Book of Me: Time Capsule

     Week 8 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.  I've fallen behind, but I'm getting caught up!
   
     In a way, I've created time capsules pretty often, without really setting out to do so.  Take for example the contents of a shoe box I put together in the 6th grade.  I remember collecting the items that seemed important to me at the time; items that I wanted to keep for the future.  In doing so, I created a time capsule that says a lot about my 12 year old self.

     Inside the box: a 6th grade Olympics/Field Day shirt, a program from a play with did in 5th grade art class, the last Calvin and Hobbs comic, a post card from my mom's trip to Puerto Rico, a map of Six Flags, a luggage tag from a 5th grade class trip, a card from a 4-H project, Christmas gift pencils from my 5th grade teacher, two keychains, a ticket and earplugs from the drag races.

     Over the years I've made scrapbooks, many of which contained not just photos, but also mementos.  Those are a form of time capsules as well.

     At the beginning of the year, I created a "2013 Memory Jar" and have been putting mementos inside all year.  I have ticket stubs, a concert pass, buttons, paint chips, note cards, 5K bibs, and more.  If I did something fun or memorable, I put something in the jar.

     I make these time capsules for myself and doubt that anyone else will be interested in them.  It's just fun to be able to look back at my life and have a reminder of what was important to me at a specific time.

Book of Me: Grandparents

Week 7 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.  I've fallen behind!

     Maternal Grandparents

     As a child, I spent a good amount of time at the home of my maternal grandparents, Roy and Betty (Huyler) Albea.  Roy was born in Greenwood, South Carolina, moved to Greenville as a young teen and then to Atlanta after his parents' divorce.  Betty grew up in Atlanta, but moved back and forth between there and Greenville, where she and Roy met.  They were married in 1947 when Betty was only 15 years old!
     After moving around for a few years, they finally settled down in Atlanta.  Roy worked as a truck driver for Overnite and Betty was a housewife.
     Together they had six children, which they raised in a few different neighborhoods around Atlanta before settling in Decatur.  As their grandchildren arrived, they kept the family close by hosting Sunday dinners and major holidays. Roy and Betty were very proud of their grandchildren and I cherish the hand-made present that my Grandmother made for me throughout my childhood.

Paternal Grandparents

     I didn't see my paternal grandparents, Thomas and Sarah (Britt) Craft, as often as I saw my maternal grandparents.  Both of them grew up in farming families; Thomas' family in Elbert County, Georgia and Sarah's in Emanuel County, GA.  Sarah moved with her father and brother to Elbert County as a teenager and met Thomas when he drove her school bus.  They got married in 1940 when Sarah was only 14 years old!

     They lived on a farm in Elbert County for a number of years and moved to Tucker/Lilburn, Georgia after World War II.  Thomas got a job at Atlantic Steel in Atlanta and ran his own sanitation company, while Sarah worked at a Package Store.

     Together they had seven children, the youngest born 22 years after the oldest.  When we visited, we always knew that we could find canned Cokes in the fridge and candy bars in the kitchen drawer.  The entire family would get together each Christmas Eve, which was always a full house.  When I remember my Granny, I think about her paining my fingernails; when I remember my PawPaw, I think about him giving us rides on his John Deer.

They're In the Army Now

Week 11 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.

     This article, and others like it, appeared in The Hartwell Sun newspaper, of Hart County, Georgia.  Published on 3 Aug 1945, this article lists 57 men, "the largest group of men to leave Hart County in months," who had just been drafted into the army.  Included in this list is my Grandfather, Thomas Craft.  He served in Germany as a truck driver and, thankfully, return home a year later.

