Bugs, worms and beetles.... oh my!

The weather is cooling, we're waking up to see frost on the ground and a light snow last week.

Which also means the ladybugs, flies and worms are slowing down a bit.  Making them really easy for little boys to catch.

Once the little boys catch them, they feel the need to rescue them, keep them safe, give them a name, and build them a new home.

Boys and their friends 'rescuing' a poor lost worm from under the swings.

Soon after building the new homes, it seems that most of these little guys get sleepy.  Then comes the big debate between the brothers as to whether the ladybug is asleep or dead.  The conclusion thus far has been that the ladybugs are just really tired.  In the case of the earthworm (who wasn't looking to great even at the beginning of his great adventure), soon became hard and stuck to the leaf (aka 'his new home').  We had to give him a final resting place in the yard.

Boys with their ladybugs (Kiley & Fredrika) in their new "homes".
After I took the photo, Gavin announced "Mom, Fredrika is actually dead."

And the story with the fly.  We had what my mom would call a "drizzly fly" in the house this week.  The kind that just fly around really slow looking like they are just waiting to die.  Gavin discovered the fly sitting on the wall and quickly asked for the fly swatter (with a lot of excitement).   The kid swung at the fly twice, missing both times.... and the fly didn't move.  Yes, he was that near death already.  The pure joy that Gavin showed once he smashed that fly was comical.  He ran around the house for a couple minutes yelling, "I WON!  I WON!  The fly is DEAD!"  He quickly had to find his Daddy and big brother so they could share in his excitement of killing his first housefly.