One of my favorite shows (actually the only one I really watch other than 19 Kids and Counting) is Who Do You Think You Are? on TLC. It’s a genealogy show that helps famous people find out some of the secrets of their family’s past. A new season just started two weeks ago in the US – every Wednesday. There are also a bunch of UK shows online. Pretty fun to watch while folding laundry or ironing!

Anyway, it’s no surprise I enjoy learning about my own ancestors, finding out how they lived their lives, discovering how they made it through hardships. My husband and I tell these stories to our own kids. We think bridging the past to their ancestors not only helps us know about them but also helps us learn a bit more about us. What characteristics have been passed down that we have inherited? Knowing that they made it through tough times helps us make it through too.

Eduardo (standing far left) and Mariana Alba (holding the baby) with nine of their eleven children. Elder John Alden Hayes is standing on the right in the back row. The two girls on the right are from a different family. Taken in 1927, Piedras Negras, Mexico.

I wrote a little bit about some of my ancestors for Mormon Women Stand yesterday. My great-grandparents, Eduardo and Mariana Alba, joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) back in 1920 when my grandfather was 9 months old. He’s the little boy at far left in the picture. They lived in Piedras Negras, Mexico.

Juan and Jordi Ventura

My paternal grandfather, Juan Ventura, and his brother, Jordi, joined the church early in the 1950s while they lived in Barcelona, Spain. They had to travel up to Nice, France to be baptized. My grandfather experienced some persecution for joining the church. I’d love to have you go and read about my ancestors. You’ll learn a bit more about me in the process.