What makes the Christmas season beautiful? For a child, the anticipation of Christmas morning and gifts from Santa might seem all encompassing. But the decorations, the holiday feast, the music, the lights, all serve to add to the magic of Christmas. Who makes the magic happen? Behind it all there is often a mother orchestrating the dance of Christmas. As I’ve been pondering family Christmas traditions, I’ve settled on the tradition of making the season...
My mom started making cinnamon rolls in the shape of a Christmas tree for Christmas morning when I was about ten years old. She saw the idea at a homemaking meeting for Relief Society in the 1990s when we were living in Seattle. She later found a recipe in a Rhodes rolls recipe book and started making it for us once a year on Christmas morning. Here’s how she does it. On Christmas eve, she...
It’s been a great December so far. We’ve been doing fun Christmas activities every day to enjoy the season! I’m trying hard not to become too busy to enjoy each little moment. My four-year-old daughter is delighted with every part of the Christmas season. She has been helping me with every step of setting up the decorations, make Christmas crafts together, and reading Christmas books. I’ve been asking around about others’ Christmas traditions and adding...
Do the words “plan a Family History Fair'” fill you with dread and uncertainty? You may have a large event focused on genealogy and family history looming, or you may be asked to organize one in the future. In either scenario some ideas and tips from a very successful event I recently attended can save you time and energy. Tauni and Diana, Camano Island, Washington In a serendipitous turn of events, in October I found...
With Thanksgiving coming up, I’ve been thinking about ways to teach my children about the history of Thanksgiving. Then I wondered if we are related to any pilgrims. Using Relative Finder, which draws upon the collaborative family tree at FamilySearch.org, I was able to quickly see that I am possibly related to several Mayflower passengers (I haven’t researched these connections). In fact, 17 Mayflower passengers are my direct ancestors, according to the FamilySearch family tree....
I want to share our family’s tradition of making chocolate mousse pie at Thanksgiving. After being with the Dyer family for a few Thanksgiving holidays, I quickly learned that Aunt Susan’s Chocolate Pie was a treasured tradition! Not only is the pie delicious and fun to make, it reminds us of an incredible, strong, compassionate woman. My children have never met their great aunt Susan Dyer. She passed away of cancer at age 52 when my...
And the winner is . . . One of the best parts of being a RootsTech 2018 Ambassador is the ability to give away a free pass. Several readers entered the Getting Organized giveaway and shared either a tip or question about organizing their genealogy. Today I’m pleased to announce that the winner is Barbara Garrett, genealogist, author, and blogger at Digging for My Roots. If you’re interested in winning a free pass, there’s still...
This month for the blog link up, we’re writing about family recipes. It’s November and we’re all starting to think about Thanksgiving, the Christmas holiday season, and family. Getting family together means eating our favorite foods together. What recipes have been passed down in your family? What special recipes have you started making that your kids will pass down? Whether it’s a new family favorite or an old family recipe that...
RootsTech has been an enormously inspirational event for me. RootsTech 2016 was my first year attending the conference in person and 2017 was my first year as an ambassador and speaker. It is by far my favorite genealogy experience. Diana and I feel privileged to be RootsTech ambassadors again for 2018. We are both speaking at the conference this year, which we are thrilled about. So, I mentioned that RootsTech is inspirational. Both times I have attended, I...
The Adventures of Cowboy Bob: Texas Tricks and Trouble Stories are a powerful way to connect to the past. The trick is finding a way to share them that conveys the emotion and passion of the original telling. My dad had a childhood filled with adventures and he loved to tell them to his children and grandchildren. But how to pass those treasured tales on to future generations? To preserve them in a way that...
