As soon as I saw Julianne's schedule and noticed who her teacher was for science class, I knew that we would be doing a bug collection. I snagged that first bug off the garage window before school even started. Over the past few weeks that collection of bugs (stored in our freezer in little plastic baggies) has grown until it was time to start classifying the little buggers and put the project together a couple of days ago. We were a few bugs short. Enlisting the aid of Julianne's siblings and visiting cousins, a search was made of the yard and house. Window sills and the basement door frame yielded a few dead flies, an earwig, and a rolly, polly pill bug. The garden was an ideal place for grasshoppers. But some of these finds were deemed un-useable. Repeats of what we already had. Also, most depressingly we discovered that rolly polly pill bugs are surprisingly, NOT insects. Really??As of yesterday evening at 7:00 we were getting desperate. I found myself regretting my decision to allow Trugreen to spray my house. There was a decided lack of bugs anywhere around. And while that means my money was not wasted, this lack of bugs was making it very difficult to finish up Julianne's bug collection which was due the next day. What I wouldn't have given for a box elder beetle or a lady bug...things that I used to find in huge supply. All the sudden I realized that it was getting dark and the mosquitoes were coming out. Yes! I never thought I would be so excited to see mosquitoes! It took two itchy bites on my arm and thigh but I caught one and was rather proud of my achievement. Between the mosquito, an ant and another dead fly in the garage...a different one than we already had...we were finally up to 15. Hallelujah!
We got way more up close and personal with those 15 bugs than I would ever want to be again. And even though they were dead and it was all in my mind, I itched all over and could just swear that something was crawling through my hair...
But it was all worth it because Julianne came home from school today with the news that she had achieved the full 100 points on her project. Which, in all honesty, is probably just as much my grade as hers. But whatever. All part of being a parent, right?
8 comments:
Im impressed. I hate bugs.
So then what IS a rolly polly bug?
An arthropod. It has too many legs to be an insect, apparently. Insects only have 6. Whatever.
Yay, I'm so happy it's over--lots of work. The bugs look great.
I remember collecting bugs with you girls and trying to get different classes and genuses. I actually found a huge katydid at our house the other day on our way out and I wanted to catch it for you, remembering that you were doing a bug collection, but Daddy was willing to stop as we were on our way to something with a deadline. It was a super bug. I liked collecting bugs and never got the heebie jeebies.
Mommy
When I was in junior high, I paid my younger brother to do my bug collection for me. All I did was the labels. My parents knew about the whole thing and were fine with it since they were painfully aware of my serious case of bug-phobia. So in my opinion, family work when dead things are involved is just fine!
Sarah, mom is talking about the bug collection that I had to do in 9th grade. I really think that she liked that assignment more than I did. :) It's too bad there is really not a way I could have sent you any bugs, because we have lots of really big and nasty bugs out here in Atl. Love you, glad both you and Julianne were so please with your marks!
Yuck! I am definitely not looking forward to that assignment!
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