More of Our Celebrating Families Day

After nearly a week of lousy weather and very high winds, we were lucky to get a beautiful fall day recently for our day of "Celebrating Families" in honor of Family History Month. We worked hard all month to put the day together and also celebrated the special month with additional offerings at the museum. Our local museum, The Knight Museum and Sandhills Center hosted the month long celebration which culminated in a day for everyone to show off their family histories and stories. For more information on the wonderful facilities for family research at the museum, please check out the official website for the museum and also the postings here and here on the blog, Nebraska Roots and Ramblings. The You Go Genealogy Girls do try to spend some time at the Heritage Room in the museum doing research each time we are together in Alliance. Our day long celebration was a first for the museum and the nearly 70 people who took part in setting up their displays and attending the evening program, presented by Girl #1, seemed to really enjoy the special day. Showing off collections and talking genealogy or history were the days topics in anticipation of the evening program.

Girl #1, Ruby offered up an interesting evening program that centered on writing about the people we research and often call "family". Her lecture, "Writing About Ancestors, Neighbors, Friends and Murderers" drew nice comments and good questions from the audience. Attendees went away with new ideas about writing family stories and learned the importance of honoring our ancestors.

Through out the afternoon, nearly 16 tables of family memorabilia and genealogy based scrapbooks and researched trees were on display for the public to stop in and see as well as for those who brought their items. Everyone had a great time and it is always fun to see what other historians and genealogists come up with in unique ways to honor their family. Simple book displays, beautiful antique clothing, fancy framed wall charts, heritage quilts, old jewelry, Christmas ornaments, scrapbooks, and even a swimsuit from 1900 rounded out all the awesome and beautiful displays.

We hope you enjoy seeing a few of our pictures from the day, we wish everyone could have been there with us. There are also a few more pictures on our earlier posting at "Celebrating Families".

What a great day we had and what a wonderful way for everyone to share their family with others. Genealogists love to gather and share anyway but when it all comes together in a family honoring celebration it is even better. Learning and sharing should never end and next year will be even bigger and better!

You Go Girl #2-- Cheri

She's HEEEERE!

Finally, the third time is a charm! After two failed plans in the last six weeks, my sister-in-law, aka #2, is here in my home, sleeping in my spare bedroom, using my electricity to plug in her laptop (when she remembers to do it), eating my food, using my shower and staying up until after midnight. But, are we ever having fun!! We talk non-stop, perhaps in our sleep, as we have not been together for a long time.

Today is the luck of the Irish day, aka St. Patrick's Day. We are celebrating by doing something ... oh yes, we are going to continue identifying photographs of relatives and ancestors. Actually we are doing a pretty good job of figuring them out. We will also head out this evening to the North Platte Genealogical Society meeting. I may have to reintroduce myself as their President because I have not been there since January. My faithful Vice President took over for me in February while I moaned, groaned and elevated my new knee. Now the knee is much better and after three hours of shopping with # 2 yesterday, I can proclaim it is almost like the old one before the old one got bad. You know what I mean!

We have also been syncing our iPod Touches. Since we are planning a big trip to Salt Lake City toward the end of may, we'll also sync our thoughts on the research we will need to do while there. In preparation for the trip, we'll soon begin planning our food stash and wardrobe (and for me all my shoes I'll take). Lil' Red may be dragging all the way across I-80 to "This is the Place."

Our plans this week also include tweaking a trip for the local genealogical society to visit the museums and research centers where #2 lives. This will happen in July. At least it probably won't snow then! Sandwiched between all these trips we will make our reservations for the Family History Expo in Loveland, CO in June. Hope my other knee holds up during all these escapades.

We also purchased identical purses, so #2 is going to put a flower on hers so we can figure out who has what. However, it should be no problem as hers will be a heavy purse. I have been making iPod Touch pouches in my recovery mode. They are designed for just about any clothes that I have in my wardrobe. Some are funky and some are sentimental and some are just downright .... iPod Touch pouches.

Now I'm off to physical therapy to show them I can bend my knee and get a workout. When I get home #2 should be out of bed, planning our day and lining up genealogy projects. What is it they say about twins? Double the trouble? We aren't twins, but when it comes to genealogy, we are definitely "double the trouble. "

Ruby ... aka #1