Wales

When I visited Egypt it felt surreal and that feeling lasted for the whole 2 weeks.

When I visited London I was excited but I felt the same as when I visited New Orleans or New York City. Honestly I thought I would be more excited because London has been on the top of my "to visit" list.

But Wales.... Wales made me giddy! I have never been that giddy before visiting a place.

I had to meet the coach early in the morning so I was asleep for most of the drive, but I woke up just as we passed this contraption that reminded me of entering California and declaring "I have no fruit." I immediately wake-up getting excited that we may have just entered Wales. And sure enough the signs now have English and Cymru on them.

I'm looking around and it's breathtakingly beautiful. From that point on I was just giddy until I had to leave (and I did not want to leave).

I had explained this to my teacher when I returned and she completely understood. Wales is just gorgeous.

A lot of my ancestors are from Wales so I've contacted my sister and we have a Family History trip to Wales that we are planning.

See the sections that are a lighter color stone and have a redish line around it on the wall to Cardiff Castle? That's the original roman wall.

Oh yes, I may have attended the Dr Who Experience while I was in Cardiff.

I'm off!

To London again for a few days.

This time I'll be spending my time at the National Archives flipping through books of "petitions to the King to leave England" and hopefully I'll find some info on my 4th great grandpa who left England for Boston way back in the 1700's. Oh yeah, we don't know when he left so I'll be flipping through a lot of books. :-)

Wish me luck!

I'm awake....

Why is it when I go to bed at 1 am (like normal) I sleep 10 or 12 hours. But when I'm lethargic all day and go to bed early at 8 (yes I missed my class tonight) I only sleep 6.5 hours and I'm wide awake at 2:30 in the morning? How is this possible? Well hopefully this will get me back on a normal sleep cycle because it's been really bad. Really bad.

I received the best email today from JoElla! You see, JoElla is coming to visit me in April and we're going to do a crazy visit to Italy and a more relaxing visit to Paris. (I say crazy visit because we'll be visiting Bergamo, Milan, Florence, Pisa, Rome, Naples (on our way to and from Pompeii) and Venice in like 5 days) I'm going to see artwork that I've only seen in books and by the time I'm done I'd have seen artwork from all four ninja turtles! boo-ya!

So anyways, back to that email.... it was a very simple email, in fact only a few words:

"Our tickets just got here!"

Tickets = our rail tickets (rail pass for Italy and our overnight train from Venice to Paris)

To get those in the mail makes it seem a bit more tangible- like it's around the corner. When I think of April I think "we still have a couple of months!" but then I think "it's ONLY a couple of months!" It feels far away one moment and then one moment it doesn't. I'm so excited!

My inner nerd (ok outer nerd too) even looked up Volterra to see if it was possible for me to make a quick pit stop and visit. I knew it was in the Tuscany area and Pisa and Florence are in the Tuscany area... granted I think the Tuscany area is pretty large. It's an hour and a half from Pisa if we rent a car (2 and 1/2 by train and bus) In other words it's not happening. If it was on the way (by train) to Rome then YES we would make a pit stop, but it's not. Italy is scheduled to the max and I can't throw in another city. I already threw in Venice.

I'm planning my "next trip" which includes Munich, Prague and Switzerland. I'll add Volterra to that trip.

Oh! I have a plan of attack to find some info on my 4th great grandpa. I found that the London archives has books containing petitions to the crown to go abroad back in the day. We don't know what year he arrived in Boston and we don't know anything about his life before Boston so I'm using what we do know to estimating possible years that he left to begin my search. (I'm hoping to find his petition.) Yes this means I'm going to have to look at every single page of who-knows-how-many-books.

So I planned a trip to London for just the archives building. I'll have 3 full days to spend there from open to close so I'm hoping to find something. Unfortunately it's closed Sunday and Mondays so I couldn't do more days there. To go home on Sunday would have been £6 so I'm staying until Monday where the ride home is only £1. Well, I guess I can't say that trip is only for the archives building since I have 2 non-archive days to do what I want... Anyways I'm really excited for that trip and I hope I come back with something.

Sorry, this post seems to have ADD.

