Ancestry.com DNA Test

First let me say this was an awesome experience.   However, now I also know what it's like to be lied to my entire life.  Seriously, this test tells the truth and I was very surprised.

From year's of asking and being told for most of my life I was Native American, German, Dutch, and Irish I then figured out through research and other members of my family researching that my Grandfather was German and Pennsylvania Dutch (so....German and German).  They always said Irish but had no idea from where.  I was supposed to have Native American on both sides of my family and several different tribes, at that.

Then I researched my last name, my mother's maiden name, and her mother's maiden name.  My real last name which I'm not going to put on here is English, my mother's maiden name is German, and her mother's maiden name is so incredibly English.   I then found from my aunt's research that we were descendants of the McCoy's so I then knew we were probably also Scottish.

So with no delay.....here are my results :

Some of these were of no surprise : Great Britain, Ireland, Europe West, European Jewish. 

Some made sense considering how I look or traditions of my family: Iberian Peninsula, Italy/Greece, and Scandinavia.

Some were absolutely shocking: Finland/Northwest Russia and Asia South....what the...Asia South???

Some of these are really general locations so I'm going to break the regions down.

• Asia South: India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma)
• Great Britain: Ireland, France, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Italy
• Ireland: Ireland, Wales, Scotland (can also be found in France and England)
• Scandinavia: Sweden, Norway, Denmark (also found in Great Britain, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Baltic States, Finland)
• Iberian Peninsula: Spain, Portugal (also found in France, Morocco, Algeria, and Italy)
• Europe West: Belgium, France, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein (also found in England, Denmark, Italy, Slovenia, Czech Republic)
• European Jewish: Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Hungary, Israel (also found in Germany, France, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Romania, Bosnia, Serbia, and Estonia)
• Italy/Greece: Italy, Greece (also found in France, Switzerland, Portugal, Spain, Serbia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Austria, Croatia, Bosnia, Romania, Turkey, Slovenia, Algeria, Tunisia, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo)
• Finland/Northwest Russia: Finland, Russia (NW) (also found in Estonia, Latvia, Sweden, and Lithuania)

I also learned that when you run your DNA through Ancestry any other relatives you have that have also done this will suddenly become linked to you.   I found my aunt's (my dad's older sister).

She matched me on the following locations: Great Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia, Iberian Peninsula, Europe West, European Jewish, and Italy/Greece.  In addition she had the Middle East on her's.  

It's important to remember that DNA is random.  So the only people that should the same DNA would be Identical twins.  You and your sibling could have similar DNA but one of you have more of one ethnicity than another and this is why you don't all looks exactly the same.  The amount of DNA you inherit from different ethnicities affects your appearance.

If you are interested in checking this out use my link for 10% off - Click Here Ancestry DNA

Taking your Kids Toys Away.

I'm not a parent however I think one day I would like to be.  I enjoy educating myself on homeschooling and ways to raise children.   I read a really interesting article about what happened when a mother took her 2 daughter's toys away.

I admire parents who are able to teach their children true values in this over commercialized world that drives us to constantly buy stuff.  In an effort to be more frugal I've tried to cut many things from my life.  I don't have TV and really I feel better for it.  I do have Netflix and on occasion I may also have Hulu Plus for a month or two.  Both services together cost lest than basic cable and on Netflix I don't have to deal with commercials.  It's bliss!  

Right now I have too much stuff.  I found this mother's story inspirational despite not having children currently.  I've wanted to and need to go through my house and just get rid of as much as I can.  I don't need all of this stuff. 

The mother in the story decided to basically strip her daughter's bedroom.  She removed every toy and even their plush pottery barn comforter. She started and after a few minutes without prompting her daughters joined her in the removal process. The room was just basic, clean, and uncluttered.

Now instead of constantly cleaning their room they can read or color or play games involving their imagination together.  The girls actually say they enjoy not having so many toys because now they can just play and not really have to clean.

She didn't throw their toys away, in fact she kept some in a tub and would allow them to occasionally play with one toy at a time.  The mother noticed that instead of fighting over things her children fought rarely.

Before the removal they had went on a family trip to Orlando, Florida and the girls often asked for things. One of the girls was fixated on Build-your-own-dinosaur and they basically had to divert her attention to make her realize all of the great things they did.  On their most recent outing after the purge her daughters looked but didn't ask for things.  The girls were just content in being in the moment and could fully take in what they were experiencing.  

Maybe less is more?  I do think it's better to raise children without materialistic expectations.  I can tell you without a doubt in my mind I remember more times I had fun playing outside in the grass or in the creek than playing with any single toy. 

Here's the original article if you would like to check it out:
http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2012/09/14/why-i-took-all-my-kids-toys-away-why-they-wont-get-them-back/