Preying or Praying?!?

Before I get to a fun post about our "staycation" yesterday, I thought I'd throw this one out there...

On Saturday, while playing with Claire in the backyard, I sat admiring the beautiful creation that are Stargazer Lilies...

Do you see it?

Yes, a Praying Mantis!  I've found a lot of them around our yard, including a huge one on a pepper plant a few years ago - about 3"!  My mind began to wander through the things I know about these beautiful creatures.

• I think the females mate with the males and then eat them. (Wikipedia says typically only ones in captivity, but sometimes in the wild, too.)
• The females are bigger than the males. (Wiki says they are often not as green but more brownish, too)
• Ummm...they're pretty?!?

Then I thought, is it spelling "preying" or "praying?"  Because I was pretty sure these little critters are predators and carnivores (yep - checked that one on Wikipedia).  And as I was pondering that, I watched as she gracefully rotated her body and - FLASH!  Caught a fly and started chowing down!  Ew!  Cool!  Yuck!!  Wow!!!