David Tennant and Family History

I really like the show "Who Do You Think You Are?" (and you need to watch Lisa Kudrow's episode - I balled like a baby!) Anyways, after moving to Scotland I learned that there's been 6 seasons here and one of the episodes was about David Tennant. You should already know about my obsessive trait so needless to say I added this DVD to my queue quickly.

why hello there handsome.... (via google images)

It was a very interesting family history journey and it really made me think about my own journey.

I was really moved with what he said at the end of the episode (and to get the full effect read it with a scottish accent):

"...you're having to deal with your reactions to issues that are still very much alive. And dealing with people that made choices and decisions with their lives and died a long time ago. But they passed a bit of their DNA on to you and you now feel like you have to go back and figure out why they did what they did. You want your family to be people that you admire and be inspired by..."

I think we all want that. I know I do.

As I search through older census reports I always hope that the slave column is empty. I understand it happened and is a part of history but I don't understand how people could think they're better than another human being, make them slaves, and treat them horribly and like trash. I'm very happy to report that so far that column has been empty and I really hope it stays that way. But what if it doesn't? Then I'll keep going.

Our ancestors are people just like us. I think some people put their ancestors on pedestals and forget that they're people who have made choices (and sometimes we may not like those choices). They make decisions based on their circumstances, learned values from the society they're raised in, and the knowledge that they possess.

We're all bound to find something we don't like that our ancestors did. For example, she or he may be a convict.

Does that mean we should hide it? Ignore it? Tell anyone that gets close that they worked at the prison instead of being in the prison? No! (hahaha... seriously no hard feeling here.)

That is part of the ancestor and by learning what led him or her to make that decision provides an opportunity to learn more about him or her.

Personally I don't care that my 2nd great grandpa was a convict. In fact I want to know why he stole such stupid things. Did he steal them for someone who really needed them (like Robin Hood) or was he just a clepto?

You know what? The beauty of having a convict in the family tree is that the prison records are a gold mine complete with a picture! Full of information that you won't find anywhere else.

I don't think my extended family meant harm when they hid that fact that he was in prison (twice) from my sister and I. I think it goes back to what David said, "...You want your family to be people that you admire and be inspired by..."

I think they want to remember who he ended up being not who he was. But we shouldn't hid and ignore who he was because that made him the man they want to remember.

PS - If you like this show (or just like David Tennant) I recommend this episode, I'm not sure if you can get it in the states though.

I like...

Our friend Cindy does a genealogy post every Sunday. I like this idea and I might steal it... eventually.

PS - I love this photo of my great-grandma

Just read the funniest thing...

So I turn the TV on (yes I watch a lot of TV but I can't focus unless there's background noise, I think it's from growing up in a large family the quite makes me antsy...) anyways, I'm flipping through the guide to see what will be my background noise when I come across:

1300 - 1400 Pride and Prejudice

1400 - 1500 Pride and Prejudice

So of course I think "is this what I think it is?" I hit info and it cracks me up. And I quote:

"Collin Firth sets the female viewing nation's hearts racing in the much-loved dramatisation of Jane Austen's classic story..."

HAHAHA.... well at least it cracked me up, but I'm easily amused.

PS -

Dear family,

I'm about half way done organizing (or as they would say over here organising) my family history documents. I hope to be done shortly and then I'll get it sent off to anyone that wants to help. Ok, I'm going back to work on it.

Lucy, you have some explainin' to do!

Ai-yai-yai! I have my nights and days mixed up. I need to figure something out and get on a schedule because I'm always tired, going to bed late, and waking up late. Worse than I was back home. (I'm working on a plan to get myself on track!)

Yesterday (and I have a feeling today as well) was a lazy day.

You see, I woke up too late to go to church, so I went back to bed. Finally I got up but then I stayed in my PJs all day. I was productive a bit since I spent the day organizing my family history. Didn't do any writing for my NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) story. Didn't touch my pile of dishes in the sick that I should have done days ago. Then I went to bed at 3am.... yeah.

I have a problem (that other family members suffer from as well). When I get something in my head, I go at it full force into the wee hours of the morning until it's done or until I'm bored with it. Last night was one of those nights.

I'm currently trying to get my family history files organized, then I'll send my list of source docs to my sister for her to review and to let me know if there's docs that she has that I don't. Once all of that is complete, I'll be sending everything to my siblings that want to work on family history with us. And then I can start researching again.

