Hi, it's me - Tricia. Great advice. I agree about the birthdate. Birthdays were not celebrated like we do today and many immigrants lived in countries where vital records were either not kept at all or were sketchy, at best. Church records are baptism dates - not usually birthdays. Result - many immigrants simply did not know when they were born. So, because it was required info they made a date up and, sometimes, didn't remember what they had put on each different form. Then, to further confuse the situation many immigrants were not literate or spoke dialects using just phonics and each person from the same village spelled the same word differently. Now, add in the problems on the other end in the US (lack of ability to understand foreign languages, poor literacy rates, equally poor spelling) and mistakes were more the rule than exception unless your immigrant came from an English speaking country. I agree to check other points of entry besides Ellis Island. Remember, to a non-English speaking person Ellis Island meant nothing. But, over the years it became the place most people associated with "immigrants" so they said that is where they were processed. T'aint always so. Even if they write Ellis Island on their official paperwork. My own grandfather is a good example. All of his official paperwork read Ellis Island. He told everybody Ellis Island, including me. I spent 10 years looking for him. Nadda. Hired the National Archives to search. Nadda. I'm a contact person for the German-Russian Historical Society for the village of Norka. Got an email one day - from a women searching for one of my aunts who immigrated with my grandfather. She said, "Ellis Island? Gee, that's funny. My aunt always said they arrived through Portland, Maine." With the correct point of entry - Grandpa was easy to find. Fifteen years old and towing behind 3 younger sisters. Sometimes, there no better genealogical research than dumb luck. :) I also think a membership with ancestry.com is a good investment if you're just getting started. But, I warn you - BE CAREFUL! People are idiots. They just copy what somebody else has written with no further research on their own. So, mistakes get passed on and on and on and on. LOTS of them. I use whatever I find on ancestry.com as a clue, nothing more, until I've confirmed the info by independent resources. Also, the Mormon church site is notorious for mistakes. So much so I could not with good conscience even recommend using their data bank. But, if you do - proceed with caution. My goal is always 3 separate confirming documents saying the same thing. And, I get copies if possible. I've got tens of thousands of hard copy records. I set an annual budget for vital records and such because it does get expensive. I had my second book, "Thunder on the Steppes, a genealogy of ______________", edited this past spring (while we were rebuilding from Sandy). I was especially nervous because I've written a novella inside the book to bring my German-Russian ancestors to life for my grandchildren. My first attempt at fiction. My editor loved it and said I should seek a publisher believing it has a broader audience than immediate family. I'm thrilled. First though I need to publish the entire genealogy and not get sidetracked. I'm so close to being finished - just got to sprint those last 200 meters and cross the line. It's taken over fifteen years. At that point, I'm going to call my genealogy project finished. Genealogy is never truly finished but after nearly 3 decades of research and two books each exceeding 800 pages and going back to the mid-1200s it's as complete as I'm going to take it. I'll leave it up to future generations to carry on. Have Fun! /tricia

Do you have paperwork from your order for the counter tops? Since there is both a quartzite (natural stone) and a quartz (manufactured product) named Taj Mahal, it appears that is this is not what you thought you were ordering. When you say that you didn't pick your stone, and that it was fabricated, it seems that you got the quartz, not the quartzite that you may have seen photos of online. Here is a link that might be useful: image of Pental Quartz Taj Mahal

Yes Ingrid, that's unfortunately the case. I've been having a heck of a time sneaking in my cockatoo on the weekends, despite that she's the hit of the party with patients, doctors, nurses, etc. All it takes is one grouchy tattler, and it's exit stage left with much finger shaking. Goats are a lot of fun. Unfortunately, they see almost everything within reach as a snack, including car upholstery. . . . . . 
 Visits to Humpty Dumpty House on facebook are much appreciated during this difficult time. If you like what we do, please give us a page "like". This simple act can help us get the gardens and our work back up and running during my absence due to an injury. ~Thank you! https://www.facebook.com/HumptyDumptyHouse Facebook for HumptyDumptyHouse

I thought the heading here referred to HIDING the eggs! We seldom dyed eggs, but I would fill the plastic ones and hide them around the house. (Never warm enough here on Easter to 'hunt' outdoors at dawn.) After DS could read, I had a Start Here Egg with clues, leading around the house to eggs with little surprises like a few jelly beans, and ending with something larger, like a chocolate bunny. mojomom -- Thanks for the updated photo of your grandson. Hurry House!