Photo by Son of Groucho

When I was six

my father Thutmose the First

lifted me up to sit beside him

on his throne of Amen.

He said, Flower of Egypt,

you will be a ruler.

–from Hatshepsut, Speak to Me by Ruth Whitman

Hatshepsut was the daughter of Thutmose I and was known to be a peaceful ruler who reigned for close to twenty-two prosperous years. At first, people were not too keen on the idea of a woman being the ruler. She told the people that the gods wanted her to be the ruler, but they still complained. She decided to dress like a man and eventually the people accepted her as the pharaoh.

During her reign, Hatshepsut was able to re-establish trade networks that had been ruined by the Hyksos. She also raised the standard of Egyptian architecture through her numerous building projects. Hatshepsut’s remains were positively identified this past June (2007) from the discovery of a missing tooth. It was believed that she was around fifty years old when she died of a ruptured abcess.

• obelisk at the Temple of Karnak (one of several)
• Chapelle Rouge
• Djeser-Djeseru “the Sublime of Sublimes”

Extra links plus a video:

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Ahhh….we’ve come to the time where we are going to be studying some of the well-known pharaohs! the first pharaoh on our list is Thutmose the First.

Thutmose I was one of the dudes who helped drive out the Hyksos. Because he was such a help, he became the right-hand man to the leader of the Egyptian princes that had pushed the Hyksos back out of Egypt. He married Queen Ahmose who just so happened to be the King’s daughter…hmmmm…interesting! lol! Because he married a queen, he became the pharaoh. He had three children…Hatshepsut was his most famous child because she later became the pharaoh.

One of the major things that Thutmose I thought he was responsible for was increasing the size of Egypt. Since he loved to fight, he decided to head on over and conquer the Nubians. After that successful battle, he headed all the way to Canaan where he conquered the Hyksos tribes that had settled in the south. Those two wins were not enough for Thutmose I so he moved his army toward the east and conquered land all the way to the Euphrates River. Under Thutmose I’s rule, the size of Egypt had double! Yowsie…that’s a lot of battling and land-gettin’!

Here’s some Thutmose I links:

Third King of Egypt: be sure to check out the photo of his mummy about halfway down the page!

Hatshepsut Found, Thutmose I Lost

Relief of Thutmose I

Jenny of Live & In Color took care of our Wrapped Emotions assignment this week since Melody was taking care of her family. We’ve all created crafty goodness (or natural goodness!) for Melody since right now is a tough time…we wanted to encourage her by showering her with lots of flowers! This is a Japanese folded flower made of fabric. The official name of this kind of flower is called kanzashi and is quite fun to make. I actually have made more but I hot glued the petals down on a surface that didn’t agree with the glue. I usually use my formica countertop when using my glue gun because the glued item just pops off and leaves no damage to the counter. This time I used a tupperware lid…not such a good idea now that I think about it! I have it in the freezer right now in hopes that the glue will freeze and pop off easier..we’ll see.

Nonetheless….here’s a kanzashi flower for Melody:

Our sweet little escape artist dog, Milo, made his final escape last night. He zipped out the front door so quick that we just couldn’t catch him. He zigged and zagged all over the yard just thrilled to have escaped and wanting someone to chase him. Pete and Jake jumped into the van and started it up…this always gets his attention because he likes to “ride”. This time, however, he didn’t make it to the van because there were some really neat wheels on a car that needed to be chased. Unfortunately he got too close to the wheel and broke his neck. He died shortly afterwards in the arms of Jake.

Milo was a wonderful dog who brought us much joy after the death of our son, Gus. He was my “therapy dog” and I will really miss him. I’m thankful for his presence in our lives and look forward to seeing him in Heaven….yes, I believe there will be animals in Heaven! Until then, I’ll just imagine him eating pencils, stretching out in the sun and chasing squirrels!

We have really been learning about some interesting people in our ancient history studies.  This week we did just one history section which was about the Hyksos.  This group of people were Asiatic nomads that settled in the Nile Delta around 1700 BC.  Their name meant “Shepherd Kings”.

The Hyksos invaded and conquered Egypt by using weapons and war tools that had never been before:  the composite bow and horse drawn war chariots.  They basically became tolerated by the Egyptians but not ever really accepted by their Egyptian subjects.

  Around 1512 BC, Ahmose I defeated the Hyksos.  This defeat marked the beginning of a new time period in Egypt:  The New Kingdom of Egypt.  And this, my friends, means we are going to be studying about King Tut soon!! WooHoo!!

