Near late April, my grandmother replanted her garden. This year she added milkweed, which everyone knows to be the beloved plant of the Monarch butterflies! In no time at all many eggs could be found on the underside of the leaves. Eventually those eggs hatched into caterpillars no bigger than the period at the end of this sentence (probably). They then quickly grew and grew, munching on the leaves as they strove toward their goal: earning their wings. Many dangers faced the caterpillars though, mostly in the form of some icky lil' orange assassin bugs that like to suck the innards out of unwary victims (icky). Many caterpillars did not survive, but some pulled-through to become the creatures known as the Monarchs.

I followed the life of one caterpillar from egg to adulthood. It was difficult, as he was not the only caterpillar on the plant. Sadly, I was unable to capture a picture of him as an egg, since my camera said "No" to micro pictures.

Close to fifty pictures were actually taken, but these were the only three that I was truly satisfied with. Please, full view for the most satisfaction!

Growing: [link]

Waiting: [link]

Fleeting: [link]

And my dear butterfly, I hope that where ever you are, you are happily ensuring that there will be more caterpillars for me to dote upon next spring~