'Tis the Season for Parties ...

Has my family ever hosted any parties around Christmas time? If you count parties that have only family and friends, then I say, "Yes!" I can't say that my family hosts a party every year because we switch off with my grandparents and uncle and aunt. Most of the parties are just with family and a few close friends.

The majority of my memories of parties are of family Christmas parties. And all of the parties seem to be the same every year because they are with the same people - my family. Christmas is special to me because it is a time when I get to see family members, and since I've gone to college, Christmas is even more special because it is one few times in the year that I get to see all of my family members. Christmas is also a time when I actually have a break from school and I get to relax. So, for me, Christmas parties are not as important as just being home with my family.

Day Five of the Advent Meme Posted!

Day Five of the Advent meme has been posted. You can read it here. Enjoy!

Day 4 of Advent Meme posted!

Day Four of the Advent meme has been posted! You can read it here. Enjoy!

Cookie Baking ...

Let me begin by saying that I love cookies. (Yes, I have a big sweet tooth.) A few days before Christmas my family would always make a variety of desserts and most of those would be cookies. The chocolate chip cookie would almost always be among the types made. And I usually would help my mom by making cookies.

About five years ago, my family hosted a Christmas party, and I helped my mom by making the cookies. Among the cookies that I remember making were Russian Tea Cookies and these brandy-and-chocolate cookies. I don't remember the exact name of them, but I do remember that they tasted very good. (I also remember one of my cousins reaction to trying one of these cookies. He didn't like them because they tasted different.) Oh, I do remember that I accidentally poured a little bit more of the brandy into the mix than was called for, and no it was not intentional.

Wonderings About Christmas Celebrations ...

I realize that this might seem a bit random, since this is not a post on my memories of past Christmases. Instead, it is a post about some questions on my mind.

As Christmas comes around, I wonder how my ancestors celebrated Christmas. So far, I have not been able to find any diaries or letters written by my ancestors, so I have no idea. I have ancestors from the British Isles and from Germany, and I realize that the traditions of both areas are completely different. How was Christmas celebrated in the Nineteenth Century and early Twentieth Century? How did farmers in the Midwest celebrate Christmas? I don't have the answers to any of these questions. To me, this sounds like a good research topic. Does anyone have any idea where to start looking for information?

Carnival of Genealogy Posted!

The carnival of genealogy has been posted! You can read it here. The topic for the next carnival is on the memories of the Millennium. What memories do you have of New Year's of 2000?

Day 3 of Advent Meme posted!

Day three of the Advent meme has been posted. You can read it here. Enjoy!

Letters to Santa

Although I don't believe in Santa anymore, when I was a little girl, I did make lists of what I wanted for Christmas. But I never mailed the lists. By the time I got to middle school, I just stopped asking for stuff for Christmas. I think I originally stopped because I did not know what I wanted, but as I got older, I didn't ask for anything primarily because I was busy with school and did not have the time.

As a little girl, my parents took both my brother and I to see Santa and sit in his lap. For a couple of years my family would go to the Twelve Oaks mall on the weekend, and we would eat at the restaurant in Hudson's. There would be a Santa sitting at the entrance, and after we had breakfast, my parents would let my brother and I go talk to Santa. Of course the Hudson's restaurant was not the only place that I talked to Santa. Over the span of my childhood, I think I talked to several Santas. I don't remember how many. I've lost count.

Advent Meme Part 5: Putting the House On Show

Every year we decorate our house and the shrubs in the front yard with lights, but we don't go overboard. Not that I have anything against people who decide to do so. I actually think that those houses are most interesting and cool. We don't have a lot of time to decorate, so the decorating has to be simple. I'm sure that is the case for most people as well.

Of course there is always someone who really decorates his or her house. In the city where I used to live, there were a couple of subdivisions that that had homes that were decorated. (They looked as though they had been done professionally; that's how amazing they were.) Word of mouth would spread around about the houses, and people would drive around the subdivision looking at the houses. If we happened to be out and noticed homes that were decked out, would drive by those homes. I have always enjoyed looking at homes decorated with Christmas lights. There is something very comfortable and cheering about decorated homes.

