Butterflies!

A few months ago Kaitlyn started getting really into butterflies and the one thing that she wanted for her birthday was this Insect Lore Live Butterfly Garden. The older class at preschool had one in their classroom and she kept talking about wanting her own butterfly cage. She was so excited when she opened her birthday presents and received exactly what she had asked for. So...it was time to raise our own butterflies!

The butterfly garden included a coupon to order live caterpillars by mail. There were also instructions on what to do with the caterpillars and how to care for them as they became butterflies. I ordered the caterpillars online and a few days later, our box arrived!

Inside the box was this cup containing five little fuzzy caterpillars and food. I was scared that Kaitlyn might shake or drop the cup, but she was very good at just keeping them on the table and watching the caterpillars eat and crawl around.

They nearly doubled in size over the next few days and by the end of the week, just as the instructions described, they each crawled to the top of the cup and hung upside-down.

After a few more days they had hardened and formed into chrysalides.

We were then instructed to take the paper from the top of the cup with the chrysalides hanging and attach it to the side of the butterfly garden. Then it was time to wait...

After another week I woke up and looked into the garden to find that a butterfly had emerged! It was pretty exciting, even for an adult (at least for me). I wish I could have actually seen the butterflies emerge from the chrysalides, but I kept missing it. There were two times when I literally turned my back for a few minutes and when I turned around, they had already hatched!

Butterfly #2 hatched from the top left chrysalis as I was in the kitchen getting a cup of coffee. It happened that quickly.

Kaitlyn really liked seeing the butterflies in her cage and had fun gathering flowers and sprinkling them with sugar water to feed them. We kept them in the cage and observed them for about a week. They were really fun to watch and I'll admit that for most of the time, I was probably more interested than Kaitlyn was. 

Finally, it was time to set them free. Alex and Kieran happened to be visiting at the same time so they got to do it together. We stuck pieces of watermelon on some skewers to coax the butterflies out and so we could see them up close. I honestly thought the butterflies would fly away after a few seconds but they really enjoyed the watermelon and stuck around for a while.

Seriously, they did not want to fly away.

One landed on Kaitlyn's shirt, but she kind of freaked out and made me take it off before I could take pictures. 

Colin got in on the action too.

Any time now...

Eventually, even the kids got bored so we transferred the last two butterflies to a flower bush and left them there to fly away on their own.

Overall, it was a really fun project for kids (and grownups) of all ages. It took some patience, but in the end it was worth it to see the caterpillars transform and to set the butterflies free. I'm really glad Kaitlyn took an interest in this - I hope she enjoyed it as much as I did!

The Tans Visit

The Tans came for a visit over Labor Day weekend. It's been a year since we last saw them and I was so excited to see my cousins again! We went on a couple of outings, but mostly enjoyed just hanging out at home and playing. It was a fun weekend and I can't wait to see them again!

We checked out the Millbrae Art and Wine Festival and Alex and Kieran enjoyed playing in the hamster balls there.

I insisted on wearing my hair just like Alex's.

Mommy had bought these special bubbles and gloves that allow you to bounce the bubbles on your hand.

Got one!

It was nice to finally have some friends to play board games with.

And do art projects.

It won't be long before Colin is playing with us too!

Playschool Villagers

Another school year has begun! Today was the first day of class as a Playschool Villager. This will be my last year before I start kindergarten (scary)!

I was very excited to go back to preschool and see all my friends and teachers again. I have two of the same teachers from last year, plus a new one. It's gonna be a great year!

Visit from the Grandparents

Ma-ma and Yeh-yeh came up for a quick visit last weekend. It was their second time seeing Colin since he was born. He's grown a lot since then!

Five Month Update

Seems like we just did the four month update. This month went by so quickly! I've turned into quite a happy baby and can spend some entire days without crying! Such a change from a few months ago!

Sleep: 
I went through a four-month sleep regression at the beginning of the month, where I was waking up multiple times a night. Thankfully, it only lasted about a week. Now, I still wake up about two times a night, but go down quickly after being fed. Mommy is hoping to eliminate at least one night feeding - it would be nice to have more than three hours of uninterrupted sleep for once.

