The Family Tree

I chose our family's genealogy as an area of discussion over the next six months. The kids are really excited about the subject, which makes me so happy!!  I LOVE family history and I'm hopeful to encourage my children to have that same love.

The project I came up with was to talk about two of our family members a week. After we learn about someone, we then add their leaf to our "Family Tree".  Hopefully, by the end of the six months, our tree will be beautiful and full.  This is a great project for Gabe, since he is still in Core Phase.

A little while back, I realized that Hannah, who does know all of our current family members, didn't know how we all fit together. One day she asked who my grandfather (who's dead) was married to. I gave her the "great grandma...of course" answer, thinking she just hadn't thought the question through. Then she looked at me with confused eyes and said, "I thought she was married to Uncle George!". I had to explain that "Uncle George" is actually great grandma's son...NOT husband.

We then went over other various family members explaining how each family fit into our "family tree". Hannah seemed thrilled at all of the new information, or more precisely, the new connections. I could see her drawing lines from one family member to the next, like a big connect-the-dots, inside her head.

It was this incident that helped me understand that family history is not only those who have gone before us but also those who are still among us.

I am so looking forward to talking about our family members, past and present, and I hope my children gain a love for not only "family" but for every "family member".

<3