Baby beetles just hatched in our garden (macro)

I discovered this clump of tiny brown things on a lavender stalk in our garden this afternoon. At first I thought they were eggs, until I saw some movement. Half an hour later and here’s the result of some macro investigation: some baby beetles (or grubs?) just hatched. If anyone can ID them, please add a comment.

First, here’s what I saw on the lavender bush, although somewhat bigger here because this is zoomed and cropped:

And here’s what’s actually going on on that stalk: