Great Grandma

I just heard the news yesterday. My grandson and his girlfriend are going to have a baby. That is all I know right now. No name, no sex, no date, just have to wait till I hear more, but isn't it wonderful!! Another member of the family line is going to be born. Will this child be interested in his/her ancestors? Will he/she be wanting to continue the research? This child will have a couple of whole new lines to work on; his/her mothers and his/her fathers plus all those that connect on those two. I will try to have the childs' father's father's mother's line completed as much as possible. The childs father's father's line has already been partially done and is published.

I know I was going to speak of Scrapbooking this time and I will. This will give me a chance to do a few baby pages for the scrapbook. I still have so much to do; many photos still need to be scanned onto the computer so that I won't lose them if something should happen to the originals. I will be using some of the originals in the scrapbooks I hope to make for different members of the family. And this will be something I know I can pass on to my descendants. Someone in the family will care for them after I am gone. But I am not going anywhere for a very long time except to Kansas City and Indianapolis this year.

Speaking of scrapbooking. I have been getting scrapbooking ideas in the form of a binder and it's leaflets from "Photos, Memories and More" for over a year now. I have started a second binder and will probably get a 3rd and 4th before it finally ends. There are many pages of ideas for every imaginable event or date or happening that can be thought of. Some I may never use, but others I am sure to make use of. Today I hope to have the time to start on some more pages. Later on I will have to purchase more protectors and more papers as I will be making different sizes of scrapbooks. The one I am keeping is of my mother and father and their siblings and children and their friends. It is the largest one, a 12X12 post bound book. The other one I have is a 8.5X11 3 ring binder type. I want to get more like the 3 ring binder one to give to my family members. The best way to hand down your ancestor tree and pedigree along with the photos and history is through scrapbooking. You are able to use everything you can find to make the lives of the people you are scrapbooking about come to life. Those small things that were kept because of sentimental reasons like the wedding bouquet, the invitations, the graduation announcements, birth announcements, newspaper articles, and yes the death obits and certificates also. The scrapbook is about the whole life, not just the good things though we do want to remember all the good things we can about our ancestors. But if there is a criminal record for a great great grandfather, go ahead and use it. Did he get thrown in jail for stealing a coat? or food? Why do you suppose he stole? What is the real story behind the act? Was he hungry and out of work and lost his home, maybe his family too? Or was he just a ne'er do well? Was he a "black sheep" of the family? What makes up your family ancestry? Who were these people who ultimately gave you life? Learn as much as you can about the times of your ancestors - the history of where they lived and what were the weather conditions, the political conditions, the geography of the area; the economy of the times that helped to make the decisions your ancestors made.

And for those of you who are living today - keep a diary of your life and let your descendants know what your circumstances are, what your area of the country is like, what the economy is and how you handled the hardships you face; your political views and the places you traveled and the great things you saw or were a part of. And don't forget to mention the little known things, like a nickname you had, or your favorite flower or color, your favorite food, and did you have a garden. Everyday life may be boring to you, but to your descendants it will be an exciting time in history that they will enjoy reading about and seeing with your eyes. Mention the people you know, or met and how they affected your life. Give a good accounting of your years and leave it for all the descendants that you have a part in making who they are. Until next time.