TMI Tuesday: Who Knew Cleaning Was So Much Fun

Our Son's New Toy!

My wife and I entered the childcare search with a little trepidation not really knowing how to approach the process. We have already found a great daycare in the area but there are times when we would like to get out for the evening or have someone at the house when either the daycare is closed or when our son is home sick. While we know that our family is there whenever we need them, we can’t expect them to make the long drive out to us all of the time. We also have a number of people that we know in closer proximity but that is where the allergy part of the equation comes into play… our home needs to remain free of cats (and their dander), nuts, and shellfish.

In the responses that we received through Care.com there were a number of them that pretty much disqualified themselves simply in how they responded to our posting. Some didn’t bother reading what we had written (to the point of addressing their communication to some other name entirely), others had no business in childcare, a few wanted us to pay them for dropping our son off at their house, and others touted their love of animals of all kinds (see the first noted disqualifier). As for the other, thankfully, my wife’s background has been tremendously helpful in weeding out some of the “candidates”.

It took some time but finally we came across someone with a background that we were looking for, the clearances we were requiring, and a personality that matched well with our family. Despite our son’s grumpy sleepiness, this initial impression was proven correct when we met with her last week. As a bonus, she was also willing to take on the chore of cleaning our home on a weekly basis eliminating our need to conduct a second search. Sometimes things seem to just fall into place.

Not wanting to waste any time, and also wanting to get a handle on the cleaning, we had her start this past weekend to see how she would interact without our son and how our son would interact with her. After only a few minutes it was as if they had known one another all along and our son even “helped” her clean a little following close behind with a duster double checking her work and pushing his “vacuum” back and forth across the play room taking care all of the spots she missed. More importantly, he was comfortable having her around and the two of them played and read together for much of the morning which allowed my wife and I to take care of some organizing around the kitchen.

It took some time to find someone but sometimes you have to wait for the right opportunity to come about to find that perfect fit for your family. Fortunately, I also had a copy of his baby book on hand to get her up to speed! Looks like things may work out and we should have some time for ourselves moving forward and a clean house every week which will allow us to spend more quality time with our little boy on the weekends. And that is well worth the extra expense of having someone come in once a week.

A means to get the care giver up to speed!

Sunday Search: Other Genealogy Groups

More piles of paperwork like this one should be expected...  

While I should hear back soon, I am still waiting to hear back from the Sons of the American Revolution regarding my application tracing back to John Redcross. As this process continues, I am looking into a variety of other genealogy, specifically hereditary and lineage based, organizations. The first group consists of those closely tied with the current outstanding application and the supporting documentation already compiled. This should streamline my application for the Sons of the Revolution. And while currently under consideration through a different line, it is possible that I may submit an additional application tracing back to John Redcross to the Monacan Indian Nation… we just need to find that one additional document!

Of course, while compiling the other supplemental applications to these aforementioned organizations, there is the possibility that I could uncover additional information prior to the revolution or find ancestors who served as commissioned officers. In these instances I will be sure to process additional applications to the Order of the Founders and Patriots of America, the National Society Sons of the American Colonists, The Society of the Cincinnati, and the General Society of Colonial Wars. All of these organizations have varying genealogical requirements so there really is no guarantee that I will be able to successfully gain membership but I can always try so long as I have the evidence to support my claim.

Given the broad history that we have uncovered in my family, on both sides, it is interesting to see where I can submit applications for membership. After all, not all lines can be traced back to the Revolution, or involvement thereof, so it is quite useful to have a number of other organizations to join for not only the purpose of enjoying the company of others with a common family history but also as a means to confirm and verify the research and genealogy work that we have done. Depending on the family line, there are a variety of other organizations for which I have already pulled together the necessary documentation which include the Society of the War of 1812 (Jacob Teaford), the Sons of Confederate Veterans (George William Clapsaddle), and the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (Jacob Worth).

The only other organization that offers some certainty as to whether or not we will be able to gain recognition is the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania which recognizes the First Families of Pennsylvania. This recognition is achieved by a “GSP member who can prove descent from a resident of what is now Pennsylvania” during one of the following time periods: Colony and Commonwealth: 1638–1790; Keystone and Cornerstone: 1791–1865; or, Pennsylvania Proud: 1866–1900. There are plenty of ancestral options on my mom’s side of the family and, surprisingly, a few possibilities on my dad’s side as well. These will, most likely, be submitted as I pull together information for some of the aforementioned organizations when there is an overlap in the genealogy.  