There is a reason that I'm doing it this way instead of continuing researching where I was. I didn't really know what I had, so I didn't know my ancestors. I decided I need to read the stories and biographies and actually look at what the census sheets are telling me. And now I am starting to know who these people were and what they went through.

I did start mapping out the places I need to visit in Wales and England (some in Scotland too but I don't have those locations yet), but I don't want to go blindly to these places, I want to have a purpose. Granted just saying I've been to the place so-and-so was born is pretty cool, in my opinion, but it would be even cooler if I had a picture of the church so-and-so was baptised in or something.

I spent the weekend up in Glasgow to see the fireworks for Guy Fawkes Day / Bonfire Night / Fireworks Night. I don't know what the 5th of November is called. I know when my family lived in London (YEARS ago) it was Guy Fawkes Day and that's what I grew up with knowing it as. But I haven't heard that term at all here. I've heard mostly Bonfire Night with a couple Fireworks Night thrown in.

So I went to watch the fireworks at Glasgow Green, which was pretty cool. They didn't have a bonfire but they had a small amusement park in the middle of the.... park. I felt like I was in a scene from Penelope, except minus the bubbles. (After she escapes from her home she is all of a sudden at a small amusement park... and then there were bubbles flying around her.) Mama Mia is coming to Glasgow soon and Mama Mia obviously sponsored this event, so the fireworks were set to the music of Mama Mia. Personally I love Mama Mia so I thought it was awesome!

My trip to Glasgow didn't start off exactly right though. I walked in the wrong direction.... for awhile. LOL I saw some so really cool things that I want to go back for though! What else could I do? There's no point getting upset at myself because I was stupid and took a right even after I looked at the map and told myself I needed to take a left. All I can do is laugh at myself and take notes of what I want to go back and see, then move on.

I stayed the night in Glasgow so I met up with Rachel on Saturday and we found this little Saturday Market and there was a lot of cool things there. If I wasn't on a budget I would have bought several jewelry pieces. I love artist vendors!

I do find myself missing home the last couple of days (and wanting to move back). More than I thought I would. Let me explain, I grew up in the military so I've never missed anybody. My dad got orders so we moved or my friend's dad/mom got orders so they moved and life went on. That may sound cruel but it's not because that was just how growing up was.

I don't get homesick. I never have. Ok, I did once; when I was at school but that took several YEARS to happen (like 3 or 4 years). Can't my family stop growing and doing things so I don't miss out? LOL My sister got a dog yesterday, which is HUGE because she's afraid of dogs. And this puppy is stinking cute and I want to see her and hold her. But alas, I cannot.

Ok, I'm going to go now. But never fear, I did wash my dishes this morning and I'm even working on a load of laundry. So I guess today won't be as lazy as yesterday. I am going to work on more family history though (I finished 4 generations and I had just started the fifth generation). It still remains to be unseen if I will get out of my PJs today. But I am excited that Dr. Who and Spooks will be on tonight. Yay Mondays!

P.S. - I will for sure get out of my PJs tomorrow because I'm taking the bus to do some exploring, there's a country park two towns over that I've been wanting to explore :-)

Happy Independence Day!

I love my country and I'm so proud to celebrate it's Independence Day. As a woman, I love and hold dear the freedom and rights that I have in this wonderful country. (And I love that my country gives me a three-day weekend to celebrate. Thanks America, you're the best!)

I have several revolutionary soldiers in my family line and I'm proud to have reaped the benefits of what they fought for. And I'm extremely proud that they were willing to fight when the odds weren't in their favor. Let's put this in perspective, shall we? And this perspective is thanks to David McCullough's book 1776 (if you haven't read it, you should)

When George Washington provided his formal acceptance to command the troops he began by telling congress, "I am truly sensible of the high honor done me in this appointment, yet I feel great distress from a consciousness that my abilities and military experience may not be equal to the extensive and important trust." In a letter address to his wife Martha he wrote, "...I have used every endeavor in my power to avoid it, not only from my unwillingness to part with you and the family but from a consciousness of its being a trust too great for my capacity..."