Second Advent Meme Posted!

The second part of the Advent meme has been posted. You can read it here. Enjoy!

The 1st Edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy

The first edition of the Carnival of Central and Eastern European Genealogy is here! The topic for this carnival was a carousel, so articles on any topic were accepted. Since this is first edition of the carnival, only six articles were submitted. I have chosen only to present five of the articles after reading through them because I felt that one of the articles (and I did read other articles from that person's blog to double check) was anti-Semitic. I will not post articles that are anti-Semitic (or are hateful to other people) because I cannot tolerate articles such as those and because my blog is meant to be family friendly. With that said, it is time to go on with the carnival.

First off, we have Just What Happened 99 Years Ago in Tunguska, Siberia? written by GrrlScientist (I do not know her real name) of Living the Scientific Life. This article is about the explosion that occurred in Siberian Russia in 1908, and it explores one of the theories over the cause of the explosion. (Although I was not thinking about scientific articles when I created this carnival, I have included this article because the article deals with a scientific and historical mystery from a country in this carnival's region.)

Next, we have Riding the Russian Rails written by Poetloverrebelspy (Again, I do not know this person's name) of Less Than a Shoestring. This article is about trains in Russia, and how a person can find out more information on traveling by train in Russia.

Next, we have Grandfather, the Springmaker written by Stephen Danko of Steve's Genealogy Blog. This article is about Steve's research into the occupation of his grandfather and his grandfather's uncle, and the questions that he has.

Next, we have Researching German Ancestors written by Jessica Oswalt of Jessica's Genejournal. This article is about Jessica's research into her German ancestors, and some of the sources of information that she used to find an ancestral village.

Last but not least, we have What color is your heritage? written by Lisa of 100 Years in America. This article is about the multicultural heritage of Americans, and how you can make your own flag to reflect your heritage. She also writes about how one can can share the flag he or she had made.

Well, that is it for this edition of the carnival of genealogy. The next edition will be on Christmas traditions. Does your family have any Christmas traditions that came from your Central or Eastern European ancestors? Or are you familiar with the Christmas traditions of countries that are located in Central and Eastern Europe? Articles for the next edition are due by December 21. You can submit your article here.

The Weather ...

I usually don't write about the weather where I am at, but the weather has turned a bit ugly over this past day. (As it is December, those of who live around the Great Lakes know, the weather can get bad at winter time.) Earlier, it snowed and rained on the west side of Michigan. Unfortunately, the rain froze on top of the little snow that we got, and so it is very slippery. If you live on the east side of Michigan (and farther east), the bad weather is heading your way. I just want to let people know.

First Edition of the Advent Meme Posted!

The first edition of the Advent Meme has been posted at Thomas' blog. You can read the entry here. Enjoy!

Advent 4: Christmas Cards

Like everyone else, my family receives and mails out Christmas cards every year. Personally, I like Christmas cards, and I enjoy looking at all of the different and unique styles. Usually, we display the cards that we get. When we lived at our old house, we taped the cards to the door of the foyer closet. We still display our cards at our new home, but we tape them onto the spindles of the staircase in the kitchen. (It looks a lot better than how I wrote it, honestly.)

Of course, almost all of the Christmas cards are addressed to the whole family. Usually, the only Christmas cards that my brother and I would get addressed to each of us would be cards from our grandparents. I say usually because from the age of eight until I was in high school, I used to receive a Christmas card from the family of the then Governor of Michigan. How did I get on his mailing list? Well, when I was in the third grade, the Governor Engler's wife gave birth to three daughters, and I wrote a little letter congratulating the Governor and his wife after reading about it in the newspaper. I received a card back from the Governor's family. My little letter probably wasn't read, but for an eight year old, getting a card back in response meant a lot. (I don't remember that if I also received a Christmas card that year because the daughters, if I remember correctly, were born in the middle of November. Either way, it doesn't matter.)

I may be old-fashioned, but I love sending and receiving Christmas cards. And if I had any time, I would rather write letters than to send e-mails. (But that is for another post.)

