Looking Back at 2010 - Part 1

To say that I will miss 2010 as a whole would be a lie.  While I will miss the ages that my children are at the moment (6 and 2) and the funny things they have done this year, the rest of 2010 can just go away as far as I'm concerned.  Between car accidents (my sister's and my husband's), my grandmother's health, my work that has kept me busier this year than in the past, along with a plethora of other unexpected things, 2010 has been a blur.

Because of all the extraneous stuff that has occurred, I also have sort of lost that urgent desire to work on my genealogy.  The first half of the year I continued documenting and researching and then June came along and it was downhill from there.  So when I set my 2010 goals, I was clearly being optimistic!  When I started writing today's post, I figured I would be very embarassed to say that I didn't do anything on my goals that I set a year ago.  However, I can honestly say that I did make some progress, small though it may be.  Here is a recap of where I am on my 2010 goals:

1.  I am continuing sourcing records in my database.  I have approximately 1900 individuals in my database and I left off sourcing at the 1880 census.  That means I still have 1900 through 1930 to go.....will I make it before the 1940 census is released?

2.  I wanted to complete the Illinois Prairie Pioneer Certificate on my ancestor Walter Harmon and his wife Azubah Hyde Harmon.  I made it as far as printing out the application and filling out a draft in pencil.  I did this so I could see what pieces I was missing.  Unfortunately, there was more missing than I thought and so it sat to collect dust.

3.  My third goal was to sort old photos with my mom and grandmother.  This is easier said than done.  We did spend several hours in late May sifting photos and trying to identify people, years and locations.  We laughed and shed a few years.  It was a nice way to spend a few hours.  I left my grandmother's with some things to scan.  And that's where this project ends for 2010.

4.  I set a goal to continue writing mini "bios" on my ancestors.  During 2010, I managed to do at least three more of these in addition to posting some updates on previous bios.  I was expecting to do more of these, but part of the problem lies in the need to scan some documents to add to the posts.

5.  My last goal was to write a few sentences on a near daily basis of what was happening in our lives.  I was able to maintain this for a few months and then chaos took over.  My entries became more sporadic and highlighted the "big" things and fewer of the daily tidbits of life with two small children.  Please read Part 2 of this series of posts to see how I am continuing to document our lives for the future generations.

There are a few other accomplishments that are worthy of a mention.  I have been attending a RootsMagic User Group at my local Family History Center.  I also attended the 2010 Fall BYU-Idaho Family History Conference in October and attended five very worthwhile classes.  Lastly, I know my blogging (minimal as it has been) has been worth it.  Several distant cousins and fellow researchers have contacted me regarding some of my posts.  Creating "cousin bait" through blogging has most definitely been worth the effort.

While my 2010 goals weren't a complete failure, they weren't a roaring success either.  Therefore, I bid adieu and good riddance to this year.  May 2011 be more successful.

©2010, copyright tracysroots