"If he saw the responsibility as too great for his ability, it was because he had a realistic idea of how immense that responsibility would be. For such a trust, to lead and undisciplined, poorly armed volunteer force of farmers and tradesmen against the best-trained, best-equipped, most formidable military force on earth - and with so much riding on the outcome - was, in reality, more than any man was qualified for."

Did you know that "...for those that carried the fight for independence [in 1776 brought] all-too few victories, ...suffering, disease, hunger, desertion, cowardice, disillusionment, defeat, terrible discouragement, and fear as they would never forget, but also of phenomenal courage and bedrock devotion to country, and that too, they would never forget. Especially for those who had been with Washington and who knew what a close call it was at the beginning - how often circumstance, storms, contrary winds, the oddities or strengths of individual character had made the difference - the outcomes seemed little short of a miracle."

My 5th Great Grandpa, Thomas Knighton, was a revolutionary soldier who had served under General George Washington and one time was a Life Guard of his. And he would often tell his grand-daughter, Sarah Rich, "... stories of the war and the hardships he and others had to pass through..." And he often told Sarah "... what a good and great man General Washington was... and he would go into his tent and shut himself up and pray to the Lord for all the men and officers that served under him..." (From Sarah Rich's autobiography)

Today at church we sung the Star Spangled Banner and I love that song. And I leaned over and proudly told my friend Cecily "I've seen the flag that inspired this song." That flag was big, dirty, tattered, pieces missing, and exceptionally beautiful. If you're ever in Washington DC check out the Smithsonian of US History and see it for yourself. It's amazing.

Everyone have fun celebrating this wonderful nation and be safe!

A little genealogy...

When I was in Utah one of my cousins (I believe it was Sherri) had mockingly asked "Why do I love sugar so much" But maybe not in those exact words. So I thought I would share some of the family history that I have discovered. I had read somewhere, which I spent all evening trying to find and I can't, that John Young (my 3rd great-grandfather) had a sweet tooth. He loved those desserts. (I will find the document that contained this and quote it... I'm determined!) edit: 3rd great grandpa (thanks Laura!) & for all those cousins & other family that have a sweet tooth - we have a connection to John. BUT the "portly" part came from the Howe's side (his wife's side) :-)

Of course we have no pictures of him but from his pension papers we're told that at 17 he was 5'3" (I think it's safe to say he was on the shorter side) and his complexion was "light".

And the following information is from Fanny Young's letter to her brother Phinehas:

John was 6 years old when his father died and he was taken and bound out as a servant to Colonel John Jones (held that office in the Kings army before the revolution.)

The colonel’s wife didn’t like John (since the rest liked him) and always wanted to whip him because she said he always deserved it. The older ones would instruct him run “like the mischief” if she would come to whip him. So the first time he tried it “the old beldam” had got him up and was lecturing him with a whip in her hand and before she knew it he had fled. He flew from her like a wild deer and she couldn’t catch him, although she ran with all her might in a minute, forgetting her dignity entirely in the heat of her anger. But the little rascal could run like a wild deer and she couldn’t overtake him.

When the Colonel came home the house was in arms because John was worthy of death as well as bonds and it’ll be attended to without delay. Right away the Colonel, the whip and poor John were soon on the way to the barn (which was a considerable distance from the house). John expected he should be whipped to death without doubt. When the door shut the old man began, “John, you dog you, why did you run away from your mistress? Don’t you know I will whip you to death if you do so? So will you do so again?” John promised reformation almost petrified with fear when the Colonel exclaimed and stamping his foot, “Clear out you dog you and don’t you come to the house for three hours. And don’t let me hear of your running away from your mistress again.”

John felt as though he narrowly escaped death. And Fanny often heard him laugh at the satisfaction the dear old woman felt in thinking he was so severely flogged when in fact the merciful old man had done nothing to him.

John was ten years old when war broke out between America and Great Britain. John was longing to be old enough to enlist and when he got to be sixteen years old he sought and soon found an opportunity of enlisting into the army which he did with joy (and he found a way for his brother Joseph to enlist as well).

Family History and Ghost Hunters

So I'm watching the Ghost Hunters Christmas Eve marathon and working on Family History.  Isn't that a great combination?

Merry Christmas everyone!!