LadyBug Park

Today we collected ladybugs in baby food jars, read stories in a tent (in our living room), and made lots of roads for Elijah's cars to drive on.

The ladybug adventure wasn't quite what I had planned. Both of the boys love ladybugs, but we don't see too many over here for some reason. Last week, however, we saw hundreds down town. I'm not kidding- hundreds! We were strolling Sherman Avenue just for something to do (if you know the area, there's this little sitting park between some of the shops, with benches). So on the park benches were all these ladybugs, in the cracks, and on top of each other; they were everywhere. So I told the boys we would come back with jars and collect them for our roses -which are getting eaten and are also covered with aphids (ugh, just typing the name gives me chills- yuck those are some nasty little bugs!) Ladybugs are known to take care of nasty little situations such as these, so you see just how perfect my solution is? Free ladybugs!

Looking outside I knew it wouldn't be the pleasant stroll we had last week, with the sun in our faces, but now that school is out, my general response is: "why not?" So we went with our jars, walked the few blocks from the parking lot to the park with our teeth chattering. Luckily I had an extra coat in the back of the car for Owen to wear, or he would have frozen... for some reason daddy's often forget that kids still wear coats even when it's not snowing. Anyways, we got to the park are it appeared to be ladybug-free. No speckles of red covering the benches. But then I saw one, hiding just on the edge. "Elijah, I see one!" I hollered. He ran over and nearly squashed it trying to pick it up and get it in his jar, but it got there just the same. Then we saw another, and another in the bush just next to the bench. That little bush had several crawling on the underside of it's leaves. Now Elijah was excited. "Look, daddy," he said. "Mommy and me found a whole bunch!"

We spent the next twenty minutes scouring the place for scattered ladybugs playing a good game of hide-and-seek. We eventually came out with about fifteen ladybugs, well... fourteen and a half really since the once Owen picked up didn't quite make it.

They were so proud riding home with their jars full of ladybugs. When I asked Elijah if he wanted me to put his on the floor, he responded very quickly, "no! I want to keep them on my lap!" Owen kept unscrewing the lid to his jar and letting the ladybug crawl just to the top, them he'd put the lid back on. Once it got out and started crawling on his hand, I think it kind of freaked him out. "Mommy, it's on me, it's me!" he said.

All Fourteen and half of them are now safely living in my rose bushes, hopefully doing some good eating! I'm not sure if that will be enough to save them, but it was worth a try and it sure was a lot of fun for Lije and Owie!

The tent we put up on Monday. This really surprised them. Everyday we've read stories in there, which is my favorite part, but I think theirs is just going in there and being silly. They kick the side of it, bring flashlights in there and toys and cars. It's like there own little hide-out. But when it's story time, they listen. Mommy brings out the special stories, the ones that I keep on the top shelf that I don't want torn or stepped on, the classics, like, "The Five Chinese Brothers," "Where the Wild Things Are," and "Love You Forever." Okay, I guess I can't really call those "classics" per se, but they are in our house anyways. All three of those I remember vividly from my childhood, and they are cherished!

Note: I just wanted to point out that just because some of us are ready for the sun doesn't mean you can't still have a little fun!