Lulu’s Butterfly Garden

In Lulu’s garden, on the underside of a leaf, there were tiny round eggs, smaller than sprinkles.

One day, a little caterpillar wiggled out of an egg. It was hungry! It munched one leaf, then another, then another.

The caterpillar ate and grew, ate and grew. It got so big that its skin got too tight, so it wriggled out of its old skin. That is called molting.

Then the caterpillar hung upside down from a twig. Its skin split and hardened into a green case. "It’s a chrysalis," whispered Ollie Owl. "Something amazing is happening inside."

Lulu checked every day. The chrysalis didn’t move. "Is it sleeping?" she asked. "It’s changing," said Ollie. "Be patient."

After about two weeks, the chrysalis cracked open. Out crawled a butterfly with crumpled, damp wings. It waited while its wings dried and spread out wide.

Then, flutter, flutter, the butterfly flew to a flower for a sip of nectar. Lulu cheered. "Egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, butterfly! And maybe one day, it will lay eggs of its own."