​Every day we are bombarded with media—whether it is tv, online videos, movies or phone apps.  Our choices are endless and can be overwhelming.  And if you’re like me, I spend a lot of time researching for ancestors online.  It’s the nature of our world.  Join me today as we look at genealogy podcast.  They might just give us the needed break from “screen time” plus the opportunity to learn, listen and grow while carving out time for a relaxing cup of tea (or coffee).

Have you tried mapping the locations where your ancestors have lived? I use mapping to get a visual view of ancestor’s locations across time.  This technique helps me identify records to be searched in a particular location or that  help identify why they moved to the next location.  As you do your family story, mapping will help you with your research plan as well as provide additional content/context.
Let’s look at an example.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!  Hope you enjoy the day with family and friends!  Now is the perfect time to spend some time researching your Irish roots.  It’s been interesting to see how many more records are available online.
Let's explore Irish links (not the golf course variety, sorry couldn't resist!) that may help you with your family story.

​Looking through old family photos, it was interesting to see how the landscape of our farm had changed.  The big cottonwoods that line our north grove were relatively young saplings in the 1930s and 1940s.  Our south grove expanded in the 1980s when there was an opportunity to have baby trees planted as part of a conservation effort in the county.  A recent search online brought up the Civilian Conservation Corps.
 
Was your ancestor part of that organization?  Or did they use them to enhance their homestead and provide protection from erosion in the farm fields?  Let’s look at what this was all about and see if there is any tie to family history.

Have you been able to watch any of the live-streaming from the RootsTech 2019 Conference?  I’ve been glued to my computer screen whenever possible.
While my blog will be shorter this week due to my RootsTech binge watching, I wanted to share some great tips from one of the sessions while fresh in my mind.