I love a good story

Grandmother's stories

My favorite stories were from my grandmother.  While we would work in her vegetable garden, tied quilts, or make homemade bread together, she would tell me stories.  Stories of how she met my grandfather (a real-life cowboy), stories about my mom and her sister working on the family farm, and stories about my grandmother's parents.  Once in a while, I could get my grandfather to do the same.  At mealtime, while I stayed with them, they would read letters from family members from across the country and overseas.  I would ask you to tell me about the sender of the letter.  That usually meant one would tell me how they were related and some little tidbit about their lives. Pretty soon, I looked forward to getting their letters and hearing about their adventures.

I was adopted, so these stories were about people that I had no genetic connection to, but I would pretend that somehow I was related. I could see myself running around North Dakota on the farm, listening to people talk in German.  I  would imagine  coming from Germany to the US. 

When I would get together with my husband's family, I would find quiet moments to ask his maternal grandmother about her unique childhood- her grandmother raised her.  I would listen to my husband's grandfather talk about serving in WWII.  

As an adopted kid, I would ask my parents about who and where I came from.  They didn't know much, so I created stories in my head.  I created pictures of what my biological family looked like.  

Prague, NE

Ancestry Discoveries

In August of 2022, I received my first membership to Ancestry AND a completed DNA test.  The results were in!!  I began my journey not only to discover my own story but also to discover the story of my husband's family. 

I have researched twenty sides of our families.  Twenty surnames.  I have more research done for my husband's family than for my own.  His family is wildly fascinating.  I even begged his great aunts if I could become an honorary "Sinclair."  My family was a total mystery, and as it unfolded, I had goosebumps. I began to see why I loved the things I did, why I had certain talents, and most importantly... who I looked like.

In this blog, I will share with you some of the fascinating people I have come across over the past few years.  I will also share how I went about finding out their stories.   Some days, I hit the "brick wall" that genealogists talk about.  I was determined to find the answers to my questions. 

West Baden, IN

Family Connections

Two summers ago, we took a family trip, and I was able to spend a few hours in one of the places I had been researching for many months.    That was addictive --seeing and experiencing the places I had just read about.  Now, I want to go on many more "ancestry trips."  Back to the South, definitely to the East Coast, and maybe to Prague in the Czech Republic. 

I have been able to share multiple rough drafts with my husband's family about their family history.  I got lots of surprised reactions... I found out things they didn't know.  I found out a few of their family stories were sadly not true.  

When I researched my own family--- I found my biological mother and father.  I found ancestors that have a resemblance to my own face.  I now know why I love to garden and cook... it's in my DNA.

Join me as I share pictures, images of documents, and treasures through my research.

**PS  I love history.  I love mashing up people in my tree/ my husband's tree with real-life life occurrences and people-- George Washington, colonial settlements, Amish colonies in Pennsylvania and Ohio,  the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and so much more. 

Join me as I go "visiting with ancestors."