Oh What a Life

Sorry I hadn't stepped in to say hi in awhile. Getting kids back to school is hard enough when you have a few but five to go back takes planning. We started out seeing who needs what to start the year with. Took the girls out first as they are usually the hardest to find clothing for. We got lucky this year and Aieysha actually found some blouses she liked at Khols that were three/quarter sleeved and fit over her properly. Khadijah is never hard unless they don't carry as small size 1 in Women's is hard to find too. Fatimah had to start back before the others being in year round school so she was already done. The boys were told they would have to wait until winter time as they had pretty much gotten a new wardrobe around summer as they had outgrown all we brought from Libya last year. Then we started school supplies. Thankfully. I didn't need backpacks so it wasn't so much of a hassle trying to find just the right backpack for each kid. A few trips to Walmart and then the dollar stores and we were pretty much set.
Now mom could go back to working on her genealogy. It got so I was spending all day online adding names to my tree. Not that it is bad but nothing else was getting done either! I did find some more neat relatives. Let me see I have one who became a Governor of Rhode Island, at least two who were honored Revolutionary heroes, a dear aunt who was killed by the Indians during the King Phillips War along with two of her children and one who was quite daring.
Ephraim Bowen look him up he is online. He and a band of men got fed up with Britain's taxation of American supplies that they arranged and carried out the attack on the HMS Gaspee one night in 1776's. He was only 18 at the time and never spoke about the incident until he was in his 80's. After the attack Britain sent investigators to find out who had taken part in the attack on the ship and had they been found they would surely have faced death at the gallows or firing squads. The group of men some 60 or more banned together and kept their secrets all those years until way after our fight with England had been won. It was documented on the Gaspee website that this action caused so much anger with England that it became the reason the war began.
This got me curious because I remember some old song from Saturday morning cartoons called "The Shot Heard 'round the World" it was one of those famous School House Rocks songs and I had the collection on DVD. Yeah I know who would have such a item in a DVD collection? But I pulled out the song and listened to it with renewed interest. But the song refers to Lexington? And my ancestors were in Rhode Island? So what shot did they refer to? I hope to use some of my ancestors lives as references for my kids in History classes this year. They can learn how their ancestors helped shape our Independence. I found letters from General Washington and references to them having known Benjamin Franklin too. Wow what a life some of them had. I found one who came all the way to Colorado and had one child here and then off to Texas to continue our line there. Could there be some old mining documents here in my home state that I could find out about. What else would someone in the early 1800's have wanted with Colorado? And why did they suddenly go to Texas? Maybe I will have my brother Kerry look into it. He is into finding stuff like that. As of yet it seems that although most of the family was very wealthy at their arrival to the USA, it seems that I have no "rich uncles" out there. I got a bunch that went far in life. They became scholars and chancellors in Universities in the mid USA and continued to serve our country most honorably. So for me I can say that my relatives surely helped reach our Independence. As a Muslim that is a good thing here when everyday people question our contributions to our homelands.
I had an incident were someone placed a slur on the Board for our family name and in anger I stated that I was a Muslim and proud of it and if you were on that Board more than 80% chance you were related to me so like it or not you had a Muslim family member! The Board was incensed that someone would place such garbage on a forum and a few days later I got an email asking who had placed the note. I thought it was a personal email to me so I replied. I said I didn't know who did it but I was angry for it and replied when I should have ignored it. Found out a few minutes later it was a question posted to the forum and some "witch" for lack of a nicer word" replied that well from what she has heard it is true so if it angered me so much why did I keep bringing it up? Jeeze lord a mighty! Can't win for losing.
Finally, I found a member of my family that was kicked out of our Puritan colonies. Yes, it appears he was deemed a "pestilent fellow". hahahahahahaha
Now that sounds like a Bowen!

One last bit the kids go back to school Monday YEAH......But Fatimah will go on her three week break, DARN.......just as they return. So I guess I will be busy this year trying to make sure a certain someone graduates this year. Aieysha and Suhayl and Khadijah are all in Band so it will keep me busy and Suhayb is off to try a hand at Ice Hockey so it will be a fight to see who gets the car more me or him. I plan on taking some photos today at their first performance for band so I will post some more soon. Its time to wake the kiddies so I must say tata for now.