Roots & Rabbit Holes

It’s the final week of 2023’s 52 Ancestor in 52 Weeks Challenge, and the prompt is “Me, Myself, and I.”  If I was a normal person, I'd...

Everything fell right into place for this week’s post. The theme for Week 45 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge is “War and...

Week 44 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge is “Spirits.” There were no ghosts in my grandparents’ cobbled-together home, but...

Week 41 of 2023’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge is “Travel.” Raise your hand if you had an ancestor who wanted to get hijacked. The...

It’s the 40th week of 2023’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, and the topic is “Longevity.” Silas Howell, my 6th great-grandfather,...

“Surprise” is the theme for Week 39 of 2023’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. A few weeks ago, I wrote about my 3rd...

“Adversity” is the theme for Week 38 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. Like many Jews in Eastern Europe, my husband’s...

“Prosperity” is the theme for Week 37 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. Several generations of my Turner family were wealthy,...

It’s Week 36 of 2023’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge and the theme is “Tradesman.” When I initially found the marriage record for my...

Charles Barr, my great-great grandfather, was originally from Canada. He eventually moved to Salem, Massachusetts where he worked for...

The topic for Week 34 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge is “Newest Discovery.” My newest discovery was made two weeks ago, when...

During the past week of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, I was supposed to cover the topic of Strength. I’ve been on vacation, and...

After serving in Okinawa during WWII, Grampy Phil was relocated to Korea after the Japanese surrendered. While there, he and his fellow...

“Flew the Coop” is the topic for Week 31 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge. There are a few Salem witch ancestors on my dad’s...

“In the News” is the topic for Week 30 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. My 3rd great-grandfather, Charles Henry Turner, had a...

It’s Week 29 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge and the theme is Birthdays. Although Nana Connie visited her siblings and mother...

Week 28 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge is Random. When I received this year’s prompts and began brainstorming, I decided I’d...

If I spread out five random pictures of my grandfather on a table and said to a total stranger, “This is Fred Turner. Can you guess his...

We’re halfway through 2023’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge! This week’s topic is Slow. When I was a sweet, innocent, four-year-old...

It’s week 25 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. This week’s blog challenge was another tough one for me – Fast. No one in my...