Saturday, June 29, 2013

"Dear Ancestor" Poem by Walter Butler Palmer



Dear Ancestor

"Your tombstone stands among the rest
Neglected and alone
The name and date are chiseled out
On polished marble stone
It reaches out to all who care
It is too late to mourn

You did not know that I exist
You died and I was born
Yet each of us are cells of you
In flesh and blood and bone
Our blood contracts and beats a pulse
Entirely not our own

Dear Ancestor, the place you filled
One hundred years ago
Spreads out among the ones you left
Who would have loved you so
I wonder how you lived and loved
I wonder if you knew
That someday I would find this spot
And come to visit you."
-Walter Butler Palmer

About the Author: Walter Butler Palmer  was by b orn,  22 Jun 1868 in Prairie Center, LaSalle, Illinois. He was the son of Ephraim Milo Palmer and Sarah Henderson Butler. He married Irena B. Lardin on 25 Sep 1889. A year and a half later, Irena died on May 1891. He married 2nd wife Mary Frances White on 11 Dec 1894 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois. They were the parents of two children; Burton White Palmer and Margaret Allison Palmer. He was a family historian, breeder of trotting and show horses, and an accomplished poet. He wrote the above poem  "Dear Ancestor" in 1906 while he was visiting the grave of his great grandfather; Ephraim Palmer (1760-1852).   He died  6 Jun 1932 in Ottawa, LaSalle, Illinois.

About the photo: If you look closely, you can see a large headstone and final resting place of  my great, great, great grandfather;  George Washington Burnes.  Buried in Norristown Cemetery, in Shelbyville, Shelby, Indiana.

Keep connecting the dots!! -Sarah

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy's Wedding Dress and Veil


The wedding dress worn by Jacqueline Bouvier is cited as "one of the best-remembered bridal gowns of all time." The dress was created by African-American Designer, Ann Lowe and made from 49 feet of ivory silk taffeta.

Just ten days before the wedding day, Jacqueline found out that her wedding dress and all her bridesmaids dresses were destroyed by a flood in Ann Lowe's studio. The remarkable Ann Lowe and her staff worked day and night to recreate all the dresses that originally took eight weeks to sew. Jacqueline's wedding dress and all the bridesmaids dresses were 
completed and delivered   on-time in just eight days.


She wore the same beautiful lace veil that
her grandmother wore on her wedding day.


Jacqueline Bouvier married then Senator John F. Kennedy on September 12, 1953 in St. Mary's Church
 in Newport, Rhode Island.




You can see Jacqueline's iconic wedding dress on display at the Kennedy Library in Boston, Massachusetts.



Sources:
Bridal Icons and their influence on Modern Bridal Gowns. Ausgustus Jones Collections. Retrieved 2 May 2011

Jackie Kennedy Wedding Dress 1953. fashion-era.com. Retrieved 2 May 2011.

Christopher Andersen (1997). Jack and Jackie: Portrait of an American Marriage. Avon. Retrieved 2 May 2011.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Free Online Genealogy & Family History Courses offered by Brigham Young University


Spread the word! A prominent University is offering many FREE online genealogy and family history courses. You're probably asking yourself, which University? Well, it's Brigham Young University; BYU.

There is no need to travel, we can take these courses online at our convenience.
I just signed  up for the "Family Records" course, and I was shocked at how easy this was.

Easy Sign up Instructions:

  1. Click on the course you want (below).
  2. Click on "Begin Course" (top, left of screen), 
  3. Enter your email, name, and address and click "submit". Within seconds you will receive a confirmation email with a link.
  4. Click on that link.
  5. Sign in with your email.
That's it!! You're ready to get started with your first lesson. Enjoy!!

10 FREE online Family History/Genealogy Courses:


Family History / Genealogy — Introductory

Family History / Genealogy — Record Type
Family History / Genealogy — Regional and Ethnic
Click here to go to BYU Independent Study Free Online Courses >>

Here's a snapshot of the BYU Independent Study website. (Click image to enlarge).  



Have fun and keep connecting the dots!!

-Sarah

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

If You Could Time Travel, Who Would You Meet?


I often think about how awesome it would be to time travel to meet one of my ancestors. I want to hear their voices, see their faces, their eyes, hands and other physical features; to see if they looked like me. I could ask all the questions I have wondered about for years like; who was your father and mother? What were your biggest trials in life? What were your happiest moments in life? What was your biggest mistake? I want to know them deeper, than just names, dates and places. To know that they were probably like me in many ways. 

If I could time travel to meet any ancestor, it would be my great great great grandfather, George Washington Burnes, someone I admire and have learned to love.

Who would you want to meet and why?


Monday, June 17, 2013

Learn Your Lineage Through Your Feet.


It's been proven that our feet can tell us many things, but did you know that our feet can tell us about our lineage? Based on this simple foot reading test we can learn our true descent. I just found out that I am Egyptian. What is your lineage?

Sources and other great articles about foot reading:
Foot reading: what your toes say about you

Sunday, June 16, 2013

A Father's Day Tribute



"Noble Fatherhood Gives us a glimpse of the divine attributes of our Father in heaven." 
- James E. Faust

Who's in the photo? My sweet husband Brady; someone I often refer to as Superman. He works hard to provide a good living for our family, he went back to school full time, and works by my side to manage our family of 7. Our children adore him, and I am so lucky to have him in my life. The cute boy is our 2nd of three sons.

Our Family:


Here's to all the great father's out there. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication to your families. 

