And the winner is...

Congratulations to Mami2jcn


Comment #4 was chosen by Random.org.

I will be emailing you shortly with information regarding your win!

Thank you everyone for commenting and participating in my first giveaway.  I hope to do more giveaways in the future.  Happy Saturday!

Two Surprises

On Saturday, RoadTripDaddy and I got the kids up early and headed out the door for the first of two surprises.  When we got to the train station, we told the kids we were taking a train ride.  Monkey LOVES trains.  They were very excited for their first train rides.  We boarded the train and headed towards the city.  The kids were enthralled looking out the windows.  It was fun to watch the excitement in their eyes.  Sweet Pea asked why we were stopping.  At every single station.  All 10 stops.  We had to change stations when we arrived downtown so we could head to our next surprise.  We walked the couple blocks to the Ogilvie and hung out for a bit until it was time to head to Ravinia.  On the train we told the kids that we were headed to see Laurie Berkner!  Sweet Pea kept asking if we were going then.  She later proceeded to tell a nice woman on the train that we were going to see Laurie about 15 times.  RoadTripDaddy and I figured she was excited.  However, this didn't stop her from asking why we were stopping again at every station.  This time there were 12 stops to question.

The kids had a blast at the concert and it was definitely worth the trip.  After the concert, we headed into the city and explored Millennium Park.  It was a ton of fun but we were exhausted by the time we finally made it home.  More about our weekend to come later.

Don't forget to enter to win a 6 month US Deluxe Membership to Ancestry.com and Family Tree Maker 2012.  You have until this Friday!  Click here to enter!

Roots and a Giveaway!

For the past few years I have had a membership to Ancestry.com.  What started as a family tree project when I was pregnant with Sweet Pea turned into a mission to find out more about my family.  I think that's what happens with most people who start using Ancestry.com.  You put in the information you have and that little leaf pops up.  You can't help but click on it.  Before you know it, you are tracing back your family history over a century or more.

My mom was one of seven growing up, so my extended family is large.  About 20 years ago there was a reunion and someone took the time to put together a packet with our family tree and connections on it.  I'm pretty sure seeing that at the reunion started my interest in my family's history.  Two years ago, I received a copy of that packet.  I was like a kid in a candy store.  I feverishly entered names, birth dates and other information onto our family tree.  I was excited to see that some of the information had already been filled in due to my previous research on Ancestry.com.  I loved getting new clues into our history.  It has been so interesting to learn more about our family.

But while my side of the tree goes back hundreds of years, RoadTripDaddy's is noticeably less detailed.  My mother-in-law was adopted and the only information we have is her birth parents names from the adoption papers.  We have been able to find their marriage license in Chicago as well.  But then the track disappears. They seem to appear out of thin air and then disappear again.  Every time I sit down to work on our family tree, I try to find more pieces to the puzzle.  I started with my MIL's adoptive parents and have filled in quite a bit of information.  But the lack of information on her birth parents eludes me.  Ancestry.com has helped with the information they have, but I hope that with the continued release of records as time passes will help fill in the gaps.

Recently, the 1940 census information was released to Ancestry.com and they have been working to get all the records scanned, reviewed and posted on their website.  As part of the release, members were asked if they wanted to become Ancestry.com Aces.  (Fancy, huh?)  In turn, I am able to giveaway a 6 month US Deluxe Membership to Ancestry.com.  The winner will also receive a copy of Family Tree Maker 2012.

All you have to do to win is comment on this post telling me what person in your family you would like to learn more about from Ancestry.com.  For an additional entry, follow my blog and post a comment about it. For a third entry, like my new page on Facebook.  I will pick a winner using Random.org on Friday, August 3rd.

http://www.facebook.com/RoadTripMommy

Disclosure: This was not a paid post and honest opinions were used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. Thank you to the company who supplied the product for giveaway.

Giveaway coming soon

I will be posting a giveaway in the next few days where you will have a chance to win a 6 month US Deluxe membership to Ancestry.com as well as a copy of Family Tree Maker 2012.  Hope everyone had a great weekend!