2000 Jesuses?

Nicholas: Mom, there are 2000 Jesuses in heaven. A new one is there every Christmas because every Christmas, Jesus is born.

Mom: Are there 6 Nicholases? A new Nicholas comes to our family every year on your birthday?


After a discussion about birthday celebrations, which he is always happy to have, he got it. Then, he proceeded to let me know that Jesus could have 2000 of himself if he wanted because "he can do things magic."

Right.

Party On

At yet another Mitchell family dinner political discussion, Evan asked, "Have there ever been any presidents who were not Republican or Democrat?" While Jon and I knew that the Federalists and Whigs were parties at some point in history, we weren't sure who was what and when and if there were any more. These are the parties that have gained the presidency over time:

Federalist
Democratic-Republican (which split into the next two later)
Democratic
Whig
National Union (coalition between Democrats and Republicans to save the union)
Republican

A 6 Year Old's Politics

During a lull in our daily evening political discussion at dinner, Nicholas asks:

Who are you voting for?
We tell him "Obama" and Jon said, "When you are old enough, you'll be able to vote, too."
Nicholas: You get to vote when you're 18. I know that because I read it in a book. If I were 18, I would vote for Obama too.
Mom: Oh really, why would you vote for him?
Nicholas: Because John McCain is the whitest guy ever.

Engineering Project #2

A bag of marshmallows
10 paperclips
5 pieces of spaghetti
2 plastic cups
1 inch of tape
10 inches of string

Challenge: How many marshmallows can you suspend at least 1 inch above the table?

Heaven

Nicholas: Some people believe that there is the earth, then the sky, then space, then heaven, then the high heaven.
Mom: And who lives in high heaven?
Nicholas: Only a few angels. But a lot of angels live in heaven.
Mom: How does God decide which angels are in high heaven and which go to regular heaven?
Nicholas: They are just always there. But sometimes, they like to go to heaven and then back to high heaven.

Ok.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches

Nicholas: Peanut Butter was invented in 1886, Evan.
Evan: Mom, when was peanut butter invented?

We learned that peanuts may have been used by the early Incas to make a paste as early as 950 B.C. The first peanut butter machine was patented by Dr. Ambrose Staub of St. Louis in 1903 and some unkown doctor invented peanut butter in 1890. By 1914, peanut butter was made by a number of different companies.

Mummy Brains

This is "Ginger," the oldest known mummy. They think he was alive in 3300BC. Appropriately for the Halloween season, we are studying Ancient Egypt. The question from Nicholas today was:

Who removes the brain of a person before it becomes a mummy?

First, we learned that a mummy's brain was not considered important. They thought that thinking was done in the heart, which was the only organ left in the body when mummified. They removed the brain through the nose, usually with a long wire with a hook on the end. The brains were removed by embalmers.
If you want to learn more, check out this site:
http://www.schoolsliaison.org.uk/kids/egyptmummy.htm