As a youngster, I would question my maternal grandmother about her life and family in Sweden, prior to her immigration to the United States. Her answers were always succinct and the subject would be changed. Fast forward to the 1989, and in our "small" family, a year didn't go by that a loved one didn't die, until 1997. Our small family became very small. It took me a long while to come out of the "shell shock" and I realized that the only way to obtain any answers was to seek them out. So began my foray into genealogy. I joined my local genealogical society, meeting truly nice and helpful new friends. The perception of the size of my family has changed......it's HUGE! And each new discovery, whether an ancestor or living descendant, brings me comfort, sometimes a sense of wonderment and often times fun.
I will transfer any of the folks under my care, except my mom, dad, brother and nephew, just ask.

IF YOU DIDN'T TAKE THE PHOTOGRAPH, IT IS NOT YOURS TO USE *without permission*.
PLEASE DO NOT UPLOAD PHOTOGRAPHS TO *any* OF THE MEMORIALS I HAVE CREATED UNLESS YOU SEEK AND ARE GRANTED PERMISSION TO USE *OR* YOU ARE THE PHOTOGRAPHER. TIME AND AGAIN I SEE FIND A GRAVE PHOTOGRAPHS USED IN FAMILY TREES AT OTHER WEBSITES WITHOUT CITING THE PHOTOGRAPHER, IT IS RUDE AND DISRESPECTFUL. ***Photographers prepare their camera, get in their car, use their gas, spend their valuable time, often walking the entire cemetery seeking the marker to secure a photograph of a loved one's final resting place BECAUSE A TOTAL STRANGER ASKED FOR A PHOTOGRAPH . The very least they deserve for this kind effort is acknowledgement of the photograph they took.*** THIS CAME UP, AND I DECIDED TO ADD THIS BLURB, 4TH OF JULY 2013, AFTER I DISCOVERED A PHOTOGRAPH ADDED BY A *FIND A GRAVE CONTRIBUTOR* WHICH WAS NOT HIS/HER OWN, NOR DID THEY CITE THE ACTUAL PHOTOGRAPHER AND THE WEBSITE WHERE IT WAS LIFTED. With a simple email, sent and answered the same day, it is now used with permission. Thank you, I stand down from my Pet Peeve Soapbox.