NZ ~ Meeting Raewyn and her Family

 Mid 60's, I had a pen pal, Raewyn in New Zealand. We wrote for years. I went to nursing school & began working. Eventually, marrying Russ. She went to school, married & had 3 children. Eventually, RL took over and we lost contact. Then, in Oct-Nov, 1988 I had the opportunity to travel to AU & NZ on a 25 day quilting tour. I decided try to find her while there. It's pre internet/pre cell phones! No idea if she lived on the North or South Island. We toured the South Island first. I looked in every phone book I found on both islands. Finally, in Rortura, a Desmond Cooke!! Using the hotel phone, called, success!!! Arrangements made to visit that day. It was a 3hr road trip for them one way. We only had a short time to visit but how happy & what fun it was meeting in person.

Raewyn Cooke and family Rotorua, New Zealand 1988

Me in 1988!  Bargello vest

My Back Yard ~ Bugs

Birds & Butterflies Around Honeycroft Village

 

My Yard ~ Recent Ruby-throated Hummingbirds

So happy the hummers are still here!

 

Great Day in my Yard

Black Swallowtail Caterpillar

White Furcula Moth Caterpillar

Lots of Monarch Caterpillars feeding

Monarch Caterpillar

Western Honey Bees have been scarce this year

Huron sachem photobombed by Modest masked bee

Eastern Carpenter Bee

Silver-spotted

Gray Hairstreak

Ammophila pictipennis is a species of thread-waisted wasp in the family Sphecidae, found in the eastern half of North America.

Yellow-collared Scape Moth

Mating Cabbage Whites

Huron sachem

Black Swallowtail laying eggs on curly parsley 

 

Honeycroft Village ~ My Patch ~ Bugs in the Garden

North American Spur-throated Grasshopper

Huron sachems getting ready to mate

Clouded sulphur

Orange sulphur

Large crane flies mating

Isodontia philadelphica is a species of thread-waisted wasp in the family

 

Pennsville, NJ ~ Visitors to Jenny's Yard

 So proud of the work Jenny's done on building gardens in her yard. It takes time and patience when you aren't feeling your best. I visited this week when I saw 15 species of butterflies along with Snowberry Clearwing and a few hummingbird's. There could have been more species of skippers but there were so many skippers to shift through and ID. Her hard work is showing! Jenny has many flowers & host plants showing if you build it they will come!!

Lots of pollen on this Monarch!

Variegated Fritillary

Eastern-tailed Blue

Common Buckeye

Least

Snowberry Clearwing

Peck's

Fiery

Clouded Sulphur

Gray Hairstreak