Advent Meme 3: Christmas Food

I don't believe my family has any special Christmas dinner dishes. In the past, we have usually had either turkey or prime rib or both for Christmas dinner. The meals vary depending upon who is hosting the family's Christmas get-together. Either my parents, grandparents or my uncle and aunt host the party at their home, and those not hosting, usually bring a side dish or dessert, even though the main meal is made by the host family.

On Christmas morning, before my brother and I open our presents or have breakfast, we have to take our two dogs out. For the past couple of years, my mom has made a special French toast for breakfast, and it is delicious. Other than that, I don't believe my family has any unique dishes for Christmas.

Researching German Ancestors

Although I have German ancestors, I haven't done a lot of research into my German ancestors, when it comes to German records. So far, I have only been able to trace a couple of branches back to their town or village of origin. Before I go any further, I must state that a family tree had been done previously on one of the families. I am still going through and reconfirming the information since I don't have the original researcher's notes, and I do not know what records he used. I must also mention that in going through the data, I have come across errors, especially when it comes upon information on people who lived in the United States. The errors are exactly why I am going over the information, and the arrangement of the branches make determining relationships very difficult. The tree is completely in German, and even though that is not a major problem for me, there are German words that I have come across that I can't find in my German dictionaries.

So, what have I done to confirm or disprove the information on the tree? I have used obituaries, passport applications, passenger ship lists, marriage records and death certificates. Of course, this isn't an exhaustive list, but as I am still working on determining where most of my German ancestors came from, I'm still looking for more records.

More Genealogy Blogs Added!

I have just added two more genealogy blogs. The blogs added are:

• Destination: Austin Family
• Where am I from?

You can find these and other blogs on the lower left side of the page. Any suggestions for other genealogy or history blogs are welcome.

Advent Meme 2: My Family's Ornaments

I believe that most of my family's Christmas tree ornaments were either bought by my parents or given to my family as gifts. The majority of ornaments that are put on our tree, I remember, were put on the tree as long as I have been alive. Of the ornaments that are on the tree, I remember when they were bought or given as gifts. Many of the Christmas ornaments that were bought were from places that my family had visited on vacations. Of course, there are also the Christmas ornaments that my brother and I made when we were both in elementary school.
There are a couple of ornaments that I treasure because they were made by my great-grandmothers. Neither of my great-grandmothers are still alive, so these ornaments that were made to them are precious to me because they are one of the last links to my ancestors. All of the rest of the ornaments are commercial-made. My family has never strung popcorn and cranberries on our tree probably because it would have been too messy. Instead, we string Christmas tree lights around the tree.

The Colors of My Flag ...

Earlier today, Jasia posted an article about the flag she made. You can read her article here. Here is my flag:

As you can see, the three flags are the flags of my heritage.

Some Other Interesting Articles ...

Over the past the two weeks or so, I've noticed that several interesting blog articles have been posted. I have already written about interesting Thanksgiving posts here. Some of the articles that I've noticed are:

• "Military Naturalization Records - Finding a Soldier Ancestor" at Olive Tree Genealogy Blog. This article is on naturalization records for Civil War soldiers. I've noticed a notation in one census record for a Civil War soldier's naturalization as 1862. It may be possible that the 1862 date might be referring to this act instead.
• "Civil War Hero Ancestor Makes Front Page" at Miriam's blog.
• "Oral and Photo Histories Sought" at Jasia's blog. Again, this is another article on Michigan, and this time it is a call for family histories. If you have connections to Livonia, Michigan, this would be a good article to read.
• "More Minnesota News: Soldier Identified After 144 Years? Maybe ..." at Craig Manson's blog. Again, this is another article that deals with the Civil War.
• "Detective Work: A Misplaced Headstone" at Craig Manson's blog. This article deals with the tombstone of a World War One Veteran.
• "Finding Local History Buried in the Past" at Randy Seaver's blog. This article is a summery of a California newspaper article.

These articles are ones that I thought were interesting. If I have missed any interesting article, please let me know. Enjoy!