Second Instar. 243/365

I was preparing (what turned out to be fantastic) chicken for dinner and needed parsley. I ran out to cut some from my plant and found five of these guys just hanging out. At first I thought they were just ugly bugs that would devour my herbs and give me nothing in return, but after some research I found that these fellas are at the front end of a life-cycle we witnessed part of on days 222, 227, and 235. This is what the black swallowtail caterpillar looks like soon after emerging from it's egg. I have never witnessed in the wild this much of one species' life-cycle.

Quiet. 242/365

Just what I needed today. Did a little cleaning and some laundry. Definitely going to bed early tonight.

Birthdays and Bowling. 241/365

Maddie's birthday party was today. The kids had a blast bowling and playing video games.

FDR. 240/365

This was one impressive man!

Washington Monument. 239/365

We had reserved tickets to go to the top of the monument at 10:00 a.m. At 500 feet in the air we could see all of the city. We should have done this yesterday and saved a lot of walking!

Abraham Lincoln. 238/365

We spent a very hot and humid day in Washington D.C. We saw the highlights of the Arlington Cemetery. CNN and Fox News are already posted at the entrance in anticipation of Ted Kennedy's burial and all the flags are flying at half mast. Then we took the looooong walk across the Lincoln Memorial Bridge to see the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean Veterans War Memorial, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Maddie's favorite part of the day was riding on the Metro and Jordan's was seeing the Lincoln Memorial and reading the Gettysburg Address written there.

Libby-Grove. 237/365

I think that's what this area is called. Cute little shops in very old buildings selling over-priced merchandise. The hair salon we use is in this area and Jordan was in need of a haircut before school starts in two weeks. We can't afford to shop in the stores here but that's okay, we'll settle for marveling at the architectual details.

Georgia Peaches. 236/365

Pete came home from his meeting in Atlanta with a big box of Georgia peaches. Since we couldn't possibly eat them all before they went bad, Jordan and I canned them. They're just as good as Dole! They looked so good, we just had to open a jar and try them. Who knew preserving fruits and vegetables was so easy?!

Metamorphosis. 235/365

One of our caterpillars emerged! I didn't really think we'd get to witness this metamorphosis since we didn't capture any of the 11 caterpillars that feasted on our carrot tops and the two chrysalises we found disappeared after a couple of days. Jordan happened across this newly emerged beauty this evening after dinner.

Hummer. 234/365

I was finally able to get a picture of one of our hummingbirds. This is not an easy task even though I know they come for breakfast around 9:00 a.m. and then for dinner between 6-7. If they hear any noise at all, they take off. I think they can hear when I turn my camera on because they always seem to disappear at that very moment.

Slow Roasted. 233/365

I love that we're harvesting so much from our garden and I'm having fun trying to figure out what to do with the extra produce. I got this great idea from one of my favorite bloggers. I slow roasted all of the grape tomatoes I could find hanging around the kitchen (filled an entire large cookie sheet) - what great flavor these little buggers have now!

I spy . . . 232/365

Do you see it? I was deadheading flowers on the front porch when I felt something crawling on my {bare} leg. When I looked to see what it was, I saw this guy. I nearly had a heart attack - he is so big! I bet he's nearly 4" long. Luckily I was able to push him onto another plant before he ate me. They eat people, right?!

Rescue. 231/365

This little guy was trying to cross the street as we drove into the neighborhood after our dental appointments this morning. It was his lucky day that I even saw him since he is only about 2" in diameter. We stopped the car in the middle of the street to prevent the on-coming car from running him over, the girls jumped out, grabbed him, and brought him into the car. We then safely transported him to the neighborhood pond.

School Spirit. 230/365

I never felt school spirit (in any of the three high schools I attended as a teen) quite like the spirit I witnessed today! Behold the green and gold! Warriors destined for greatness! The display was so touching, it brought a tear to my eye.

Today was Jordan's freshman orientation. The upperclass students lead the day. I was so impressed by the positive attitude of these students and the teachers we met today really care about their students. I am extremely grateful to find so many teachers passionate about their jobs.

Redbox. 229/365

Why go anywhere else?

Maddie's Nail Service. 228/365

"Want your nails done, but it's too expensive? Well, not with Maddie's Nail Service. You can choose from any of these colors: {colors painted here}. Buff, Trim, Painted, Crap dug out from under nails, Just a gem."

Nice advertisement, huh? She set up the table and wrote out this flyer and gave one to Jordan and me. This photo actually show Jordan painting Maddie's nails, after Maddie had painted Jordan's.

Chrysalis. 227/365

Out of the 11 caterpillars we counted before we left town, there is one still gorging himself on carrot tops and two have encased themselves in chrysalises in our garden. These swallowtail caterpillars are quite good with the camouflage at this stage. I am, however, still trying to figure out how those two very thin fibers hold that huge pupa in place.

On the Boardwalk. 226/365

After boogie boarding at 8:00 this morning, this was the favorite activity of the day.

Sand, surf, but no sun. 225/365

We spent the entire day at the beach today - body surfing and boogie boarding. Most of the day saw drizzly rain, but it didn't put a damper on the fun.

Mini Vacation. 224/365

Another fun day at Busch Gardens. It was soooo humid we only stayed for five rides and one game where Jordan won Maddie the stuffed cheetah (playing Wack-a-Hun). After lunch we headed south to Virginia Beach.

Open. 223/365

It is labeled for your convenience in the event you were unable to determine whether or not the book is open. That Maddie . . . she thinks of everything.

Munch, munch . . . 222/365

Found several of these little guys eating the tops of our carrots. We sure look forward to having a few black swallowtail butterflies in a couple of weeks.

Another year older. 221/365

Maddie - reading a clue from her 11th birthday scavenger hunt.

Coshin: Hot toster strudel. 220/365

Breakfast in bed for Jordan today. Maddie loves doing this for her. She usually has a carb count on the note, but today I guess she was only concerned with burnt fingers. Today is Maddie's last day as a ten-year-old. I know I should be concerned with her misspellings on nearly everything she writes, but for now I think its adorable. Maybe when she's in high school, I'll get after her about spelling.

The trash can? 219/365

Both of my children do this with the size stickers off of their new clothes. This bugs me to no end. I've left this one alone for more than a week and it's still there. Why do I think that it will magically make it's way to the trash can?

Jay. 218/365

We look forward to seeing this guy and his five friends everyday.

Farmer's Market. 217/365

I love the farmer's market! Although this one at the West End is new and still very small, we were able to get all kinds of goodies. We scored new potatoes, grape tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, bell peppers, peaches, green beans, and two watermelons.

The lazy days of summer. 216/365

One certainly wouldn't want to exert too much energy leaning over to drink from a regular straw!

It's the real thing. 215/365

Coke. Only Maddie would pay $1 a bottle - a mini bottle.

Clue. 214/365

It was Colonel Mustard, in the library, with the revolver.

B&B. 213/365

We made bread and butter pickles tonight. I am pleased that all seven jars sealed properly. I only hope that they taste good so I can bring a jar to our orthodontist since he gave us most of the cucumbers.