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Life's Little Instructions by 95 yr old William Snell

Photo Credit: wallpaperswide.com

Life’s Little Instructions:
By: 95 year old William Snell

"Sing in the shower.
Treat everyone you meet like you want to be treated.
Watch a sunrise at least once a year.
Never refuse homemade brownies.
Strive for excellence, not perfection.
Plant a tree on your birthday.
Learn three clean jokes.
Return borrowed vehicles with the gas tank full.
Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.
Leave everything a little better than you found it.
Keep it simple.
Think big thoughts, but relish small pleasures.
Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
Be forgiving on yourself and others.
Say “thank you” a lot.
Say “please” a lot.
Avoid negative people.
Wear polished shoes.
Remember other people’s birthdays.
Commit yourself to constant improvement.
Have a firm handshake.
Send lots of valentine cards, sign them.
Look people in the eye.
Be the first to   say “hello.”
Return all things you borrow.
Make new friends but cherish the old ones.
Keep secrets.
Plant flowers every spring.
Have a dog.
Always accept an outstretched hand.
Stop blaming others.
Take responsibility for every area of your life.
Wave at kids on school buses.
Be there when people need you.
Don’t expect life to be fair.
Never underestimate the power of love.
Drink champagne for no reason at all.
Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation.
Don’t be afraid to say, “I made a mistake.”
Don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t know.”
Compliment even small improvements.
Keep your promises no matter what.
Marry only for love.
Rekindle old friendships.
Count your blessings.
Call your mother and your dad too, if they happen to be alive."

 - William Snell

Thursday, June 13, 2013

"If You Could See Your Ancestors"


If You Could See Your Ancestors
By Nellie Winslow Simmons Randall

If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row,
Would you be proud of them or not?
Or don't you really know?

Some strange discoveries are made
In climbing family trees.
And some of them, you know,
Do not particularly please.

If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row,
There might be some of them perhaps
You shouldn't care to know.

But here's another question
Which requires a different view
If you could "meet" your ancestors
Would they be proud of you?

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Cries from our Ancestors; "Remember Me"


If we could hear the cries from our ancestors, they might be saying "REMEMBER ME". I often think of how difficult life was back then. The daily routine of cooking, cleaning, washing, sewing, farming, building and fixing things would consume their entire day. Diseases and sicknesses would sweep through every family, taking the lives of many loved ones. My great great great grandparents buried five of their babies because of sicknesses that existed during the mid 1800's. They wouldn't have any time for luxury or entertainment, and their way of relaxing was reading the Bible by the fire.

When I visited the homestead of my Great, Great, Great Grandparents, I couldn't help but think back on their lives as they raised thirteen children in a small four room home. Not four bedrooms; four rooms. One room was the kitchen, one room was the family room, and two rooms upstairs for the children and parents to sleep. They lived on a 700 acre farm, which only provided them with the food and income they needed to survive. They worked harder than us, and I'm sure their only request would be "remember me."

Because I know my ancestors, I am more sensitive to their hardships and losses, but also grateful for the many blessings and conveniences that we all have because of them. It's a simple, yet important request from them; "remember me".

Who's in the above photo:  My grandmother, Ruth Imogene Adams Burnes' father, Gim William Adams, her uncle, Charley Ross Adams, and Grandparents; William & Mary Adams. Photo taken about 1902 in Scotland County, Missouri.

Photos of my GGG-Grandparents 177 year old home that I visited in Hope, Indiana on September 9, 2009.




L-R: Frankie Ziegler, Sarah Burnes Heiner, Ronnie Ziegler (4th cousins)
standing in front of the Burnes Homestead.

REMEMBER - REMEMBER - REMEMBER

Friday, June 07, 2013

How To Export Your Family Tree From Ancestry.com

Many people have asked me "how do I export my  family tree from Ancestry.com so I can import it to my genealogy software?" Well, this is surprisingly easy to do with these six steps of instructions and images to follow. Here's how...

Step 1:   Sign in to your ancestry.com account:




Step 2: Click on "Family Trees"




Step 3: Click on the family tree you want to export:





Step 4:
Click on "Tree pages"





Step 5:
Click on "Tree Settings"






Step 6: Click on "Export tree". Save your family tree file to your computer. Don't worry, your family tree will still be in ancestry.com, this will only make a COPY of your family tree when it's exported.



That's it!! Once your family tree has exported, it will be a GEDCOM file, which means you can import it to any genealogy software of your choice. Have fun!!

GEDCOM stands for GEnealogical Data COMmunication.

 

Wednesday, June 05, 2013

"You Live as Long as You are Remembered."



"You Live as Long as You are Remembered." -Russian Proverbs


Who's in the picture?    Meet my Great Aunt and Uncle, Jessie Jean  Adams  Christy
and Dr. Harry Christy and their baby.



Monday, June 03, 2013

"Family Faces Are Magic Mirrors..."


"Family faces are magic mirrors. Looking at people who belong to us, we see the past, present, and future." -Gail Lumet Buckley

Who's in the picture?  Meet my Great Aunt, Jessie Jean Adams Christy. This is my paternal grandmother's sister. Isn't she beautiful?



Sunday, June 02, 2013

"We are Not Human Beings On a Spiritual Journey, We are Spiritual Beings on a Human Journey"


-- SUNDAY MESSAGE --

We are Not Human Beings On a Spiritual Journey, We are Spiritual Beings on a Human Journey." -Stephen R. Covey

Who's in the picture? Me with my 4th child when he was only 9 days old.