Saturday, March 13, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Another Useful Purpose
As an add-on to my previous post . . .
So, Amanda finally got her learner's permit. Her drivers ed teacher is appauled at her performance on the simulator and chastized me for not having taught her how to drive. Isn't that a dad's job? Anyway, due to her own procrastination, she's only been legal for a few days.
Well, I found a perfect place to practice! The Lehi Cemetery! Better than a parking lot because it's bigger, has defined roads, and lots of turns. Better than a country road because there's no moving cars and the speed limit is 10!
And all I can scream as I'm clutching my seat is "If I have to replace a headstone . . . you're dead!"
So, Amanda finally got her learner's permit. Her drivers ed teacher is appauled at her performance on the simulator and chastized me for not having taught her how to drive. Isn't that a dad's job? Anyway, due to her own procrastination, she's only been legal for a few days.
Well, I found a perfect place to practice! The Lehi Cemetery! Better than a parking lot because it's bigger, has defined roads, and lots of turns. Better than a country road because there's no moving cars and the speed limit is 10!
And all I can scream as I'm clutching my seat is "If I have to replace a headstone . . . you're dead!"
Find A Grave
Some of you may know that I have a bit of a fascination for cemeteries. I love riding 4-wheelers to the miners’ cemetery in Mineral Basin. On our Park City weekends, I insist on walking through the historic, overgrown Glenwood Cemetery. I love the Southern Utah ghost-town cemetery in Silver Reef. And my favorite Halloween activity is a cemetery scavenger hunt.
I don’t really understand my fascination. But, I recently discovered a useful purpose for it. Cemeteries help with family history! We’re hoping to make a trip to Carleton, Nebraska (population 300) this Spring. Bill’s mom and his grandparents and great-grandparents are buried in the Carleton City Cemetery. We’ve been wondering about great-grandma Teresa Mangel. She died when Bill’s grandma was just two. So, we don’t know very much about her. She died before the State kept death records, and there’s not much left to the County records (the clerk looked through the book while I waited on the phone). So, we’re hoping to find her in the cemetery.
Well, I recently discovered FindAGrave.com. It’s a site that relies on the generosity of other family-history-lovers who live near your cemetery of interest. There were just a few interments listed for the Carleton Cemetery. So, I submitted a photo request for our several family members. No kidding, within an hour, a very nice lady uploaded photos of Bill’s family “stones”. She had photographed every grave in that cemetery last summer and “just happened to have them on hand”. From her photos we saw that great-grandma Teresa’s monument also lists two babies that we didn’t know about! She had 11 babies in 15 years – none of them multiple births! Within a few days a different person photographed family stones in Kansas, revealing a couple of previously unknown spouses.
I am so grateful! I don’t really have a way to re-pay them, other than to fulfill photo requests at our local cemetery. So, Bill and I spent a few hours the past couple of weekends fulfilling photo requests at Lehi Cemetery. What a way to spend date-night!
And once again I showed Amanda how easy it is to do a 10-hour Personal Progress project! Just quit your whining, find something you love, and spend a couple of weekends doing it!
I don’t really understand my fascination. But, I recently discovered a useful purpose for it. Cemeteries help with family history! We’re hoping to make a trip to Carleton, Nebraska (population 300) this Spring. Bill’s mom and his grandparents and great-grandparents are buried in the Carleton City Cemetery. We’ve been wondering about great-grandma Teresa Mangel. She died when Bill’s grandma was just two. So, we don’t know very much about her. She died before the State kept death records, and there’s not much left to the County records (the clerk looked through the book while I waited on the phone). So, we’re hoping to find her in the cemetery.