Of course, this is just a quick overview of the Hyksos.  There are tons of resources on the internet that I came across if you wanted to read further and believe me there’s more to read!  Most of these sites were aimed toward adults…lots of information that would probably bore the littles to a degree that I can’t even describe!  There’s one work, The Hyksos, Kings of Egypt and the Land of Edom by David J. Gibson,  that I am still reading through because I have to take it in chunks and then go back and read everything again just to make sure I’m getting it all.  It’s very, very interesting…

Three  Word Project hosted by BlogMommas

Jake is taking a photography class this year at our local homeschool co-op and he is doing great! I am teaching the same hour or I would be in there with him learning too. I’ve always wanted to be able to take lovely photos. It’s happened a few times but not many! Lol!!

Not only are digital cameras good for taking photos (duh!) but they are also good for creative writing projects. Here are some photos my kids have taken…these are waiting for their stories. I just know Belle has a great one about the caterpillar….

Ok…so you know the movie The Shining…you know the one with Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall? Well, one afternoon last year when Pete and I were being horrible parents, we watched this movie with Nik. Like Pete, Nik is always good for a one-liner here and there and he didn’t let us down during this movie!

Do ya’ll remember when Shelley Duvall is trying to squeeze out the bathroom window?? Danny, the little boy, had already climbed through and was down on the ground but Shelley was having a terrible time getting through the window….and then we heard Nik say in loud whisper, “Danny! Get the butter!”….and that was it, we all busted a gut laughing!! Get it?? After that the movie was just not so scary! lol!!

This memory was pulled up by the Tuesday’s Tickle Treatment post over at Juliedamus-Oracle of a better world. Be sure to check out the bunny version of The Shining while you are there! Funny!

Are you able to read your Bible or worship freely? Do you have to hide your Bible? Can you sing praise songs without fear of losing your life? Well, Christians in China don’t have the same privileges that a lot of us do and that is terrible.

Of course, those of you that know me know that I love Randy Alcorn’s books. I think God has given Mr. Alcorn a great gift and I just am completely convicted when I read his books. Pete and I decided awhile back to include his book Heaven in our G.U.S. Boxes that we send out to families who are grieving the loss of a child. It’s a wonderful book for anyone, not just those who have lost a loved one….but let’s get back to Safely Home.

This book is about the persecution of Christian in China and really, I was stopped in my tracks several times. I have really taken for granted the fact that I can worship and read my bible freely without fear of being tortured or killed. I have taken for granted the fact that I can even get a bible….that I have several bibles in different translations on my shelf right now. That seems nuts when I think about how there are people in China who are thrilled to be able to copy a chapter or even a few verses from the bible. I am ashamed that I haven’t appreciated more deeply my fortune.

Pete is reading this book right now, but when he is finished we are having Nik read it. I want Nik to realize how blessed we are to have the freedoms that we have and I want him to understand how God is completely in control even when it doesn’t really look like it to us.

I borrowed this book from our church library, but I certainly want to add it to our home library. So those of you out there taking note of what I want for Christmas, this book is on my list now!

I have a lot to say about this week’s Wrapped Emotions assignment. I told my husband that I was not going to get all deep and such with any of these projects because I just want to do them and not try to make them mean something. I get stuck when I try to attach the perfect meaning to a piece…and then I never end up doing it because there’s not a perfect meaning…all you perfectionist out there know what I’m talking about!

Anyway…I now eat my words!

As I started working on this project in my mind, I knew I wanted to use something I had on hand not something I had to purchase. As I looked around, my eye caught my big jar o’ tiny scrap fabrics and I knew immediately that these were going to be my “tiles”. I chose black fabric because I love bright fabrics on black…the pop factor! I thought about a time when I had felt completely broken and I quickly drew out the design on a file folder, stepped back to look at it, and immediately begin to get teary-eyed because remember…I wasn’t going to get all deep and such! Really, the design just happened, but as I looked at it I realized the deep meaning each part and each color meant to me. And voila! I’ve been unwrapped and there is deep stuff all over the place…and lots of tears, but good ones.

My project is based on my grief journey after having laid two children before the Lord. Without the grace of God, I would not have the peace and hope I have. One day I will be reunited with my two sons, Sam and Gus, and I will be completely healed of my grief. Until then, I will trust the Lord…trust that He has planned things perfectly and without flaw. I am blessed!

I’ve named this week’s Wrapped Emotions submission after one of my favorite hymns, “It Is Well With My Soul”.

“It Is Well”

• The green circle represents eternal life in Heaven.
• The blue spiral reminds me of the blue that Gus looked so sweet in. It also reminds me of the spiral hair swirl Gus had (all my kids have it and we’ve named it the Doriot Tornado!) and finally, it reminds me of the River of Life in Heaven (Rev. 22)
• The white cross of course represents God.
• The three red hearts represent me and my two boys that are already safely home.
• The yellow represents Gus’ color..he was yellow because of the end stage liver disease. I called him my “Yellow Dumpling Boy”. It also reminds me that there will be no darkness in Heaven…only light!

