30 x 30 Challenge: Progress Not Perfection

I realized this morning that there will be much more I want to search for or that I am missing the "younger" my ancestor is. For example, my grandfather. Not only did he attend grammar school, he went to high school, college and trade school. He took continuing education classes. I had completely forgotten to include Education on my punch list!

This is a good exercise for me. I have been so focused on my "older" ancestors for so long that my "younger" ancestors, the one's I actually knew, got neglected.

What did I actually know of my grandparents?

Ha! When I sat down to start on my first 30 minute ancestor, my father's father, I realized I don't even have a date or location of his marriage! This poses somewhat of a challenge as my father, an only child, passed away in 2007. Add it to the list of "to locate/order", and move on.

My grandmother, my father's mother, died at the age of 48. The story was that she was "sickly" but no, I don't know what she died from! Add "locate/order death cert" to to-do list.

On my mother's side, my grandmother was the Genealogy Queen, and she did leave some good info on herself, but I have almost nothing on my mother's father, who also died young, at the age of 51. I know that he left the family when my mom was just 5 years old, and for many years she thought her much older brother was her father.

Started a "questions for mom" list.

I am realizing that although I have a good outline of facts, I am missing quite a bit of documentation and more interesting facts that round out a life.

So far the urge to go running off in search of the missing information/proof has been hard to resist, but I am making progress with my "to locate/order" list .......

                       ......... and trying not to get too overwhelmed!

to be continued

30 x 30 Challenge: Already Reevaluating!

OK. This is already getting out of hand. And it hasn't even started yet!!

Once again I bit off more than I could chew. The stars in my eyes and hope in my heart were bigger than the reality of time.

Darned time. I shake my fist at you!

After sitting and evaluating my game plan on Sunday afternoon, I came to the realization that my grand plan was not coming to fruition. In the manner I had imagined it anyway. Good thing I keep a stack of paper bags close at hand when dyspnea and a sense of anguish take over. Genealogy, after all, is not for the faint of heart!

I have learned to keep this handy little helper open on my desktop while I attempt the genealogy. It has aided greatly in lessening the weeping and gnashing of teeth.

But I digress.

I had put forth the proposition to thoroughly research one ancestor each day for 30 minutes. Only. Then move on to another ancestor the following day, thereby researching 30 ancestors in 30 days.

Bwhahaha!

Apparently I had gone temporarily mad.
(And, no, it was not Wine O'Clock, if you must know)

Here's my new plan.

Each day of the challenge I will sit with ONE ancestor for 30 minutes and thoroughly evaluate what I still need to acquire, source, document, prove/disprove, etc. I will look at the following:

Birth Date

Birth Place
Marriage Date
Marriage Place
Death Date
Death Place
Burial Date
Burial Place
Lifetime Residences
Occupation
Religion
Military Service
Hobbies
Photographs

Anything I am missing I will note, and move on.
I will not attempt to research. I will only observe. In this manner I should have a comprehensive list of areas that require research when I do have the time to sit down and dive in.

Now this, this is doable.

Let the challenge begin!