I take three naps a day, ranging from thirty minutes to three hours. They're somewhat predictable since I get tired after about two hours of wakefulness. I've started to take more naps in my crib with minimal fussing, but still nap best in the car seat while being driven around.

On a side note, guess who's still sleeping in between Mommy and Daddy? I'm not the only one in this family who needs sleep training.

Milestone of the month: 

I can roll over! I no longer complain about tummy time since I can just roll from front to back, and back to front. When I'm on my activity gym I will roll over and over until I get stuck on one of the legs. We had to stop using the swaddle, and naps on the couch are a thing of the past. I frequently roll all around my crib before falling asleep on my tummy, which scares Mommy ("Is he breathing?"). Diaper changes are also a challenge now since I always want to roll over to look around.

Developments: 

I've started to show more interest in toys that are put in front of me. Whereas last month I was just staring at the toys on my Exersaucer, this month I started grabbing at them and trying to put them in my mouth. I do the same with the toys on my jumperoo, bouncer, and activity gym - lots of things to keep me engaged! If I am handed anything I will grip it and put it straight into my mouth. My favorites are the Winkel and Sophie the Giraffe. 

I started noticing Brady last month but this month I really took an interest in him. I smile whenever I see him walk by and with Mommy's help, I can reach my hand out and touch his fur. Brady will usually give me a sniff back and sometimes a lick but other than that, he probably couldn't care less.

Daily activities:

Since Mommy quit her job, she gets to spend all day everyday taking care of me! I like being carried around in the Bjorn so Mommy tries to take me on at least one outing a day. We take trips to the grocery store, Target, or downtown and I enjoy all the fresh air and stimulation. I also like stroller rides - whenever we take Brady for walks around the neighborhood I get so relaxed and have a tendency to fall asleep.

We also go to the gym a couple times a week. They provide two hours of child care and since we usually go during lunchtime when it's empty, I get lots of attention from the caregivers. One time I was really gassy or something because when Mommy picked me up, the main caregiver said that she had never heard a baby scream so loud in all her years of working there! We're definitely getting our money's worth with the membership.

Speaking of child care, a few weeks ago I went to a Bright Horizons back-up care center so Mommy and Daddy could go out to lunch. Unfortunately I still refuse to take the bottle. I got extremely frustrated and hungry, so they had to call Mommy to pick me up early. Hopefully I will start to cooperate so they can take more advantage of this benefit! 

Likes: Bouncing on the jumperoo! Even though my feet can barely touch the floor I love the bouncing and feeling that pressure on my legs. I also love looking at myself in mirrors, chewing on things, being sung to, and flashing a huge smile to anyone who makes eye contact with me.

Dislikes: Being put in the Bumbo seat for too long. I will arch my back to try to get out of it.

Here's a video clip of one of my bouncing sessions in my jumperoo.

Bath time is much more fun now! And I love grabbing my feet.

Those thighs!

Best Friends

Auntie Sammy Visits!

Auntie Sammy and Damon came to SF for a visit and we had fun meeting up with them! Naturally, their visit was centered around food (Damon is a chef in Toronto) and we were more than happy to accompany them to some of SF's best (kid-friendly) places to eat. We met up with them for Sunday brunch at Tartine Bakery, then walked down the street to Bi-Rite Creamery for ice cream. Yep, my Sunday breakfast consisted of a huge pain au chocolat, followed by chocolate ice cream. Way to start the day.

Photos courtesy of Auntie Sammy, since Mommy forgot to take photos.

Later in the week, Mommy sent Colin to backup childcare and she and Daddy enjoyed a nice long kid-free lunch with Auntie Sammy and Damon at Tyler Florence's Wayfare Tavern. Daddy's company provides 20 days of backup childcare each year, so they might as well take advantage of it!

Finally, we all had a last dinner together at the Chiu's, where I stayed up til 10pm playing with Braden and Kiera. It was a fun night hanging out. We hope Auntie Sammy and Damon come back and visit again soon!