As I looked at my mosaic, I realized that the little French knots used to secure the fabric tiles looked like cells and the green tiles reminded me of the cell wall of plants. I like that these tiles look cellular to me…my brokenness was so deep that even my cells felt the pain, I’m certain of it! There are still days that I hurt even down to my cells, but those times are not long for God does rush in and bring me peace….again I say, I am blessed!

Yesterday we read about Ancient Nubia which was south of Egypt. Nubia was also known as Kush. We discovered that Queen Tiye became the queen of Egypt when she married the pharaoh Amenhotep III. We also discovered that she was King Tut’s granny! Neat!

We also talked about the Aswan Dam and lightly discussed the controversies surrounding the dam. Basically, the dam caused the destruction of Nubia since it is now underwater, however, the dam has been able to decrease the flooding in the Egyptian area. That’s a tough thing…what’s right and what’s wrong? Of course that lead to a neat discussion.

photo from Nasa Remote Sensing Tutorial Pg 6

There are lots of links out there, but this one was my favorite:

Black Kingdoms of the Nile at PBS…tons of info at this site. There are also videos, but I can’t figure out what’s going on with my RealPlayer so I can’t see them…and this kills me! Ya’ll know how I am about videos right now!

• they are descendants of ancient nomadic Saharans
• only men are allowed to wear the veil and they have to be 25 years old to wear it.
• The veil is worn to ward off evil spirits. It is worn over the mouth because it is thought that the evil spirits can enter in through the mouth.
• also known as the “Blue Men” because of the indigo blue they wear…this sometimes stains their skin blue!
• Women do not wear the face veils but rather a scarf covering their hair…but only when they are married. This is a sign that the woman is “no longer available”!
• Islam is the religion of these people.

This is a nice video we found on Youtube. A little bit into the video, you will see some people with painted faces. These people are not Tuaregs but another group called the Wodaabi.

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This week’s Wrapped Emotions assignment was to unwrap a crayon and gather some rubbings. I ended up gathering rubbings of my home and a few things in my home…like a book and the eye of the stove. Isabelle worked with me and gathered her own really neat textures! We also painted some neat patterened paper which I used at the bottom of my collage. Belle is still working on something secret that I will post when she gives it to me later. She told me that she loved me because I was her ArtMom! lol!

As I was working on this project, I caught myself thinking about how fortunate I am that I even have a home. To think about what life would be like for a homeless person just makes me ill. Here lately, I’ve been complaining about housework and repairs that never seem to end. I think instead I need to just take a deep breath and be thankful…thankful that I even have a home to clean and repair. This week I will strive to be more aware of my lack of gratitude and I’ll change the direction of my thoughts concerning my home.

I had a terrific time with Belle and I’m really glad that I took the time to get artsy with her. We’ve made a terrible mess in the den floor, but that happens when the muse is upon you, right?

Here is my Wrapped Emotions submission. I’ve named it “His House Was Perfect…” which is the beginning of a J.R.R. Tolkein quote.

photo by TeecNosPos

So folks…I’ve been away for a bit…not a long time but just enough time to go cyber traveling quickly through the Great Sahara Desert. We’ve been studying ancient civilizations in history…the Egyptians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Indians, and ancient China. Now we’ve started studying in a different direction…left of the Nile River which puts us in the Great Sahara Desert. Did you know that the Sahara used to be fertile and lush? I didn’t…what was I doing in school? lol!!

Anyway….what started out as a little journey through the Sahara via Youtube, turned into much more. Really, I just need to admit it…we lean more toward unschooling than not! lol! We watched a video about the Tuareg people which lead to a video about sandstorms which led to a video of camels which led to a video of a baby camel….you get the idea. We have spent several hours doing history this morning…and I think that’s great!

Some of our favorites:

A Sandstorm in the Sahara Desert

The Sahara Desert–this is a montage of photos taken by Terry E. Morales…nice

The Tea–with the Tuareg people, very interesting

Chewing Camel–”I chew an chew an chew fer you..kiss me babeeeeee”

Angry Camel–some say I sound like this pre-coffee!

I’ve got a few more videos I want to share but they deserve their own posts!

Stay tuned….

Yesterday, in history, we discussed farming in ancient China. Of course we discussed rice farming, but we also discussed how rice was not grown in northern China because the land was too dry. I just assumed that rice was grown all over China…Well, you learn something new everyday don’t ya! One of the many perks of homeschooling….

farming and food links:

History for Kids!

