One of the most famous pharaohs was actually a woman! She was not the only woman ruler in Egypt but one of the most popular next to Cleopatra. Her name was Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut ruled for about 20 years as pharaoh. It is suspected that she was killed by Thutmose III, her son, so he could take his rightful place as pharaoh.
Hatshepsut was the daughter of Thutmose (also known as Tuthmosis) and Queen Ahmose Nefertari. At a young age she married her half brother Thutmose II who was even younger than her. Soon after that Thutmose II died leaving behind Hatshepsut a son, Thutmose III, and a daughter, Neferure. Scholars say that Hatshepsut was trying to prepare her daughter Neferure to become the next pharaoh. The reason they say this is because portraits of her daughter have been found of her wearing false beards and sidelocks of male youth. After Thutmose II died the next in line for pharaoh was Thutmose III. Since he was so young Hatshepsut was appointed as his regent. They ruled together for a few years then Hatshepsut crowned herself as pharaoh.
Hatshepsut ruled for about 20 years. During that 20 years Egypt flourished. She expanded trading and built magnificent temples while also restoring others. Eventually Thutmose III became a man and wanted what was rightfully his. It is said he might have even poisoned her. When he became King he had all of Hatshepsut’s names cut out of the wall and all her pictures destroyed in every temple. He wanted her completely forgotten because it was an embarrassment to Egypt having a woman as pharaoh.
Hatshepsut’s remains were thought to be lost but in June 2007 a tomb was found that was identified by her molar tooth. The tooth is an exact match to another tooth they found in a box with Hatshepsut’s name on it. Even though scientist think Hatshepsut was murdered they say if she was not she would not have lived much longer. They say that there are signs of metastatic bone cancer, liver cancer, and diabetes in her mummy. 
Hatshepsut proved during her lifetime that a woman was able to succeed as pharaoh, as well as a good ruler during Egypt's 18th dynasty. She achieved much including expanding territory, broadening trade, building and restoring temples, and holding stable order in Egypt. Although there were many men who reigned before and many after, Hatshepsut proved to be an equal among them then, golden beard or not. Even though her legacy was almost completely erased, today’s society is able to see what the benefits of a good women with political and social power could be. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatshepsut
http://www.thekeep.org/~kunoichi/kunoichi/themestream/hatshepsut.html
http://www.egyptologyonline.com/hatshepsut.htm
http://www.bediz.com/hatshep/story.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatshepsut
http://www.thekeep.org/~kunoichi/kunoichi/themestream/hatshepsut.html
http://www.egyptologyonline.com/hatshepsut.htm
http://www.bediz.com/hatshep/story.html
It is a big tradition to wear a mask on Mardi Gras! For one day you can be anonymous to the world. Many Hollywood celebrities come down to New Orleans on Mardi Gras so they can be free for a day! Most people wear masks and costume to get the bead throwers on the floats attention. The more they like your costume the more stuff they will throw you. Couples often color coordinate or deliberately contrast their costumes. Groups of friends can all wear the same mask to recognize each other in the crowd.
Men dress as women and women dress as men. It is a blast! Also masks can be made out of anything! Masks are made out of feathers, sequins, glitter, ceramics, and even plaster. People can choose to wear a stickmask or a Zorro type mask. The idea of Fat Tuesday in New Orleans is to wear a mask, any kind of mask, or costume. It is part of the fun and festivities that make Mardi Gras such an unusual holiday.
We didn’t introduce ourselves because they were on the other side of the floats, and even though Flat Evan is flat, we didn’t want to be the next ones to get flattened by crossing the parade barricade!!
I cut the mouse with my Cricut and added a couple of brads for the eyes, 
and used Stampin’ Up products for the background print and circle thank you. 
It turned out adorable!! Hope she enjoyed it. I even had a mouse stamp and footprint set from a previous project…so I decorated the envelope to go with.
Try as a might, I couldn’t be my PR of the last 10k I ran before my foot surgery, but it’s really all about the 
I got a fantastic new shirt and will be the envy of every Mardi-Gras goer this year…that’s what I keep telling myself! I will never admit I’m psychotic just for the thrill of the run!
However, this is a myth. Some of the greatest cultivars from the Edo Period (1603-1867) were from the Samurai. The blooms make a nice table arrangement floating in a bowl of water and the greenery is available all year long and lasts for weeks in a vase, which is great for flower arrangements of any type. 
What is amazing to me is the fact that several different colored blooms will appear on the same tree. Ours come in shades of dark red to the lightest pink and variegated, too. Other colors can be whites and creams both solid and variegated shades.
This is an early bloomer that appears in fall. It is a single blossom flower that can grow up to 12’ tall and looks much more delicate to me. Ours is actually more pink than crimson and it has a very mild, sweet fragrance that is intoxicating in the mornings lingering in our heavy southern humidity. The C. sasanqua is better than the C. japonica at taking extremely cold winters, but thankfully this is not a frequent problem in our area.
