New Birth

I must admit that I cried like a proud Mama when I spied this beautiful creature in the bug hut this morning. "Shelby" made her grand entrance while we were outside swimming. We allowed her wings to dry for a few hours and then took the hut outside to set her free.

We had a tiny bit of trouble getting her to come out.
Once she did, she flew around a bit and then would land in the grass here and there.We loved being able to visit with her before she flew away.
Hannah was sad to see her go, but we're hoping to find some baby caterpillars on the fennel soon.
One can't help but marvel at the transformation from creepy, crawly caterpillar to a magnificent and graceful butterfly. A new birth, indeed!

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you. ~1 Peter 1:3-4

Lazy Saturday

We spent the day lounging in our neighbor's pool. It was so relaxing and enjoyable, as you can see in this bottom picture of Delaney! Coming tomorrow (weather permitting)... pictures of Hannah diving!

"Daddy, is this mohawk REALLY necessary?"

Summer evening at the carnival

Last night our family headed out in the Jeep for a fun time at the town carnival. Delaney enjoyed her first amusement rides, Hannah enjoyed the giant slide, and Mommy and Daddy enjoyed the cotton candy!

A proud day for our family

The four of us were celebrating this evening. At exactly five days short of turning fifteen months old, our dear Delaney has finally decided to walk. You can catch the action in the video below. But I warn you, you may want to turn off your speakers, as we were all yelling, laughing, cheering, and clapping. Delaney was so proud of herself that she spent the rest of the night practicing; squealing and clapping all the while. To quote Bryan, "this is the best Father's Day gift!" Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

Meet Shelby!

I'd like to introduce you to our newest family member, Shelby. She (he?) is a black swallowtail caterpillar well on her way to becoming an adult butterfly. My friend Tyree found her in her garden and sent her home with Hannah, along with a year's supply of fennel, which is disappearing much, much more quickly than I had anticipated (We've got the black poop balls to prove it!).

Hannah carries her bug hut around everywhere. I'm praying Shelby doesn't die. The good news is that these caterpillars, if left alone in the wild, have only a 3% chance of making it to adulthood (butterfly). So perhaps we've actually saved her life. I'll post more pictures if she lives!

Here I am!

We "lost" Delaney for a few minutes this morning. It had gotten awfully quiet upstairs so I was a little bit afraid of where I might find her, or what she may have been doing. Turns out our little cutie had climbed up into Hannah's rocking chair and was loving life from her new perch, just sitting there enjoying the view.

wordless wednesday (at 6:10 AM today-- ugh)