The largest group of men to leave Hart County in months went to Ft. McPherson, Atlanta, Monday, where they are being inducted into the armed services.      Names of the 57 white men are reported by the Local Draft Board as follows: William C. Stowe, Cleo Harris Sanders, Dorsey Partain, Pelzer H. Herring, George Harper, Charlie H. Sanders, Inman E. Reed, Lucius B. Alewine, Thomas S. Craft, James H. Estes, Bernice T. McCurley, Fay H. Cleveland, Charles S. White, George E. Hilley, Charlie T. Pilgrim, Joe G. Hailey, Fred Y. Norton, D. C. Phillips, Jr., Artis D. Ertzberger, Frank H. Thrasher, James M. Wicker, Jack Cordell, James V. Cantrell, Thomas J. Bailey, Jr., Charles M. Cobb, Robert A. Floyd, Billy J. Floyd, Howard W. Earwood, Fletcher Dove, Billy E. Clark, Clifton Floyd, Jr., Herbert W. Maret, Luther Thompson, Jr., J. B. Weaver, Jr., Beverly J. Bailey, Charles L. Whitaker, Jr., Frank D. Pulliam, Asa L. Childs, Dwain E. Gurley, Owen M. Teasley, Dewey H. Beggs, Kyle J. Crook, James M. Brown, Jr., Early B. Sanders, Edward D. Kesler, Edgar W. Kay, C. B. Alewine, C. L. Brown, Jr., Hansel D. Cole, Prue M. Banister, Jr., T. J. Carnes, Leonard M. Seymour, John E. Kelly, Larry E. Senkbeil, Herschel B. Sayer, Harold R. Bailey, Thomas H. Bowers.

A Sporadic Journal Writer

     Week 6 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.

     I'm not always good at finishing projects that I start, and because of that, I'm very proud to have kept this blog going for six years.  It is a sort of journal of my genealogy adventures, shared with the world.  Over the years I've sporadically created a number of other journals, though none have lasted longer than a year.

     I first started journaling my senior year in high school.  That year, as a class project, I created my senior scrapbook, which got me started scrapbooking.  From there, I created many scrapbooks, which are something of a photographic journal.  Some were books about specific topics (the cruise we went on), while others covered a specific length of time.

     Also during my senior year, we were required to carry agenda books.  They included all the school rules, a calendar, and our hall pass.  Many of us turned the covers into a collage of year-long memories.  Mine is covered with stickers and buttons that highlight what was popular in 2001/2002.  Inside, I have a record of homework assignments, school activities, test schedules, and more.  It's like a little time capsule.

     I also kept a journal in 2008.  It turned out to be  a very memorable year, with my first (only) trip to Disney World, the Summer Olympics, Presidential Election and the recession.  I wrote in this journal for exactly a year, before starting a new one.  The new lasted about two weeks and then I fell out of writing.  Like I said, I'm not very good a finishing things.

Our House is a Very, Very, Very Fine House

Week 5 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.

     The house that I consider my childhood home isn't the one we lived in when I was born.  We only lived at that house until I was a few weeks old, so I often forget about it entirely.

     Instead, I consider "The Duplex" on Cruse Road to be my childhood home.  It was right on the corner of Cruse Road, a busy two lane surface street, and... some other road that lead into the subdivision. Being the first house on the entrance of a subdivision, we had a large yard with one of those big brick neighborhood signs.  People pretty often ran into it, and my parents didn't like my siblings and I to play in the yard unaccompanied.

     My favorite memory of this house has got to be the back patio (and by patio I mean the the barely 5x5 concrete slab off the kitchen door).  The back yard couldn't have been deeper than 10 feet before it dropped into a wooded swampy area.  Every spring the backyard would be flooded by tiny little frogs.  I love frogs!  One year, McDonald's was on an environmental kick and was giving out seeds and tiny greenhouses in their happy meals.  I remember catching a frog and keeping it in the tiny plastic greenhouse for a few minutes.  Frogs!

     We moved out of the duplex when I was in third grade, but I do have a number of fond memories of living in that house.  Here are some photos of those times:

Babies on the porch

Our tiny garden

Our first bikes

The Most Memorable Season: Fall

Week 4 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.

     Thinking back on childhood memories, I think some of my fondest occurred in the fall. Sure, Summer is fun - but the heat! The sunburns! Spring is nice, but kinda boring actually. And winter is fun with scarves and mittens and the chance to build a snowman about once in five years; but in the end it's too cold. But Fall? It's just about perfect.