Those are the organizations where I have a certain level of confidence that I will, at one point or another, be submitting an application for membership. However, there are some other lines that I have been tracking which, while I have yet to fully document, could provide some additional opportunities to submit applications to the Military Order of the Stars and Bars (Confederate Officers), Aztec Club of 1847 (Mexican War), The Huguenot Society of America (French Huguenots), and the Saint Nicholas Society of the City of New York (ancestors living in New York prior to the Revolution). Again, I consider these the long shots but if the documentation is there I will gladly submit the applications.

Sunday Search: SAR Update

During the latter part of this past January, I finally sat down and pulled together my application and supplementary material to submit to the local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. Since that time there have been many rounds of updates, revisions, and completing additional applications (and securing the appropriate documentation) for other family members. In all, five applications have now been submitted with more on the way once these initial memberships are approved. All of this work has been done while in direct contact with the state registrar who has been a tremendous asset throughout the process.

While it will still be approximately another two months before we hear back from the National Headquarters regarding our applications, I have remained quite busy during the wait pulling together the list of supplementary applications that I will be completing once my membership is approved. While this initial lineage is a line that is found on my father’s side, the next set of documents will be those from my mother’s side of the family. The hope is that I will have the information available to those family members who are interested in joining regardless of which side with whom I am speaking.

So, over the next year or two, I will be delving into the other lines that I have discovered thus far in my research. While there are many that I will be able to prove I am certain that there are some that are either incorrect or for which there is insufficient supporting documentation. However, I won’t find out until I am able to focus on each of the patriots below. While I am only confident about the first three I am sure that there will be endeavors that prove to be fruitful. So, here you go, this is the list of the patriots to whom I will be tracing my lineage:

• John Noblit, Private, 7^th Battalion, Chester County Militia; Suffered depredation.
• Thomas Noblit, Private, Chester County Militia, survived Battles of Chadds Ford and Brandywine.
• Jacob Duffordt, Virginia Patriotic Service, Provided supplies to the Continental Army
• Peter Rough/Rauch, 2^nd Battalion, Northampton County Pennsylvania Militia
• John Snider/Snyder, Corporal, Flying Camp Maryland Militia; Wounded at White Plains.
• George Michael Wilfong / Wildtfang, Virginia Patriotic Service, Paid Supply Tax
• John Cook, Private, Logan County Virginia Militia
• David Riggin, 2^nd Delaware Regiment
• Richard Payton Bailey, 15^th Virginia Regiment
• Robert Stinson, Massachusetts Patriotic Service, Committee to Produce Soldiers
• George Clapsaddle, Franklin County Pennsylvania Militia
• Johann David Von Nida, Virginia Patriotic Service, Paid Supply Tax
• Frederick Boyer, Philadelphia County Militia
• Thomas Brown, Private in Virginia Militia
• John Beverly, North Carolina Patriotic Service, Paid For Services
• William Terry, 3^rd and 5^th Virginia regiments
• Jacob Gery, 6^th Battalion, Philadelphia County Militia
• John Philip Mumbauer, Private, Bucks County Pennsylvania Infantry
• Johann Andreas Dressler (Andrew Tressler), 2^nd Battalion, Berks County Militia
• Johan Heinrich (Henry) Myers, 5^th Battalion, Lancaster County Pennsylvania Militia
• John Philip Negley, Private in Gray’s Pennsylvania Regiment
• John Norbeck, 1^st Battalion, Berks County Pennsylvania Militia
• John Phillip Young, 6^th Battalion, Philadelphia County Militia
• Rufus Cone, 7^th and 17^th Connecticut Regiments; Taken prisoner at the Battle of Long Island; Died aboard the prison ship off the coast.  
• George Philip Royer, 4^th Battalion, Philadelphia County Militia
• George Walker, Cumberland County Pennsylvania Militia
• Matthias Kerlin, Pennsylvania Patriotic Service, Paid Supply Tax
• John Sheaff, Private, 6^th Battalion, Chester County Pennsylvania Militia
• Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg, Pennsylvania Patriotic Service, Representative to Continental Congress
• Henry Melchoir Muhlenberg, Pennsylvania Patriotic Service, Patriot Minister

If you add in the application already submitted tracing back to John Redcross that makes for 31 ancestors that I will be researching. In addition to the history interest and family history that will certainly be uncovered during this endeavor, there is also a much more practical reason for not settling and submitting as many supplementary applications as I possibly can… verification. Many of the aforementioned names are recent discoveries and while there are many lines which I am confident that they are correct, there are some where the generational connections are tenuous at best.

