Genealogy Serendipity Moments - Cox/Hix Family

One of my long-term projects focuses on the family of James Harvey Cox and Medora Hix. They are the great great grandparents of a client who has become a friend. This client has given me things as ways of thanking me for this work. One of my favorites is a mug that she hand painted saying "Best Genie - Sue." When she introduces me to someone I am known as her Genie. One day she said, "I would give anything to have a picture of Medora Hix Cox." In the process of researching this family that week I made an amazing discovery.

Genealogist's Shopping List

Recently some genealogists were commenting about the back to school displays already showing up in what they felt was too early in stores. This week as I looked through the Sunday shopping ads in my local newspaper I noticed that they were offering some great sales on office supplies. Then I started thinking about what a genealogist needs as far as office supplies and important items in performing our work. I like to indulge myself in items that provide a feeling of luxury in my work environment. Like the boxes of Kleenex in my home that make me feel pampered after growing up using rolls of toilet paper as a child.
There are many items that make my work in my home office more efficient. So I have created a rather long list of items that I consider essential in the genealogist's workspace. As you read through them you might want to make a shopping list.

Genealogy Serendipity Moments - Davis/Olsen Family

Today I am going to share a personal story about my great aunt and uncle, Ben Davis and Anne Olsen. She was the younger sister of my grandfather and she was the youngest of seven siblings. All of the children were born on a farm the family owned in Orenco, Oregon. Their parents were John Philip Olsen and Julia Brown, both of Norwegian born parents. As Anne's parents and siblings passed on, she and Ben would collect their important personal belongings, and crowd them into their four-bedroom house. They never had children of their own, but became very close to their nieces and nephews and their children.

The Accreditation Process - APG Email Lists

I would like to share a letter I recently sent to the APG Public List in response to comments about the Accreditation Process for earning an AG through ICAPGen. Both this and the APG Member List are valuable resources for genealogists. One can post questions about research and the group will post their opinions in attempting to assist each other. As a member of APG I find this to be a wonderful resource for my research and potential clients. Another very helpful list is the Transitional Genealogists List. The digest forms of the lists are easy to scan for comments of interest to read and don't fill up the inbox as much.

Genealogy Serendipty Mosments Hau/Mayer Family

It is almost midnight and this should have been done yesterday. This week I have been working on writing a paper about the John Hau and Helen Mayer Family who were Germans that came to America in the 1850s. The purpose of the paper is to contribute a story to the local genealogical society quarterly. Now that it has grown to ten pages, it will probably have to be condensed for the publication. I do tend to become wrapped up in a project like this and want to be very thorough.
After the article is published my plan is to place the full article on this blog.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar and BYU Conference Thoughts

This last week was eventful. My oldest grandson had his third birthday party on Saturday. All of my children and grandchildren were there, as well as great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. The theme was the Very Hungry Caterpillar and there were games, cakes, foods and a piñata to match the theme. My mother asked me how it felt to have everyone together and if I was enjoying being the grandma. I can truly say this is a joyous time for me. In two weeks we will help my youngest daughter, son in law and two grandsons move to Provo, Utah. This will be a bittersweet time for me.

Genealogy Serendipity Moments - Shepherd Family

Last week I decided to focus my research time on the Shepherd family. A dear friend of mine recently moved to a care center and currently does not have access to her family history work. We have worked on her ancestral lines for many years, having met about eighteen years ago. She is one of my kindred connections. Her family brought me a box of books and in it was a flash drive with her genealogy database. There was also an old ledger book printed in 1913, in which her father recorded their family history in great detail. This was truly a serendipity moment, as I don't remember seeing this book before.

Independence Day for Your Family

Independence Day the movie, of 1996, is a favorite for our family. The heroics of watching a handsome president join with his fellow citizens to lead the world in conquering alien beings with huge space ships carries symbolisms of our countries historic past. Just what makes Independence Day significant for your family?