#2 Family History

Today while the girls napped (because, yes, they BOTH slept! Crankies...),

I worked on my family history.

I find this very exciting, totally addictive, and most of the time soooo frustrating, and yet sweetly rewarding.

So many times I am exhausted and know I need to call it quits... but I just think

'what if the next image has the marriage I'm looking for? Just one more...'....

I could do that to myself EVERY time. I have to set clear quotas and then put it off til next designated research time. Because I can't wait for those

thrilling, exciting, goose-bump-inducing moments

when you realize that you are staring at a screen providing

deeper insight into the life of an ancestor,

information you desperately needed to verify vitals like birth/death/marriage/parents,

and, of course, details providing a tantalizing lead for another piece of the puzzle.

It is never ending!

Last week I discovered that my maternal great grandmother was an illegitimate child, and that my great-great-grandfather showed up to acknowledge her as his own when she was 4 years old. I already knew that my great-great-grandmother was married before, but this explained why I just couldn't find a marriage for her and my g-g-gpa. Man, I'd like to read a journal or something. What kind of story did they have? That's what I'm talking about... lil details that are just so tantalizing...

Did you know that FamilySearch.org has updated their website and includes browsable image libraries now? So you don't have to order microfilms, pay money, wait wait wait, try and fannagle a time in your schedule to drive up to a family history library 20 minutes away, and then try to juggle kids while sitting in a dark room to examine the films on a reader... and then there was always the frustration if you ordered a film with no helpful info and then had to order another and wait some more... no no, my friends, the exciting news is that you can do it at home and online. Free. Convenient. Beautiful.

I am in love!