Here in the Atlanta area, Monarchs are one of the last butterflies to make an appearance, typically showing up in late September or early October.
I was thrilled to look outside today and see a handful of them fluttering about.

They sampled heartily from the appropriately named Butterfly Bush…

…and also from the Mexican Sunflowers, which are still in full bloom. The orange on orange is pretty striking!

Since today happens to be my birthday (57th, in case you were curious!) I decided to give myself a gift of some outside picture taking time. But really, who am I kidding, I would have taken some picture taking time regardless!
Still, I am considering their presence a God sent gift just for me!

The Monarchs don’t tend to stick around long, so I will enjoy their beauty while they are here.