Surprise!

Yeah, it's official, I'm 40.

And, let me tell you, so far it's been great.

It started out with a package I received the night before my birthday. It was a birthday shirt - for ME - made by my good friend Maggie.

Then, the weekend after my birthday, my husband planned and skillfully executed a surprise party. I don't have many pictures (guess I should have known something was up when he was annoyed with me for leaving my good camera at home), but it was wonderful! Tons of my friends were there, the adults and the kids all had a good time, and I got a much needed night out with the girls (while the husbands stayed behind with the kids.)

Four of us have all turned 40 this year; I'm glad we got to celebrate together.

Thanks honey. Grandma Mary is so right, you are a keeper. Now, you've risen the bar so high, I can't wait to see what you do when I turn 50!

Happy Birthday Little Dinosaur

A certain little girl round these parts turned four recently. Of course, she needed a birthday shirt. Little Miss K loves dinosaurs and specifically requested a dinosaur birthday party. Mama didn't make it to the fabric store to get dinosaur fabric when I came home from Egypt so she had to settle for butterflies. K didn't seem to mind, in fact she didn't even seem to notice the shirt's complete lack of reptiles. Perhaps it was just that the dinosaur crown made up for it.

Then again, maybe it was the dinosaur pompoms hanging around the room. (We had to make them after seeing these.)

The paper towel tube turned palm tree centerpiece was a big hit - as were the gummy dinosaurs.

But, now that I think about it, it was probably all the dinosaurs that came to celebrate with her that made the so special. Grandmasaurus, Grandpiopteryx, Mirandaraptor, Jeremysaurus, Mamamimus, Papaceratops, Grandpadactyl, and Brotherodon all came to wish K-asaurus-Rex a good day. (All the toy dinosaurs from her preschool classroom were able to come down from the shelf and come to the party too.)

However, it may have been the dinosaur cake Papaceratops whipped up that made this the best darn dinosaur party ever. In case you're curious - he's an iguanadon. (The cake - not the Papa.)

I suppose none of that really matters. She had a fantastic day surrounded by people who love her, and in the end that's what's really important.

The birthday shirt and crown have become somewhat of a tradition in our family. Do you have any special traditions?

Would the Pharaoh Approve?

After we got off the train down in Luxor, we waited here for our ride. No food; since I was on the "no food I can get at home" meal plan I opted for coffee. I doubt any McDonald's in the world can beat this view, though I seriously doubt the Pharaohs or the priests from Luxor Temple would have approved. Then again, perhaps two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun may have been enough to convert even the toughest critic.

Exploring Cairo: Sailing

Last night we went out for a sail on one of these. A fallucca; a traditional Egyptian sailboat. We took a bottle of Bailey's Irish Creme (thank you duty free) and a bottle of wine to enjoy during our hour out on the River Nile.

Abdullah took good care of us.

Rigging the mast and sails must involve some time up at the top of the mast. Despite the opportunity for some great pictures, I decided not to take advantage of the steps.

All the fallucca sails we saw were handmade. While we were waiting to go out we watched a man making a new sail.

I kept wondering how long it had taken him to sew the strips of canvas together, hem the edges, and then stitch the rope around the hem. He had one huge iron needle and a knife; no scissors and no awl - he just used the stone floor to push the needle through the layers of canvas. It looked like a lot of work.

We may have only been out on the Nile for an hour, but it was a perfect way to start the evening.

After our fallucca ride we headed off to dinner and then back to the Pyramids for the Sound and Light Show...

Does This Pyramid Make Me Look Fat?

What do you think? Now be honest. It's a great accessory, but I don't know if it really goes with this particular outfit.

Well, my new boyfriend doesn't seem to mind; in English the Egyptians call him "The Sphin-kus." Sadly it ended up being a one afternoon stand. When it was time to go I just couldn't get him to budge.

I didn't ride a camel t the pyramids this time. I decided to walk in to the pyramids instead. Mohammed, our driver, walked me to the entrance gate and from that point I was on my own - which apparently is somewhat of an oddity. Egyptians and other Arab tourists constantly asked if they could take my picture or have their picture taken with me. I always said yes and then asked if I could take their picture. It worked out beautifully because I got lots of pictures of Egyptians - especially women. The veiled woman below lifted her veil so her face would show in the picture with her friends. She was even going to leave it up in my photo and smiled when I motioned for her to put it back down.

Everywhere I went while I walked around I was greeted with "What's your name?" and "Welcome! Welcome to Egypt." Then the invariable picture request. I just smiled. I'd love to convince my self that they were all swept away by my beauty, but I think it had more to do with me being an unescorted blonde-haired western woman. Either way it was a hoot.

It was a great day. I got to walk around the pyramids that I didn't get to explore the last time I was here and experience a little local color. Plus I picked up a little kitsch for the kids. It was so good, in fact, that I'm still smiling...

Exploring Cairo: The Egyptian Museum

Today we spent the morning at the Egyptian Museum. It was amazing. Of course there was more than we could possibly see in a day, so we spent the bulk of our time in the King Tut exhibit. We hired a guide for 200 Egyptian Pounds (about $40 US) and got two wonderful hours jam packed with information. The best part was the guide took us to different areas than the guide did when I was here last time. Sadly cameras are not allowed inside, so you'll have to settle for these.