Well, I recently discovered FindAGrave.com. It’s a site that relies on the generosity of other family-history-lovers who live near your cemetery of interest. There were just a few interments listed for the Carleton Cemetery. So, I submitted a photo request for our several family members. No kidding, within an hour, a very nice lady uploaded photos of Bill’s family “stones”. She had photographed every grave in that cemetery last summer and “just happened to have them on hand”. From her photos we saw that great-grandma Teresa’s monument also lists two babies that we didn’t know about! She had 11 babies in 15 years – none of them multiple births! Within a few days a different person photographed family stones in Kansas, revealing a couple of previously unknown spouses.
I am so grateful! I don’t really have a way to re-pay them, other than to fulfill photo requests at our local cemetery. So, Bill and I spent a few hours the past couple of weekends fulfilling photo requests at Lehi Cemetery. What a way to spend date-night!
And once again I showed Amanda how easy it is to do a 10-hour Personal Progress project! Just quit your whining, find something you love, and spend a couple of weekends doing it!
The Girls Are Wearing Their New Outfits!
I’m certainly not a proponent of raising a gender-neutral child. However, I believe that gaining an understanding of and appreciation for “things of the opposite gender” has merit.
I remember Amanda's boy-cousins really enjoyed playing with her kitchen, dishes, and food. When I suggested to my brothers that they should consider it for Christmas, each clearly stated, "No son of mine will play with a kitchen!"
Well, just a few months ago Grandma Scott found the cutest play kitchen. Would you like it for J and Jeremy? Yes, of course! Are you sure Bill will be OK with that? Really? Does he seem like he wouldn’t be OK with it? Much to my surprise the response was clearly stated, “No son of mine . . . “ I coaxed a bit for a few weeks and finally got the “do whatever you want” answer. Disappointedly, I declined Grandma's offer.
Still, we have lots of old girl stuff packed in the toy totes. Over the holidays J found Amanda’s VHS collection. We all enjoyed watching Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. But J’s favorite was the Barbie Nutcracker! Near the end, he couldn’t contain his excitement and exclaimed Mommy, Mommy -- the nutcracker . . . he turned into a prince . . . a dancing prince . . . just like the girls! and then he twirled like a ballerina and ran back to watch the credits!
I very much enjoyed sharing that with Bill!
Now, J has discovered the My Scene Barbie DVDs – released for promotion when My Scene Barbie was introduced. His eyes were glued to the screen! Afterward, Mommy, Mommy – the girls are wearing their new outfits!
Woah!! That’s enough of the girl stuff!
I remember Amanda's boy-cousins really enjoyed playing with her kitchen, dishes, and food. When I suggested to my brothers that they should consider it for Christmas, each clearly stated, "No son of mine will play with a kitchen!"
Well, just a few months ago Grandma Scott found the cutest play kitchen. Would you like it for J and Jeremy? Yes, of course! Are you sure Bill will be OK with that? Really? Does he seem like he wouldn’t be OK with it? Much to my surprise the response was clearly stated, “No son of mine . . . “ I coaxed a bit for a few weeks and finally got the “do whatever you want” answer. Disappointedly, I declined Grandma's offer.
Still, we have lots of old girl stuff packed in the toy totes. Over the holidays J found Amanda’s VHS collection. We all enjoyed watching Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. But J’s favorite was the Barbie Nutcracker! Near the end, he couldn’t contain his excitement and exclaimed Mommy, Mommy -- the nutcracker . . . he turned into a prince . . . a dancing prince . . . just like the girls! and then he twirled like a ballerina and ran back to watch the credits!
I very much enjoyed sharing that with Bill!
Now, J has discovered the My Scene Barbie DVDs – released for promotion when My Scene Barbie was introduced. His eyes were glued to the screen! Afterward, Mommy, Mommy – the girls are wearing their new outfits!
Woah!! That’s enough of the girl stuff!
What Does the D Say? du du du
J earned his Alphabet Crown today! That means he recognizes both upper and lower case, and knows their names -- and their sounds! This was a surprise to me! du du du -- every piece of scrap paper in our house has letters written all over it. When I asked him how he learned them so fast, he replied, "Because I love them." (Yes Amanda, that's one point up on the geek scale).
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