A common buckeye butterfly with an interesting story

We had a family work night on May 23d. Tori mowed the lawn, Daddy got the edges of the yard with the weed eater and watered plants, Mommy and Bethi worked on cleaning the car, and Andrew, Abbi and I worked on preparing a bed for planting in. Emmi watched.
Tori called me to come pull up a plant with a Caterpillar on it so she could mow over that spot without killing him. I pulled up the plant, showed the Caterpillar to my helpers, and set him in the lettuce bed, thinking I would take him to the woods behind our house when we were done.
Daddy told me to leave him, he would be fine in the lettuce bed for now. We went inside.
The next day the Caterpillar was not on the Plantain plant it was the night before. No big deal, he moved to another one, I thought.
A few days later, Mommy asked me to get some Lettuce out of the garden so she could make a salad.
I bring her the lettuce. A few minutes later she gasps and starts talking about a Cocoon on her lettuce! She was really grossed out!
I put the Cocoon in a jar, and put the jar in our screened in porch (I love the screened in porch!!!). On Emmi's birthday I went out to check on it, and we had a Common Buckeye butterfly!
Then I started thinking...
I got out my butterfly book that had pictures of all stages of the Common Buckeye, and started some "detective" work...
It was my fault. (At least, it would be REALLY strange if it wasn't.) The Caterpillar that I put in the lettuce bed was a Common Buckeye Caterpillar... The cocoon that Mommy found on her lettuce was a Common Buckeye Butterfly... he must have spun a cocoon early the day after we found it, and I happened to bring in the lettuce he used as the base.
Always lots of excitement around here!

Happy Birthday to Emmi!!!

Emmi Joy is one!!!
It is hard to believe that it has already been a year since this little girl entered our lives. She is such a sweetheart! From her chubby little toes to the top of her head (with that adorable smile framed by chubby cheeks) she is a blessing.
During the past year she has grown bigger (and, chubbier!), and seems even more sweet then when she first arrived. She loves baby dolls, and does such a good job "mothering" them. She also loves to "cook" in the little ones kitchen play set. Hmm... I think we have another homemaker in the making!

~Behold, Children are a gift from the LORD, and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of ones youth.
How Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them: They will not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 127:3-5~

Our interesting garden.

Last March we put in our spring garden as a family project. Mid April, Daddy brought in some sweet peas. Now, we didn't plant sweet peas when we put in the garden! It seems that Daddy was carrying a open seed package, and dropped it! The seeds took root, so we enjoyed a snack of fresh, raw sweet peas. I had never overly-liked peas before, but these were soooo good!
A little while later he brought in some lettuce. Already? No, this was volunteer lettuce from the lettuce that had flowered in the beds last year! So, for awhile we were eating food that we didn't plant!
Finally we were able to eat the lettuce from our new spring bed. Then, Daddy brought in celery (We planted those last year, and their just now coming up!?). We're hoping to get broccoli, and we're pretty sure we'll get some onions, too. And blackberries. Those were there when we moved in, so we didn't plant those either. We did plant the blueberry bushes that are producing this year, though. The ones in the pots will give us berries at least... not sure about the ones in the ground though... even though those should be the strongest...
So, our garden this year is much better then we hoped... and MUCH, MUCH better then last year, since half of this years harvest will be from last years plantings, and this year we're not using the "cucumber" seeds that gave us cantaloupe...

~ Psalm 19:14 ~

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer."

Happy (belated) Birthday, Bethi!!!

Bethi turned six on May first!
Bethi was busy this year growing and brightening our lives. She lost her first two teeth this past year, learned to read, found that she likes to work with numbers ("That clock says two twenty. It's two twenty one now! Oops, it's two twenty three, I missed two twenty two!) and tried to write a seventh Moody book!
But most importantly, Bethi got saved by the blood of Jesus during this past year!!! While reading the Moody books, book six, Mommy and Bethi fell into a conversation about baptism, and Bethi asked the Lord Jesus into her heart!
We love you Bethi!!!
Happy Birthday!!!
Some cute Bethi-posts from my Mom's blog:
whereyourtreasureisblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/one-of-those-moments-that-makes-you.html
A Third of her life ago...
Bethi has pictures done
And Bethi praises her Lord

Please Pray...

The huge tornadoes that have swept across Alabama have left many people homeless, and grieving for loved ones.
Please pray for all who are affected by these tornadoes, including the Crawford and Lee family's.

Bria Crawford's blog.

and

Mrs. Crawford's blog.

I thought this was a great post...

By Miss Jen, From Blessed Femina

LOVE...

"Though I speak with the tongue of men and of angels, and have not love, I am as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
And though I have the gift of prophecy, so I can understand all mysteries and have all knowledge, and thought I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; Charity envieth not; Charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.
Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil.
Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.
Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in apart.
But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away with.
When I was a child, I spake like a child, I understood like a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part, but then shall I know even as also I am known.
And now abideth faith, hope, Charity, these three; but the greatest of these is Charity."
~1 Corinthians 13~

Happy birthday Tori and Andrew!!!

Happy birthday to my Sweet Sister who turned nine today, and to my Little Brother, who turned four on the last of September!
Things have been a little busy lately, since my loved Grandpa's death, but I still want to say, I wouldn't give you away for anything in the world!!!
I love you Tori!!!
I love you Andrew!!!

Happy birthday, Abbi!!!

Dear Abbi,
You are such a Joy! Since the day we found out about you, on that Christmas almost three years ago, I have loved you. When I first saw you, I couldn't believe you were ours... our very own, right here. The only disappointment at your birth was that you came three days after Mommy and Daddy's birthday instead of on their birthday!
I love the way you snuggle up to me at night, crying if I ever dare try to make you stay on your side of the bed.
I love the way your hair took so long to grow at all, and now it is growing more in a month then it did for the first 18 months of your life. The wait makes it even more enjoyable to work with now.
I love the way that you sing, even though you can only say five words letter-perfect (Oh, and "want copy" is too cute.*)
Abbi, we love you! I can't wait to see the great things you will do for the LORD. Happy 2nd Birthday!!!
Love,
Sister Bri
.................................................

*(Don't know what "copy" is? Mommy let her taste coffee. Now she knows that it tastes good. Oops!)