As part of our female family history unit study my mom came up with this ingenious idea! My girls love their American Girl Dolls so my mom thought, “Why not use those dolls to share family history stories?” She sewed doll outfits to represent our different ancestors. This outfit represents the ones my sister, Vanessa, […]
Female Family History
Julie B. Beck once said, “We study our history to learn who we are. There is a worldwide hunger among good women to know their identity, value, and importance.” Though Sister Beck was talking about learning the history of Relief Society, I think this applies to our family history as well. The Relief Society began […]
Fun Ways to Display Old Family Photos
This quote is one of our favorites when we talk about our ancestors. We would not be where we are or who we are without their sacrifices and examples. Because they mean so much to us we like to tell their stories and display their pictures so our children come to know them. They are […]
Visiting Guelita
After our time in Provo we headed to the other side of Salt Lake to visit Guelita, my last remaining grandparent. She is 94 years old and strong! She was so excited to see Henry and hold him. She sat in this chair turning him around, talking to him, and laughing with him for over […]
Beyond
I was far beyond the power of prayer, I said, past any fervent plea or desperate hope. I stood within a place of solemn dread – A black, sad land no wider than one soul, my own. Yet, in that narrow way there crept, somehow a murmured sound, A throb of thought that whispered “pray”. […]
Christmas Almost Lost
The following is an excerpt that was printed in the December 2015 LDS Living Magazine about a special Christmas that occurred to Juliana Perkins Luke when she lived in Panaca, NV. I am posting it here because of the family legacy of kindness and thoughtfulness that is shown. It is a great addition to my […]
Ada Bitner Hinckley
Meet Ada. She’s my husband’s great-grandmother. Her life is one worth knowing about. At the family reunion we attended back in February I attended a class about her where I learned a bit more about her talents and interests. Ada Bitner was born on June 30, 1880, the daughter of Breneman Barr Bitner and Sarah Ann […]
Family Reunion Centerpiece Ideas
The past couple of weeks my kids and I have been crafting up some fun interactive centerpieces for a HUGE (and I mean HUGE) family reunion that will take place the end of this week. It’s for the Wadsworth side of the family. There are over 450 descendants of these two wonderful people, F. Don […]
DNA, Ancestry, and Who You Are
Genetics is fascinating. What makes you who you are, at least genetically? Does it matter? Does having a specific set of DNA give you a certain identity? In the October 2013 National Geographic there was an article called the Changing Face of America that explored how multiracial the population of America is becoming. My family […]
Find Names on Your Family Tree with Puzzilla
My husband comes from Mormon pioneer stock. He has at least six generations of members of the church in his family. And since Mormons are BIG into genealogy his family lines go back for 20 or more generations. We believe that families can be sealed together in temples, linked into one big chain. Thanks to […]
My Stalwart Ancestors
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 […]
Cove Fort, UT
On our way home from St. George we stopped at Cove Fort, UT. It is right at the junction of I-15 and I-70. It not only plays a part in early Mormon history but is also a part of Mr. Ferrero Rocher’s family history. His great-great-grandfather Ira Nathaniel Hinckley was called by Brigham Young to […]
My Ancestral DNA Composition
Right around Thanksgiving I ordered DNA tests from 23andMe for both Mr. Ferrero Rocher and I. We were just curious to see what our genetic make-up was and, in my case, to see how diverse it is. It’s no secret we both love our ancestors and as much as possible tell our children their stories. […]
Writing to and for Our Children
In reading family history stories from both my husband’s side as well as mine I have noticed that many times the details of the women’s lives are missing. The men wrote their own autobiographies, mentioned things that may have happened to the women in their lives, but the women’s perspectives are glaringly missing. There are […]
Where Did Your Ancestors Live?
For today’s Establish a House post I want to tell you about an amazing new web app called RootsMapper that shows you the birthplaces of your ancestors. You log-in with your FamilySearch account and then sit back and watch the fireworks. Really! It starts with you and then depending on how many generations you choose […]