Genealogy Success Team - Week Five

Wow.  I can't believe it's been five weeks.  I told Laura this morning, this partnership has lasted longer than some of my relationships!  But I digress.


This was a pretty busy week for both of us, but I am so proud of Laura for the multitude of blog posts she made this week! A grand total of 5!  A blogging machine, that one.


These were my goals for last week: 

1. Go to first Delta Genealogical Society meeting.
2. Select and send a French vital record for translation.
3. Attend 4 Jamboree webinars.
4. Work on Case 3 of Inferential Genealogy.
5. Blog more than once.

Okay, so I went to the society meeting.  I'll be blogging about that separately ... but I can tell you that I absolutely cannot wait until the next one!  Wonderful people down there at the Delta Genealogical Society!


I actually ended up sending three French records for translation - not because I was greedy - but because I wasn't sure which ones would be easier to read.  They were all pretty crappy old copies.  In any case, Laura was able to get a rough draft of the transcriptions and translations to all three of them to me yesterday, which impressed the heck out of me.  She must eat lots of carrots because I don't know how she was able to make some of those words out.  My eyeballs are obviously foreign-language-impaired ... so much for Lasik.  I think I have determined, now that the translations are done enough to make some sense out of them, that two of the records are probably not my people.  Bummer, I know ... but one of them is my GGGrandfather!  So, yippee!


I attended not just 4 ... but all 5 of the Jamboree webcasts!  I posted about that here.


I wasn't able to get to Case 3 before our meeting this morning because my homework got in the way (and took a lot longer than I really wanted), so that's getting pushed onto this week's list.  The IG Group is meeting tomorrow night, so I absolutely have to get that done ASAP.


I was able to make 3 blog posts this week in addition to my weekly update.


This week I'm allowing a little even more wiggle room in my goal list because I'm still getting settled with my homework and how much time it takes (obviously, the hour per night I allotted on my schedule for studying isn't cutting it -- I have been spending a minimum of 3 hours per night just getting through a chapter.  Don't judge - it's algebra).  So ... here is my list for this week:

1. Mail requests for military records for my GGrandfather and Granduncle (my mom got my grandmother to sign them so I could mail them off for her father's and brother's records).
2. Finish Inferential Genealogy Case 3.
3. Call the activity director at my grandmother's assisted living center to discuss the photo project I am sending, and ask for her guidance and suggestions before I send the letter (I keep meaning to do it, but I keep leaving her number on my desk at home and she's only there while I'm at work ...)
4. Blog more than once.

Yes, it's a relatively light list, but at least it will keep me moving forward on a few things, at least for the next 8 weeks (or until this algebra class kills me).

Incidentally, we also discussed Debbie's "Tuesday's Tips" post over at Mascot Manor about her processes.  I can relate to the buckshot approach to research whenever I find a new person to add to my tree.  Fortunately, our Success Team meetings have helped me rein that in a little bit, and I know that Debbie's tips will help too.  I encourage everyone to take a look at it ... she has one of the best research checklists I've seen (and it's an Excel spreadsheet, which makes it even better!)  She also has a link to the most awesome citations-on-the-go post-it notes.  I ordered mine on Tuesday night and they arrived yesterday ... zoom!

GO TEAM!!