For M, who requested photos of us “in action”

Last week for history, we were studying Russia during the middle ages.  I love our history curriculum—you can learn more about it here.  Anyway, turns out the medieval Russians kept bees and used their honey and beeswax for trade in places as far flung as Constantinople.  We like to be messy and creative, so we thought we’d try our hands at making beeswax candles.
The following photos show not only our project, but the—ahem—state of the house and our rather lax dress code for school.  Just keepin’ it real, folks.
Here’s Ellen, taking her work very seriously:

Yes, in the right center (center right?) of the picture below that IS a hair-dryer.  We used it to warm the wax so it wouldn’t crack as we rolled it around the wicks.

Pretty!

Looks like TNT sticks from the old Looney Tunes cartoons!

Next lesson: pyrotechnics!

And my personal favorite: