may have. We need all the help we can get! Just leave your idea in a comment and for the second entry, just type "Entry 2". Please remember to leave your email in one of your comments.
You must have done the Mandatory entry on my original giveaway post, HERE, in order to receive the extra entries on this post. I will add these entries to the original entries when I choose a winner.
This is open to US residents. YOU MUST BE 18 OR OVER TO ENTER! Giveaway will end on July 30, 2011, at 11:59 pm EST
*I received no monetary compensation for this giveaway, this blog post, or the blog posts that will follow. I did receive a K-Y Brands Intimacy Experiment package in order to fully participate in the program and tell you about it.
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OK, this is a really cool giveaway! The nice people at UPrinting.com are going to give one of my readers a chance to make their own poster. What, you don't want a cool poster??? Here's how I look at it: You can upload a really neat picture that your kid made and have it turned into a poster for their bedroom. You can use UPrinting.com's stock images (for a small fee). You can use any uploaded image from your computer! Think of the possibilities! My oldest loves to draw his own graphic novels and is excited to be able to create his own professional-looking poster with his artwork featured.
UPrinting.com offers a ton of options when it comes to designing your own posters. They have free templates available in different file types (Adobe, Publisher, PhotoShop, etc.) that you can download to help you design your poster. UPrinting.com also offers any number of poster type/size combos. You can get mounted posters, which will make your creation look more like a piece of art than a poster. They have the ability to offer bulk orders in amounts from 50 to 100,000 posters! You can choose between a semi-gloss or high-gloss finish. And they can make you large format posters in sizes ranging from 16" X 20" up to a whopping custom-ordered 58" X 100". Can you imagine THAT??? All of this can be done with a 1-Day turnaround time.
And, of course, in addition to posters, UPrinting.com also offers custom printing for businesses, marketing, and home use. I'm considering having the kids design bookmarks for holiday gifts to give to family and friends this year. I usually give books, so the bookmarks would go well! We also need a yard sign with our address printed on it - badly. We live in an apartment within a converted house, way at the back of the lot. UPS and FedEx can never find us. I always get little postcards in the mail saying that my address doesn't exist and I need to go pick up my package. ARGH! Anyway, as you can see, there are a ton of products available that you can have printed up ASAP.
Finally, something important to me: they are an eco-friendly company. UPrinting.com uses soy-based inks. This means that there are less chemicals used in the inking process along with lowered carbon emissions. Additionally, the company recycles all of its scraps, printing plates AND inks; leaving less impact on the environment and keeping them out of trash heaps. You can also request that the cardstock they use be made of either 30% or 10% recycled materials.
OK, I know that there have been quite a few posts out there about TShirtPrinting.net. But, you're going to want to stick around and read this one. I know what you're thinking, "What do I need with a dozen T-shirts that say the same thing on them?!" Am I right? Well, I'm going to tell you: These make great family-wear while on vacation. Let me tell you a little story...
When I turned 10, my dad took me and my two younger siblings on a road-trip vacation to Florida. Just Dad and the three of us. As I said, I was 10. My brother was 7 and my sister was just 5. I don't know what possessed him to do such a crazy thing, but he must have thought it imperative that we all have a really great family vacation. (I'll have to tell you some of the stories from this trip sometime!)
At 10, I was just getting into that tween attitude. I was embarrassed of my family, wanted to be "cool", and all of that stuff. Imagine the horror I felt when my dad came home from the mall the night before we were scheduled to leave with a huge bag full of t-shirts. Not any ordinary shirts - four shirts in four different colors (red, green, blue, and yellow) each with "McDonagh Family Vacation - 1984" written on them! O.M.G. The plan was for us to all wear the same color shirt each day.
Now that I'm a mom, I get his whole idea. He was the only adult in charge of three crazy kids who would be at placed like Disney World, tons of beaches, and alligator farms. He needed to be able to spot us right off the bat in case one of us started heading in the wrong direction. And, if someone got lost, he only needed to point at his shirt and tell anyone who was willing to help look, "He's wearing a shirt just like this one!" If we ever go on a family vacation, I'll do the same thing. Yeah, I'll let my teen feel that same horror I felt way back then. It's safe and it's smart.
Other than the family vacation thing, there are a ton of reasons to order bulk screen-printed shirts. Family reunions, blog giveaways (I'd wear a shirt that advertised my favorite blogs!), scout groups, just for the fun of it...
Now, let's get more specific. I received a Monkey T-Shirt from TShirtPrinting.net to review a couple of months ago. I could have written up a review post right then, but I wanted to be able to honestly tell you that these shirts are quality-made. So, I handed over the shirt to my drooling 13-year0old son and let him wear it for a while. It went through swims in the pool, lots of sweat, dirt, spilled juice, and a ton of washes. It is currently his favorite shirt. I both dried it in a dryer and on the line. I have to say that it still looks like new! The shirt itself is grey-colored and held up well to my scrubbing the stains out. I don't use chemicals in laundry, so I scrubbed them with homemade detergent (borax, soda, soap.) No fading, no shrinking, etc.
The silk-screened monkey graphic is what surprised me the most. It's thick and I expected it to crack or peel off rather quickly. It didn't! I followed the directions for caring for the shirt that are posted HERE on the tshirtprinting.net site. There is nothing different about how that goofy monkey looks today than when I first received the shirt.
So, if you're in the market for some bulk custom T-shirts, TShirtPrinting.net is the place to go!
Quantities from 12 to 100,000
Many styles to choose from
Nearly any color you can imagine
Competitive pricing
Fast turn-around
Custom designs using your logo or their graphics
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.