However, overall, by submitting each of these lines and the supporting documents, I am able to have the research certified by and independent third party, the Sons of the American Revolution. In those instances where they are able to verify my findings, the family history just got that much stronger. All of the sudden, those branches which have been withering for decades, are once again vibrant and proving to be some of the more colorful contributors to the family foliage. And, just think, we will be able to pass this down to future generations and nearly ensure that our family history is not forgotten.

A Hodgepodge of Resolutions

For many this is the time of year when resolutions are made. Some of these are to finish project that have long been dormant. Sometimes it is a matter of getting things started. Other things on most lists usually revolve around improving yourself in one way or another. Overall, resolutions generally have one thing in common to make the coming year better than the last. For me, in this seemingly mandatory post for bloggers, my list is a hodgepodge containing a little from every category.

On the personal improvement side of things I would really like to lose some weight, quit smoking, find more time to relax, and generally improve my health. I think I will focus on that last part and let everything else fall into place so I am going to simplify things a bit. My goal this year is to go to the doctor (once I find one) and follow their instructions. This includes a general family physician, optometrist, and dentist. Others might be added down the line but those are the ones that I will focus on first.

This is also time to finish at least some of the things on my long list of projects that has been teasing my on my computer screen every week. This includes completing builds, submitting manuscripts, pulling applications together, scanning the photos and family documents that I have stored throughout my office, organizing all aspects of the house, and a variety of other things. Just like the last category, we need to simplify this so I am going to focus on completing one project a month (more if time permits) while working on others if they happen to overlap. Expect to see some post in the future on this little smorgasbord of items.

The last of the three mentioned above is to get things started, to get project off the ground. I have already started a few which I cannot mention at this time but there are still plenty of others that need to be done. There are a variety of outlines that I recently discovered forgotten on some flash drives dug up during our move. It is time to write. It is also time to start the other application that have been put on the back burner for the last 2+ years. And it is time to start the small projects around the house that I have been meaning to work on since we moved in. It is a long list which will certainly grow so expect to see this rehashed in future years. The simple approach to this is that as one project mentioned in the previous paragraph comes to an end another begins… one per month.

However, the most important aspect of the New Year that I need to focus on is to keep things going. I can’t stop, I have to keep moving forward. There are a lot of commitments that are already built into my schedule and I make sure to spend as much time as possible with my family (this could be improved upon so add it to the list). The most important things I can do is to keep myself busy, keep things moving in the right direction at work, continue writing honest daily posts, maintain the growth that we are seeing at the lodge, continue to explore during various day and overnight family excursions, further my genealogical research (hopefully more discoveries/documents are on the way), and, most importantly, enjoy and love my family, what we have, and the good aspects of the life that we enjoy every day. That is the real resolution and promise that I am making to myself for 2016!

Applications And Dues

Tis the season to reassess my memberships, consider others, and remit dues to the ones I can’t do without. Various annual club, association, and society applications are currently stretching the binding of my day planner. Slowly but surely I am determined to get through them all and make final decisions and cuts by the end of the year. Thankfully there are a few days which I have off next week when I can really sit down and give the attention and consideration that these forms require. Of course, this pile does not include some of the more in depth applications that have to be pulled together (admittedly these are long overdue) but I hope to get those done in the same time frame as well.

Many of the applications that lay before me in a paper clipped stack will be sent off shortly but others have to be carefully weighed. Not because of the dues and fees that they require but because of a simple matter of time. As I previously mentioned, Rotary was a timing decision. Even though I have gotten a lot out of Rotary in the past and still was learning on a daily basis, it is something that I am not able to commit the time to at this point. The schedule just doesn’t work out. Fortunately, since that post a generous offer has been made, and I have accepted, for me to stay on as an Honorary Rotarian. This is not something that is done lightly and I am honored to have been on the receiving end of such a distinguished title.

Other considerations in the growing mountain of forms is the fact that I would like to have some kind of connection to my ethnic heritage, in addition to existing application work. We know the countries from which our ancestors came but that is pretty much about it. It would be interesting to learn a little more and connect with other people with the same flags draped over the branches of their family trees. It will also be an interesting group to discuss future genealogical discoveries related to those branches.

Honestly, some of the other applications are a just because kind of submission. It would be nice to be a member and I would enjoy the occasional meeting/gathering so, if the dues make sense, why the heck not. It might also provide for some interesting events for my wife and I to attend in the future as well. I guess we will just have to see with all of those. One thing I can guarantee… it is an interesting mix and should offer a tremendous variety both for the basic experience but also for blog content. I will definitely keep you all posted.