Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We're on day 2 of our chicken mummy experiment and so far so good. The kids were a little grossed out but overall had fun yesterday. We decided to add cinnamon to the salt mixture just to make it smell better, and that worked out great until today when we had to dump the wet salt and add the new salt. I've never smelled cinnamon and rubbing alcohol mixed together and let me tell ya it's not the best scent. :blink: We're actually doing MOH this year but bought the SOTW activity guide just so we could do some of the fun things like this. I'd love to hear how others are doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 we made a death mask and a pyramid instead. I thought it sounded fun, but ds6 freaks out over things I can't even smell. Maybe when he's older . . . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 Oh oh! We're doing it. Tomorrow will be one week. I've changed it twice since last Friday. I'm actually planning to change it in after I clean the kitchen. Then I'll clean it again of course. My dd6 was really into it. Ds8 won't go near it and DS10 is wishy-washy about it. As of right now it's really my project. Oh, there are pics of all of the changes on my blog. If you are interested, the link is below. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassoonaroo Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 Hmmm. I'm not doing this so perhaps I shouldn't butt in. In my co-op a terrific mom (she's raised a handful of kids to adulthood and is a grandma and now she and her dh have adopted two high needs kids from tough situations and they're raising them) is teaching an Egypt class to kids that are (sadly...) younger than my youngest child. Last week, the kids mummified apples and she had considered mummifying a chicken but thought it took "too much salt." Then, on the morning of co-op she walked into the garage a few hours before co-op and saw a couple of mice scurry by so she asked her husband to set the traps. Within an hour, she had a mouse in a trap, and in a way where it wasn't squirting guts out. They untrapped this mouse (I've never done that). She brought this little mouse to co-op, looked up mouse anatomy on the internet and a dad that was there (subbing for his wife, the class helper, who was on jury duty) dissected this poor little critter. The squeamish kids went to the next classroom over as they pulled out the lungs, heart, brain, intestines, stomach, liver, etc. to put in little canopic jars. Then this mom mummified a mouse that was alive in her garage only hours before. I'll have to ask her for updates on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We started the Nile in a roasting pan today. The chicken mummy is maybe a week out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We started the Nile in a roasting pan today. The chicken mummy is maybe a week out. I'm doing things a bit backward, but we're doing the Nile in a pan tomorrow. We made sand cubes for pyramids last week,'so we'll out them next to the Nile. Egypt is really fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitestavern Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We were supposed to start yesterday, but then I read that you need to check it daily. We're heading out of town til Tuesday eve so we'll start it on Wednesday. Kids are super excited!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We nixed the mummy. We are going to make a shaduf. Not a model a real full scale shaduf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alenee Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 Which lesson has the chicken mummy idea??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We preserved Pharaoh Chickenkhamun quite a few years ago, but the girls had fun. We kept him in the laundry room, checking his progress periodically, and it worked like a charm. I think he stayed around for at least a year before we said goodbye. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StartingOver Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 We did the mummy a while back. I soaked it in rubbing alcohol over night. Then changed the salt/baking soda/Borax mixture every 4 hours ( I did not get up in the middle of the night, but changed it as soon as I had my coffee, then went every 6 hours ) to start for a few days, then ever 6, then every 12 hours for a few more, then just once a day. I did not rinse it off between changes, just took out the old, and broke off anything that was stuck and refilled. We used cinnamon, sage, and anything else the kids wanted in there. I was heavy on the cinnamon though. It never got close to damp this way, and dried out much faster with very little smell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 we made a death mask and a pyramid instead. I thought it sounded fun, but ds6 freaks out over things I can't even smell. Maybe when he's older . . . . . What did you use to make the pyramid? I've been contemplating making one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 Oh oh! We're doing it. Tomorrow will be one week. I've changed it twice since last Friday. I'm actually planning to change it in after I clean the kitchen. Then I'll clean it again of course. My dd6 was really into it. Ds8 won't go near it and DS10 is wishy-washy about it. As of right now it's really my project. Oh, there are pics of all of the changes on my blog. If you are interested, the link is below. Good luck. I checked out your blog--looks great! I'm interested to see more as you progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 Hmmm. I'm not doing this so perhaps I shouldn't butt in. In my co-op a terrific mom (she's raised a handful of kids to adulthood and is a grandma and now she and her dh have adopted two high needs kids from tough situations and they're raising them) is teaching an Egypt class to kids that are (sadly...) younger than my youngest child. Last week, the kids mummified apples and she had considered mummifying a chicken but thought it took "too much salt." Then, on the morning of co-op she walked into the garage a few hours before co-op and saw a couple of mice scurry by so she asked her husband to set the traps. Within an hour, she had a mouse in a trap, and in a way where it wasn't squirting guts out. They untrapped this mouse (I've never done that). She brought this little mouse to co-op, looked up mouse anatomy on the internet and a dad that was there (subbing for his wife, the class helper, who was on jury duty) dissected this poor little critter. The squeamish kids went to the next classroom over as they pulled out the lungs, heart, brain, intestines, stomach, liver, etc. to put in little canopic jars. Then this mom mummified a mouse that was alive in her garage only hours before. I'll have to ask her for updates on it. :svengo: Wow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 We nixed the mummy. We are going to make a shaduf. Not a model a real full scale shaduf. Off