Organize Your Family History

Stay focused and happy while exploring your roots

Registration open for NGS conference

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Registration is now open for the National Genealogical Society’s 2016 conference! It will be held May 4-7 in Ft. Lauderdale. I attended the 2015 conference and was very impressed by the quality of the sessions I sat in on. I’m planning to attend this year’s conference and am really looking forward to it.

For the past two years, I’ve attended RootsTech and have enjoyed it as well, though I found the enormity (15,000 or more attendees) a bit overwhelming. This year, it’s being held February 3-6 in Salt Lake City. I decided not to attend because we have a new puppy and I don’t want to saddle my husband with all the work. (Plus, I’d miss Bix, my puppy!) I hope to get back to RootsTech in 2017.

I’m also giving serious consideration to attending the Southern California Genealogical Society’s Genealogy Jamboree once again. I loved it last year. It will be held June 3-5 in Burbank, California.

Do you attend genealogy conferences? Which conferences will you attend this year? If you’re planning to be at NGS or the Jamboree, please let me know in the comments!

Join me in a 30 x 30 challenge?

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30x30 challengeLast summer, I did a personal 30 x 30 challenge, in which I committed to doing 30 minutes of family history research for 30 days. It had a number of benefits, the most obvious of which was that I accomplished 15 hours of family history research that month!

With the holiday season, travel, and the addition of a puppy to our family, I got precious little family history research done the last month or two of the year. So I decided that the new year was a great time to start a new 30 x 30 challenge.

I intended to start it on January 1, but I woke up on New Year’s Day with a cold (and a bit of a hangover), so put it off until January 2. I did research on the 2nd and 3rd and completely forgot about it yesterday.

So today, I’m starting a new challenge, which will run from January 5 to February 4. I’m working on my Adams line this quarter, so I will be focusing on the Civil War pension file for my union ancestor George Washington Adams, as well as checking my sources and making sure my electronic documents are properly filed for my other Adams ancestors.

Let me know if you’d care to join me in a 30 x 30 challenge this month!

Competing priorities

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IMG_4877 (1)I’m happy to announce a new family member, but not one who will show up on my family tree. It’s our eight-week-old standard poodle puppy, Bix, who comes with his own impressive pedigree. (We got him from Dianne Janczewski of Clifton Standard Poodles.)

What does this have to do with organizing your genealogy? Well, Bix has proven to be an adorable distraction. Thanks to the constant vigilance I keep over him (house training is an all-encompassing activity), not to mention all the playing, training and socializing we’re doing, I’m not finding much time to blog, let alone conduct family history research. Or, really, do anything else. (Somehow I do find time to post pictures of Bix on Facebook and read all the comments about his cuteness.)

I should mention that my husband works from home, so I share the puppy duties. But Barry sleeps later than I, so my precious early morning hours–the time I ordinarily devote to things like blogging–is eaten up with puppy care. Bix is in his pen chewing on a chewy as I type this morning. He’s a good boy.

Bix’s time as a puppy is precious and socialization is critical. My genealogy’s not going anywhere. So I’m going to cut myself some slack and probably just satisfy myself with thinking about genealogy, rather than doing research, for a little while. I will keep blogging, of course, but I’ll ask your forgiveness if my blog posts are shorter or less meaty than you might hope.

A tangible gift idea for genealogists

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A beautiful gift for a genealogy enthusiastLast week I wrote about giving clutter-free gifts for genealogists and had a list of suggestions, mostly of non-tangible items. But today, I can’t resist telling you about one of my very favorite pieces of jewelry, one that think would make a great gift for a genealogist.

It’s the Family Tree Necklace from Lisa Leonard Designs. I blogged about mine in September 2014. The necklace, I think, is intended to be worn by moms whose children’s first names are stamped on it. The one I ordered one for myself had my grandparents’ surnames on it instead. I love the connection to my ancestors I feel when I wear it. And I think it’s a pretty piece of jewelry.

My Family Tree Necklace, purchased in 2014, was made of pewter. I see that the current offering is in sterling silver. If you have a pendant-wearing genealogy enthusiast on your list, you might consider this lovely gift. Since the item is hand-stamped, I’m not sure if it will be ready in time for Christmas. But I’m sure it would be appreciated, even if the gift arrived in January.

Hint: If you sign up for Lisa Leonard’s email newsletter, you’ll be send a 15% off coupon (or at least that was the case when I signed up!).