However, taking pictures of the grounds was allowed.

Getting to the museum is easy - just get off the Metro at the Sadat Station, climb the stairs up to the street, and look for the big red building. The hardest part was crossing the street - but more on that another time...

Exploring Cairo: Groppi

After landing in Cairo last night at 3:00 am, I slept till 11:00 and then we rode the Cairo Metro to go explore downtown. First we had to take a cab to the Metro Station. Cab fares in Cairo are completely negotiable. 10 Egyptian Pounds (about $2.00 US) got us to the station about 15 minutes away. I'm glad we got out of bed and went out because we accidentally found this place.

I thought about chocolate, but opted for traditional Egyptian sweets instead. I also had a glass of fresh squeezed mango juice. It was delicious!

Each of the sweets they had in the case looked better than the next. I bought a selection to take back to my mom's apartment to enjoy after dinner. We'll see if they make it that long.


Tomorrow we're off to the Egyptian Museum...

Busy...

I've been a busy little beaver lately.

Trying to meet my quota of hats and mittens, finish up my grading so I can complete my report cards before I leave, and packing for my Egypt trip. Phew!

Needless to say, things will be quiet around here for a while. I may be able to post for Cairo, but my mom's internet service is spotty at best so posting may not resume until I get home and sleep for a few days...

Bunny Love

Now that St. Patrick's Day is behind us, it's time to start thinking about Easter. Are you familiar with this book? It was one of my favorite books as a child. So you can imagine how incredibly happy I was when I found a prefect copy at my favorite used book store recently for $3.00. I loved it as a little girl because the story made perfect sense to me. As a four year-old I knew there had to be more than one Easter Bunny. I mean c'mon, one bunny can't do all that in one night (even Santa has helpers,) and somehow I knew the best Easter Bunny just had to be a girl, it just had to be.

Have I peaked your curiosity? I hope so because this book is absolutely darling. If you have little ones you really should pick up a copy. You won't regret it.

Time to Celebrate

photo via

It's official - Pi Day is now a U.S. holiday. Well "holiday" may be a bit strong, but thanks to a resolution passed by Congress on this past Wednesday, March 14 is now National Pi Day. I for one, am geeked - probably because I am a geek.

Just Because

Because Main Street looks like this,

Grand Hill looks like this,

and the Straits look like this,

this starts running Monday morning.

And because of that we won't have a repeat of this.

Hooray for boats!

You Asked For It

So here I am in all my glory on Dress Like You're From Another Country Day at school. The Egyptian Galabeya won over the sari and the kimono due to the comfort factor. Except for the head scarf (which I had on all wrong but didn't feel like pinning in place,) it was like wearing my jammies all day.

I bought the galabeya and hijab (head scarf) on my trip to Egypt last spring. I kind of have this thing about clothing from other places; I try to pick some traditional clothing up where ever I go. I still can't believe that I get to go back to Egypt again in about three weeks. Three weeks! More on that soon...

Perfect

My day off was fantastic. I slept until 8:00 am, drank two cups of coffee in silence, watched three uninterrupted hours of television (though not in a row), made two loaves of bread and a batch of cookies, and managed to get in a little sewing; another zipper pin and a pair of mittens. I even took a shower...

This morning I am getting ready for tomorrow, which is "dress like you're from another country" day (as part of our March is Reading Month celebration.) I've pulled out my sari, my kimono and my galabeya as I try to decide what I'm going to wear...

Glorious

On Mackinac Island this week, every morning has been prettier than the one before. Friday, however, will be the best morning of all since I get the day off and plan on being in bed until well after the sun rises. Hubby is going to work, the kids are going to the sitter, and I plan to bask in the rare glory that is being alone; all by myself for eight glorious hours.

Don't get me wrong, I adore my family and I love my job. But I'm almost never alone, in the house, for more than about 15 minutes. The prospect of eight hours of solitude has me almost giddy with anticipation. I'm sure If I was alone all day, every day, I would get really tired of it, but until then I'll savor every second of this special treat.

Super Science Saturday

was a blast!

We mixed colors,

explored which objects were attracted by magnetic force,

ate a wormy snack,


investigated water absorbing polymers,

and learned about change by making polymer worms.

We're going to investigate different things in a week or two when we do it again! Just because I know some of you are curious, I bought everything here. I owe the Mackinac Island Community Foundation a big thank you for granting the funds to support this activity.

Do you have a community foundation?

Second Attempt

My stock of goodies is slowly building. I feel like I've got hats and zipper pins down, so this weekend I think I'm going to tackle a scarf or maybe a bag. Oh yes, and I have been been working on that zipper pin tutorial. I suppose it will all depend on my mood come Saturday afternoon.

Saturday morning is my first "Super Science Saturday." I've invited all the island preschool and kindergartners down to school for two hours of science fun. We're going to make worms, play with homemade snow, explore with magnets and make rainbows. I hope the kids have as much fun as I hope they will. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes. Which reminds me, I need to get the parents to sign photo releases...