to google shaduf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 Which lesson has the chicken mummy idea??? I have the first addition of the activity book and it's in chapter 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 What did you use to make the pyramid? I've been contemplating making one. Not gardenmom, but we made the sand cubes for the pyramid. I put a bunch of sand in a big bucket, poured about three bottles of glue and some mod podge on it and told the kids to go to town. The mixed it all together and then we spread it out onto a baking sheet to dry. Since we lived where it is warm, we left it outside for about an hour, which was actually a mistake. It meant that the top of the mixture dried to fast and then came off when I cut it. But it all turned out okay. We left the cubes in the pan to dry for a week and just made the pyramids today. They were kind of a pain--we tried to spread it as flat as possible and cut them as neatly as we could, but there were a lot that were different sizes and shapes. If they had been neater I think our pyramid would have turned out better. Sugar cubes would have been easier and tastier, but we have ants and I refuse to just give them food like that! And there are going to pictures up of both the pyramid and the Nile as soon as I can put them on the blog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 We mummified a rather big U Catch fish, which wasn't as smelly as you think. I used straight baking soda, from those huge bags from Costco. Then, we oiled it, stuffed it with rosemary, wrapped it in gauge bandages and buried it for a year. It smelled good enough to eat when we took it out. I think we'll do an apple next time around, but a chicken might just gross Daddy out enough to make it all worthwhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbsweetpea Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 We have had our Mummy for 3 days. The first post is on the blog but I need to put updates. So far no smell and I have not changed the salt mixture yet. I figure I probably will need too tomorrow though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 So a chicken mummy isn't anything to do with a tiger mother then? :D We have done a fair few SOTW activities, but we never used that idea, because the frugal side of me can't stand the thought of wasting a whole chicken! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marie463 Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 We're just about to mummify a chicken too! Would have done it earlier this week, but I haven't had a chance to make it to the cheap grocery store yet (and you better believe that I wasn't about to buy a fancy organic Wegmans chicken for this project!) One of my IRL friends used a cornish game hen last year instead of a full-size chicken and it worked great! One question about the sugar-cube pyramids. Do you think that if you coat the finished pyramid with white glue (or some kind of sealant) that it might keep the ants at bay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyWifeandMommy Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 i get my supplies for the chicken next week. We have no plans next saturday so it's a good day for mummifing a little hen.:) We did the sugar pyramids and fed them to the ants. that goes for the science my youngest is using. she got to observe the little critters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 We have done a fair few SOTW activities, but we never used that idea, because the frugal side of me can't stand the thought of wasting a whole chicken! Do an apple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amyk Posted October 8, 2011 Share Posted October 8, 2011 We did an apple last time around, but the results were a little underwhelming. This time I took the plunged and we are mummifying a cornish game hen. That reminds me, we need to change the salt today! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 9, 2011 Author Share Posted October 9, 2011 (edited) I changed the salt again today (day 3, 2nd salt change) and it's definitely starting to look wrinkly. The cinnamon is the only thing I could smell today, which is very good. :D Edited October 9, 2011 by Paintedlady Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hockey Mom Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 We're going to do a hot dog instead of a chicken. We're following the steps from this site. With the leftover hot dogs, we'll make "Mummy Dogs" for lunch! :D We start tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 10, 2011 Author Share Posted October 10, 2011 We're going to do a hot dog instead of a chicken. We're following the steps from this site. With the leftover hot dogs, we'll make "Mummy Dogs" for lunch! :D We start tomorrow! I love this! Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Pharaoh Kluckfu is still doing well. I changed him last Thursday and now I'm thankfully onto changing him weekly instead of daily. He is getting more and more wrinkly, but I didn't take a picture this time. He's also getting lighter and lighter. And still no smell, also thankfully. My dh keeps asking me what we'll do with him when he's all finished. I don't know yet, but I'm sure we'll think of something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted October 11, 2011 Author Share Posted October 11, 2011 Pharaoh Kluckfu is still doing well. I changed him last Thursday and now I'm thankfully onto changing him weekly instead of daily. He is getting more and more wrinkly, but I didn't take a picture this time. He's also getting lighter and lighter. And still no smell, also thankfully. My dh keeps asking me what we'll do with him when he's all finished. I don't know yet, but I'm sure we'll think of something. I was supposed to change ours yesterday and this morning I realized I'd forgotten! :001_huh: Just as I feared, he started to smell a little. I quickly cleaned him out and added the new salt mixture, hoping that I haven't screwed it up for good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 OK, you must give your mummy a funny name. Our was called "Tut-ankh-am-HEN"-LOL. Someone here called theirs chickenhotep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Ours is Pharaoh Kluckfu.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbsweetpea Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I updated my blog post but we finally changed out our salt mixture on day 5. It did not smell other than alcohol. So far everything is going well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felicity Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 You are probably sick of my Pharaoh Kluckfu updates, but I just changed hime again tonight. These Pharaohs sure are needy. Here's the link. I think this is week three. We're changing it once a week now and this time I actually got the boys to "help." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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