Facing My Insect Phobia

I've always have had an aversion to insects. You name them--ants, spiders, flies, worms--I can't stand looking at them. I can deal with the "pretty" bugs, like lady bugs and butterflies, from a distance, but no close-ups of their beady eyes and waving antenni, please. I don't mean them any harm, I just don't want to look at them.
So imagine my apprehension when my kids ask to go to our suburb's insect zoo. It's called the Butterfly Pavillion, which connotes dreamy visions of fanstically colored butterflies poised on flowers. But that's only half of it--the other half is filled with creepy crawlies, like spiders, cockroaches and gigantic centipedes. Plus, there's a tarantula named Rosie you can hold in your hand. OMG!!!
This insect room is the first room we enter. I stand in the middle of it, as far from the displays of insects as possible. The terrifying part is that these bugs are so huge, I can still see them pretty clearly. The picture below shows my boys and my friend's daughter checking out a display of giant cockroaches. I did not need to know that cockroaches get that big.



The worst display in that room is called "Tarantula Tower." It has glass aquariums stacked on top each other, each inhabited with one horror-invoking arachnid after another. There's one that takes my breath away--it has to be at least 10 inches across. I can see individual hairs on its body.
Of course, Ethan presses his face against its glass home. "Why are the spiders in cages?" he asks. "Because if they weren't they could bite you and kill you," I say. Probably not the best answer, but I'm feeling quite queasy at this point and need to get out of here.
Thankfully, the kids have had their fill, and we move onto the butterfly room, which is miniature tropical rain forest filled with butterflies of every hue. Here is a picture of one Ethan took.

This is definitely more my speed. I breathe in the moist, oxygen-enhanced air and begin to relax. All the butterflies keep their distance, and I can just enjoy the pretty colors. If I had not have had kids, I would have never bothered to visit the Butterfly Pavillion. But that's the beauty of becoming a mom--you face fears would have never done on your own.