Review FHDU 2022, new books, new resources & other news: My genealogy weeks 6 - 25 November 2021

Wow time does fly when you are having fun. So much has happened since my last post.

Books

Family History Down Under was definitely a temptation for me and I ended up buying 6 books from authors such as Chris Paton and Penny Walters. Plus one of my favourite authors Nathan Dylan Goodwin sent a review copy of The Sawtooth Slayer, the latest in his Venator cold case series. 

Which book to read first? 

The 4th book in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, The Drums of Autumn, has slowed down my list of books this year. Why are all her books so big and with small print? I can't put it down but at the end of the day my eyes are not as sharp. So I am going to sleep earlier and getting up earlier so I can still get my hour of reading done.

Conferences

Well FHDU was a big success and I really loved seeing everyone again in person. There were some great speakers and talks and lots of catching up with what's new. My to do list is a mile long! For a longer report on the conference see my blog post Report on FHDU 2022.

My next adventure will be RootsTech 2023 which I will be attending in March 2023 in person for the first time. Can't wait. I'm also lucky to be one of the Influencers for RootsTech next year. 

New Resources

It was interesting to see in the FamilySearch October 2022 update that they have now included some more UK cemetery records. Both in counties that I am researching. Another thing on the to do list. 

Findmypast added a number of new and updated digitised newspapers and again there are things that I want to research. It really is never ending. The 1868 Staffordshire Sentinel is calling me.

Talks

Only five more talks this year. Four of them will be at Coffs Harbour & District Family History Society annual seminar this weekend. Looking forward to that as it has been a few years since I was last there. I'm donating a copy of my Australian Genealogy Online as the lucky door prize.

My final talk for 2022 will be at Bribie Genealogy - they are expecting my annual Christmas quiz but this year I am going to look at setting some goals for 2023. We all need to start thinking about how are we going to leave our research for the future. 

What's Coming Up?

My trip to Sweden and my first catch up with my son and his family since they moved there in 2019. Also my first cuddles with my only grandson the adorable Theodor. It is snowing there at the moment so perhaps I will be able to have my first White Christmas and tick off another bucket list item.

I still have two weeks here so there will be another Diary post before I leave. 2022 has just gone so quickly. Well I must be off to Coffs Harbour which is about a six hour drive from here. Have a great weekend and try to get some genealogy research in. 

Until next time, stay safe and well.

Review Sands of Time & other genealogy news: My Genealogy Month 6 October - 5 November 2022

What a huge month for genealogy. I gave talks, went to conferences and just tried to keep up with all my genealogy reading. The last four weeks have been a bit of a blur.

It is also my birthday month and I was able to celebrate with friends from U3A and Bribie Genealogy and Mia Bennett from the UK who was able to stay with me for a couple of nights. Mia kindly gave me two books from one of my favourite authors - Ian Mortimer and these were the Time Traveller Guides to Restoration Britain and Regency Britain. I love his Time Traveller series.

Books

Image 1993
via Wikimedia

Tackling Diana Gabaldon's Voyager at the moment - the third volume in the series. It is so big and heavy it is a real struggle trying to read it in bed, especially with my arthritic thumbs. 

For lighter reading I have various enewsletters and ejournals from societies to read.

Bribie Genealogy

We were thrilled to have Mia Bennett from the UK attend our meeting and give a talk on Using DNA to Support Family History Research. There were lots of DNA questions after the coffee break. We had a good turn up of members plus some visitors from Caloundra Family History Research. 

My only regret is that I was so excited I forgot to take a photo of Mia and the group. We will just have to do it again another time!

The Sands of Time cookie

Conferences

Sands of Time at Redcliffe went very well and you can read my review of the conference here. The highlight for me was being able to talk to people again in person. The talks were good and I still have to work my way through the handouts. 

I am off to Family History Down Under 2022 this coming week and that will be a mega feast of talks. Plus afterwards we can watch the sessions we couldn't attend plus the bonus talks. Attending in person means that I can catch up with more friends and experience the vibes that don't quite make it in a Zoom environment. 

Looking further afield I have decided to go to my first ever in person RootsTech 2023. Flights are booked and I will have to plan some research at the Salt Lake Research Library. Or perhaps I will just wander around in amazement. The Dinosaur Museum is also on my agenda that week.

Another bonus is that I have been appointed a RootsTech 2023 Influencer complete with a badge.

New Resources

I have finally got Ancestry's Side View where DNA matches are assigned to either paternal or maternal sides of your family. 

There are 6929 matches assigned to Dad, 4978 assigned to Mum and 7548 unassigned. 

I am finding this fascinating and very distracting as far as time goes. It is like a magnet to me. 

Talks

I am doing two talks at FHDU 2022 - Australian genealogy online and Why Can't I Find It. 

After that I am doing a recorded talk for the Society of Australian Genealogists for their religious seminar which will be fun. Sadly I can't do it in person as that clashes with the all day seminar I am doing with the Coffs Harbour District Family History Society on 26 November.

To round the year off, I will be doing a Christmas Quiz with Bribie Genealogy at our December meeting.

What's Coming Up

The end of the year very quickly. For once I might have a white Christmas/New Year as I will be visiting my son and baby grandson in Sweden. There are no guarantees of snow but one can hope. One thing I can count on is that it will be colder than here!

Babe in the Woods

I have been saying that I don't want to be as busy as I was this year with talks but already I am down to give nine talks. 

That's a bit shy of the 39 this year so perhaps I will achieve a less busy year! 

What I really want is for the years to slow down. Where has 2022 gone?

Until next time happy searching