A while back, I mentioned that I had a few caterpillars on my dill plants in the garden. There were three until a really strong storm hit - two of them just couldn't hold on to the plant and, if you know your dill, the leaves don't really make for great protection. After the storm, we brought the last caterpillar inside and set him up in our butterfly pavilion.
Kind of out of focus, but you get the idea!
The kids and I had Swallowtails last summer in little quart jars all over the kitchen, so we knew a little about them. But, just for a refresher, we all headed to the library. My oldest was put in charge of finding information on Swallowtails - what they eat, how long it takes them to go through their stages, etc. Little Guy and I hit the juvenile section in search of some children's books about the life stages of butterflies in general.
Being that this is the age of technology, my oldest ignored the stacks and hit the computers. Within five minutes, he had a few pages printed out that had everything we'd need to know about our new little friend and even a few coloring pages for his little brother. Little Guy and I found our books rather easily, too. They were being featured that week on a display table, so we didn't have to go far! We found a book about the life cycles of insects, one about butterflies, and one about the differences between butterflies and moths.
While Little Guy let our newly dubbed "Hank" crawl on his fingers and a stick, my oldest read all about how to care for him. His three favorite foods were plentiful in our garden: Parsley, dill, and carrot tops. So, we put Hank back into the pavilion and harvested him some lunch. Once he realized that there was food in there with him, Hank went at it. We watched him eat for a very long time - this guy didn't stop! We observed that he preferred the parsley over the other two options and theorized that it was because it was sturdier and could hold his weight more easily. The kids eventually got bored watching Hank make a glutton of himself and wandered off to do their own things. After nap time, we checked on Hanks and found that he was out of food! So, we filled his vase up again - this time with so much that I was expecting to have to throw most of it away the next morning.
Can you see the little thread he made to hold himself to the stick toward the top?
We woke up to find that all of the leaves had been mowed down and Hank had disappeared. My oldest was kind of in a panic, "How did he get out? AH! What if the cat finds him?!" We searched the water in the vase, the zippers were all securely closed, but we checked all around the room. Then, Little Guy yelled, "Peek-A-Boo! I find Hank!" He was pointing into the pavilion, toward the top. Hank had already become a chrysalis! I can't believe that a 2 1/2 year old was able to notice this before me or my teen. Not only did he notice, but I am still amazed that he knew that our bright green and black caterpillar with yellow spots had become the little greenish package hanging from a stick. How cool is that?!
So, we waited. And waited. It takes an average of 10 to 14 days for the butterfly to emerge. Ours took 20 days! I'm guessing that it is because we had a week of very hot weather and I had the sir conditioner on all day, every day. Maybe Hank thought it was fall. Anyway, for some reason, on day 20, I woke up at 4am needing a glass of water (not normal!) As I was sipping on my water, I took a peek at Hank, hoping today would be the day. Even in the semi-dark, I could see that his chrysalis had turned almost black. According to the oldest's research, this meant that a new butterfly was going to emerge very soon!
The new Hank!
By the time we were all awake the next morning, we had a butterfly! The kids and I watched as Hank's wings slowly unfurled and as he got used to his proboscis (he kept unrolling it and rolling it back up.) We put some pieces of orange onto skewers and dipped them in sugar water for him. After a few hours of just getting used to the new Hank, he tried out his wings. I'm glad we have the big pavilion because he was able to fly around a little without banging into everything. He landed on an orange and both of the kids knew he was tasting it with his feet. We watched in wonder as Hank had his first taste of sugary orange. It was pretty cool! We celebrated by making orange smoothies and drinking them with straws, just like Hank! We decided to let Hank go the next morning. My oldest checked the weather report and said it would be perfect - mostly sunny, a little breezy, and around 80 degrees.
So, we took him outside and it was quite obvious that Hank was ready to go. He hit the top of the pavilion and tried his best to find a way out. My oldest wanted to be the cameraman, so Little Guy and I worked on letting Hank free.
We were trying to get him to crawl on Little Guy's hand, but Hank didn't want anything to do with us! He squeezed past our hands and flew out. My oldest wasn't ready, so he missed getting a good picture. We did get to watch Hank flutter around for a few minutes before he headed into the woods behind the house. I'm hoping he'll be back to sample some of the flowers in our garden!
I wanted you to see what they look like up close and, since Hank didn't feel like cooperating... these are last year's models. They are Black Swallowtail Butterflies.
We learned quite a bit about butterflies from this experience. Their life cycle, how much one little caterpillar can eat, that they poop (of great interest to my potty-training Little Guy!), how butterflies eat, and that these are great pollinators. The pollinators part is another lesson we learned about and I'm hoping to get a post up about that, too, very soon!
Yeah. I don't tend to read the fine print very often until after the fact. Remember when everyone was talking about the Free Jif-to-Go coupons? I went right over and signed up.Where did I sign up? I don't know. Didn't even look to see who I was giving my name, address, and email to. Duh.
Turns out I gave my info to Target. I don't shop there. I don't have a car and the bus ride takes over 45 minutes, although the store is about a 5-minute car ride from my house - we have a crappy bus line here. So, I won't be using the coupon. It is good for "Any 8 Pack Jif To Go Peanut Butter Product" up to $2.29 at Target stores only. It expires on 8/31/11.
So, I'll just give it away. All you have to do for a chance to win is live in the US (sorry everyone else) and post a comment saying that you want to win and put your email address on there, too. Nothing else. I mean, if you want to follow me, like me, enter my other giveaway, or check out my giveaway linky - go ahead. But I'm not going to make you and it isn't going to get you extra entries for this one - one entry per person.