     When I was a kid, Fall started off all about Halloween and leaves falling. Because you know the two go together. There were a few years where we got those big orange trash bags with pumpkin faces on them. We'd get together with some of the neighbor kids and get the leaves out of everyone's yard and -viola- giant pumpkin! Add some tissue paper ghosts and paper skeletons to the yard and you're good to go! 

     At school, we always got to do fun little fall themed project.  We made paper pumpkins for Halloween, as well as a variety of Thanksgiving projects such as "pilgrims and indians" and this adorable hand-print turkey from when I was 5 years old.

     Fall also signifies the beginning of the family holidays. My maternal family always got together for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.  It's not the same now, so I look on back fondly on those memories today.

     And finally, in Georgia, Fall doesn't necessarily equal cool weather. But it usually does equal not hot weather. And regardless of the temperature, the leaves will turn and you'll get the longer shadows all day. Even if it doesn't feel like fall, it will look like it!

     And finally, when the weather does start to turn cold, you get to drink hot chocolate. With marshmallows.

My Physical Self

Week 3 of the Book of Me, Written by You blog prompt series.

     At the very basic level, my physical self is determined by my genes. Sure, I can dye my hair or lose/gain weight, but the building blocks begin with my DNA.  One of the neat side benefits of 23andMe's DNA testing for genealogy, is the geneotype results (what my DNA says I should look like).   So how do my geneotype results compare to my phenotypes (what I actually look like)?

Hair Color:
- Genotype: "Typical odds of having red hair" and "Typical odds of having blond hair (vs. brown hair)."
- Phenotype: White-Blond as a baby, now a light or golden brown with blond sun-streaks. Sometimes a red tint in the sun.

Hair Curl:
- Genotype: "slightly curlier hair on average" and "Typical amount of hair curl."
- Phenotype: Shirley temple curls as a toddler, now only slightly wavy if left to dry on its own.

Eye Color:
- Genotype: "72% chance of blue eyes; 27% chance of green eyes; 1% chance of brown eyes."
- Phenotype: Light Blue, though they can appear green if I'm wearing green.

Freckling:
- Genotype: "Typical amount of freckling" and "Typical number of freckles and moles."
- Phenotype: Sparsely freckled all over. I assume that's "typical."

Height:
- Genotype: "Subjects averaged 0.3 - 0.7 centimeters taller than typical height" and "Subjects averaged 0.4 cm (0.16 in) taller than typical."
- Phenotype: I'm 5'4.5".  I consider myself just under average height and on the tall side of short.

Weight:
- Genotype: "Typical BMI" and "On average, BMI is 0.19 units lower than typical for adults (1-2 pounds, depending on height)" and "Decreasing calorie intake and increasing physical activity through walking is associated with weight loss."
- Phenotype: I was thin as a child, a little heavy before puberty, skinny after puberty and then got heavy  after starting college.  About a year ago I started county calories and walking for exercise and I've since lost 75 pounds.  Yay!

     So overall, it seems like my genes dictated my physical appearance when I was young, but things changed as I got older.  And of course, some things are more effected by the environment than my genes.  I have a scar on my right hand between my knuckles from a car accident and one on my right knee from a fall.  I had braces in 3rd grade, which attempted to straighten my teeth (but I didn't keep them long enough for them to really help).

Baby "A" (Book of Me, Week 2)

     It was the mid 80's and technology wasn't what it is today.  When my mom was about five months pregnant with me, she went to her doctor to complain that she wasn't going to make it through and that she was out of room.  The doctor, not taking her complaints very seriously, was shocked by an ultrasound that revealed a second baby.  Congrats, it's twins!

     When my sister and I hit our due date, the doctor decided to induce (he was going on vacation and wanted to be there for the delivery).  Due to our heart rates dropping during contractions, we were dramatically brought into the world via c-section. The doctors grabbed me first, rescuing me from where my sister had wedged my head into my mom's pelvic bone. Thus, at 10:04 a.m. on a memorable Friday morning, I became "Baby A," a middle child by the difference of one minute.