Cumberland County AVA Center’s Ginormous list of China Link!

Excellent Squidoo lens on Ancient China …and really, I mean excellent!

One Child Policy Homeschool… neat lapbooking ideas shared!

image source: China Unique

I forced the kids to watch a video about silk. It was horrible and terrible and no one should force their kids to watch something so boring and blah blah blah….so say my kids. However, I will have to say that for the majority of the 48 minutes (!), there was no fighting, no ugly words and no one died of sheer boredom….and there was learnin’!

Now, the video is 48 minutes long and I will have to admit we cut it short to go to my bible study. It was deep in some places but overall, it was a good video about silk and it’s importance in ancient China and throughout the world.

Silk: The Tread Connecting East To West

Here also is a very informative youtube video. This one is very interesting…I can see why silk is on the expensive side!

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photo by d4rmy

As she walked along, there was a cowpat lying in the road, and when the old woman stepped over it, the cowpat said, “Old woman, where are you going?”

O my great googley-moogley! Run! Run fast and far Old Woman….that “cowpat” just asked you a question!!

A few weeks ago, we were reading about ancient India in history. I read several books and reviewed them, but for some reason, this book about an Old Woman trying to get help from the Raja, completely got past me! So here’s a quick review of The Old Woman and the Rice Thief retold by Betsy Bang and illustrated by Molly Garrett Bang.

This book is a retelling of an old Bengali folktale. It is incredibly fun to read aloud because of all the different characters…lots of voices to add when you are reading! You’ll need to pull out your voices for an old woman, a scorpion-fish, a wood-apple, a cowpat, a razor and an alligator. I’ll have to admit the cowpat voice was the most fun for me! lol!! There’s also enough repetition with the words that you’ll find the kiddos getting involved with the story too.

Honestly, the illustrations did nothing for me or my kids. I did, however appreciate the illustrator including the cowpat drawing on the page where the cowpat was talking. She placed it in the corner of the page…really, it should have been front and center…I mean come on, it was a talking cowpat! Doesn’t it need more than a corner spot?? How many talking cowpats do YOU know? Cowpat needs more space…

Photo by AbbyLadyBug

I had Buffalo Shrimp, Garlic Shrimp Scampi, Fried Popcorn Shrimp….endless shrimps….and I was completely sick as a dog for the rest of the evening!

I knew better, really I did! Yesterday, Pete, the kids and I met up with Liz and Sophie at the Dead Lobster. This is an annual event…the All You Can Eat Shrimp and Then Go Home and Pass Out On the Couch and Moan the Rest of the Night Because You Ate Too Much Shrimp Bonanza!! YeeeHawww!! I was sick, folks….wasn’t sure I would be able to keep the little shrimpers down, but my will power to do so came shining through…well, I wouldn’t say shining since I was looking rather gray…

Anyway people, take it from me….enjoy your shrimps, but in moderation, really….ack! I will never ever go “Bubba Gump” on myself again!!

Just a few little links I wanted to share with you all….since it’s my birthday and all!  Enjoy!

• El Diablo Chocolata compliments of My Education Junction
•  Baby Carriers from Bokjae
•  Dream Pillow Recipe ready to be mixed up over at Healing Yourself Naturally
• Wattle and Daub can be seen over at The Birds and The Beads
• 101 Steps to Better Blogging by Marcus Williford….this is for you Sonya!

Well, silly me!  I didn’t subscribe to Training Heart’s newsletter so I am already behind on all my Blogger Friend Assignments.  Sheesh-a-moley!  So, over the next few days I’m gonna be playing some catch-up….

*A website I visit everyday:   Google Reader

*First place you look for a book to buy:   Amazon

*Favorite Homeschool support area:

*Homeschool site full of information that you use regularly: An Old Fashioned Education
*Site that you buy your new curriculum from:  ROCK Solid and Rainbow Resource

*Site that you buy your used curriculum from:  VegSource

*Site that offers frugal tips to help save money:  Stop the Ride!

*Site that provides good and wholesome recipes:  Vegan Momma and Lunch in a Box

*An informational site that shows you “how to”:  Craft

*A homeschool family website that you purchase from to support them:

*A charity website that you support:  Shameless plug here…Gus’ Gang
*Favorite graphics/photo site: Flickr Creative Commons

*Site offering educational calendars and events listings:  Enchanted Learning

*Homeschool Freebies:  My Education Junction

*Humorous Blog:

*Useful Information Blog:

*Visually appealing and easy to read Blog:

*Inspiring Blog:

I’m going to go ahead and post this but come back and fill in some of the blanks…so check back!