Search Results for: blog starting my family history

The Worst Genealogy Blog of the Year

Many genealogists take time out of their research to work on their very own, personal, genealogy blog. While some of these blogs are entertaining, informative, and inspirational, others are a chore to try and read. Here are some tips to keep your blog from being deemed “the worst genealogy blog of the year”. Anyone can make a blog. There are several websites that will let you sign up and instantly start creating a blog about whatever topic you like for free. This is both good and bad. It allows every genealogist who desires to make a family history blog the … Continue reading →

Tracing Your Family’s Military History

Many families contain at least a few people who have served in the military. Often, military service becomes something that runs in the family. Your mother or father may have had a parent who served our country, and grandparents who served our country as well. Some families can trace their family’s history of military service back to the Civil War, or even the Revolutionary War, with each generation having family members that were in the military. Sometimes, family members talk freely about their military experiences, sharing detailed stories of where they went and what happened there. Others are reluctant to … Continue reading →

When Peanut Butter Became the Enemy – Part 1

There is a lot of conflicting advice out there concerning when to introduce high risk foods like peanut butter to your child. The recommended age ranges from 1 to 3 or 4 depending on who you talk to. When we were deciding on a time line for our family, we considered our family history with food allergies. There is none! I decided to go ahead and do a small trial run with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which was made with a very thin layer of peanut butter. Immediately I noticed he did not seem to like the peanut … Continue reading →

A Few Tips for Writing Your Family History

If you are interested in genealogy, the idea of writing a family history has probably crossed your mind. It probably crossed quickly and then went away if your next thought was that writing a family history is a huge ordeal that would take way too long. You may want to give the idea of writing a family history another chance because there are many ways to write a family history, and a lengthy, bound reference book is just one of them. You could write a memoir about yourself or about a specific ancestor whose life you find interesting or perhaps … Continue reading →

Genealogy and the Classroom – Beyond the Family Tree

I remember my very first exercise in genealogy. I forget what grade I was in, but I remember that the assignment was to make a family tree. My mother helped me draw a pedigree chart on a boring piece of white paper. I am not sure where we got all of the information about my ancestors from, but we were able to fill out the chart and I handed it in. Even though I remember doing the assignment, it was not really a very memorable experience for me. In fact, it left me with the impression that genealogy is somewhat … Continue reading →

Starting at the Beginning

There’s something satisfying about starting something new. Whether you are writing a new document on a blank page, getting in the car to go somewhere that you have never been, or attending a class on something that you do not already know about, there is a certain energy that comes with embarking on new adventures. I am feeling it right now, as I prepare to dive into genealogy research. That said, there are often other feelings that come with starting something new, such as the “this-is-so- complicated-what-was-I-thinking” feeling. I was feeling that last night as I looked online for guidance … Continue reading →

Introduction to the Food Blog

If you are new to the food blog, then welcome! I have to confess that I need a little welcome as well. That is because starting today, I am new to the food blog too. If you are familiar with this blog, then I hope you will help me get to know the ropes. Voice your opinions in the comment section or through a private message. I would really love to know what you would like to see for this blog, what works, what doesn’t work, etc. While I am new to the food blog, you might have seen me … Continue reading →

My Forced Weight Loss Journey – How It Started

I used the word “forced” in the title when I guess no one can be truly “forced” to lose weight. But, let me tell you a bit about my history and why I felt this was forced. When I was younger, I was very active, but like many of us, I became more and more sedentary as the years went on. I married for the first (and only!) time at 36 and right before I turned 40, I realized if we were going to have any children, we had better get started! I was very lucky in that we got … Continue reading →

Focus on the Oscars: About the Academy Awards

The Academy Awards was first held on May 16, 1929 at the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood. The ceremony, which was hosted by Douglas Fairbanks and William C. DeMille (older brother of Cecil), honored films from 1927 and 1928. Rather than being a big, glitzy production, the first Academy Awards was a private dinner held for less than 250 people. This year will be the 81st Academy Awards ceremony and will be held across the street from the Hotel Roosevelt in the Kodak Theatre. Every year, the awards have been broadcast, first on the radio, then on television (after it became … Continue reading →

Rights of Passage for a Single Parent Family

When you look back over your years as a single parent and when you map the history of your family, chances are it will be those rights of passage that you remember—the firsts, the graduations, the shifts and changes that mark the major and important elements of family life. Many of us have been trained by media and others to think of those rights of passage in terms of the mythological “traditional” family and may be so busy that we do not take the time to create and celebrate the rights of passage within our own single parent families. Those … Continue reading →