     My sister and I took after or dad in coloring: blond and blue eyed.  I was 18.5 inches long and weighed 5 pounds, 14.5 ounces, while my sister was a little bigger.  Mom could tell us apart easily by the shape of our heads (dented due to the afore mentioned pelvic bone).  Even today, she's the only one who can tell us apart in our baby photos.  For those who couldn't deduce the minute differences in two babies' head shapes, we could also be told apart by birthmarks.  I had four! Strawberry marks on my wrist, behind my ear and on the font of my shoulder, and a brown spot behind my knee.  Today, I still have the mark on my shoulder and leg.

     We all left the hospital after a week and were quite a handful - literally.  If it takes a village to raise a baby, what does it take to raise twins?  A lot of help from family for the first few weeks at least.  Everyone wanted to meet "the twins" and to this day, when meeting older relatives that I don't really know, we get referred to as "Ruby's twins" or "Kenny's twins."  I guess our birth was pretty memorable.

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     I would like to end this post with a sort of *asterisk.  Most of what I've written above comes to me second hand.  Aside from some of the facts available on my birth certificate, I don't know what I've written.  I was there for my birth, but I certainly don't remember it.  I have, however, had numerous conversation with my mom about my birth story.  And still, I got some facts wrong.  While writing this, I ask my mom some questions and she correct a few of my "memories."  Subsequently, I'm just writing down what someone else told me.  Since this is a genealogy blog, I thought it important to clarify that just about any of the above could have been wrong.

The Book of Me, Week One

     There's a new blog prompt series from the Anglers Rest blog, called Book of Me.  It will be a 15 month series of topics that encourage bloggers to write about themselves.  I'm pretty excited about this series and would encourage my family members to participate.  You don't need a blog to do this, just get a composition book and follow along.  You can follow the prompts at the Book of Me, Written By You Facebook page.

     Week One: Answer the question, "Who Are You," by answering that question 20 times.

1. I am Valerie.  Of the 4,259 people in my family tree, I'm the only one.
2. I am an identical twin.  Just like my Grandaddy.  No, I never traded places with my sister in school.
   
3. I am a daughter.  My parents love me forever, love me for always, as long as they're living, their baby I'll be.
4. I am a sister.  My older brother used to watch my sister and I in our crib, waiting for us to wake up so that he could play with us.
5. I am an aunt.  It's a brand new thing, but it's pretty awesome.
6. I am a genealogist.  I got started in 2001 thanks to a Geography project and my mom's encouragement.
7. I am a 9th generation Georgian.  Sometimes I wish my tree was more exciting - but boy do I know how to do Georgia research!
8. I am not as organized as I'd like to be.  I would totally buy everything they carry at Office Depot, but would never put it to it's proper use.
9. I am an introvert if I don't know you and an extrovert if I do know you.  Which leads to:
10. I am a homebody. I'm pretty happy sitting at home, doing genealogy, watching tv, spending time with family, etc.
11. I am creative.  I've made lots of scrapbooks over the years, though I don't do as many now as I used to. I also crochet and paint the occasional ceramics.
12. I am a photography enthusiast.  I know a bit more than the average person, but I have a lot to learn. 
13. I am an animal lover.  I miss my Betsy and Trixie, but I'm grateful for Chisai (Chee-sigh)
14. I am nervous in a thunder storm.  It's only developed over the last few years, but boy do those rumblings make me anxious. 
15. I am an Atlanta Braves fan.  I was going to put Baseball fan, but I wanted to be specific />/>/>
16. I am an avid reader.  I have a Kindle, but also read a lot on my iPhone.  I love Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult and light classics (Jane Eyre is my all time fave).
17. I am not good at grammar.  I miss spelled grammar the first time I wrote that sentence.
18. I am a Two-Year College Grad. By that I mean that I have an Associates Degree, and need to go back for my Bachelors. 
19. I am a bearer of birthmarks.  I had a ton as a baby but now I have two.  I always feel like my left shoulder is wrong because it doesn't have the same birthmark as my right one does.
20. I am recently skinny(er).  I've lot 71 pounds in the last 10 months and will be doing my first 5K run in about two months.