why I love ancestry

My husband’s great-aunt Hazel

One thing you may not know about me is that I’m a HUGE genealogy buff. I’ve been researching our family history for over twenty-five years, since back in the day, before internet, when I’d have to go to university libraries to do any research. And now I’m so thankful to have Ancestry.com and other websites that make finding my roots so much easier and exciting.

My husband’s family has a lot of well documented family history, from a Governor of Tennessee to early Virginia settlers, but my Italian roots are more challenging to research.

A never before seen photo of  my husband’s grandfather

A few years ago I went ahead and tested my DNA to find out any more clues into my bloodline. Since then, I’ve been connected to so many 3rd, 4th, 5th cousins and beyond that help me to piece together my lineage. Once I submitted my DNA and linked it up to my family tree, it opened up a lot of new paths in my research!

I now have over 2,000 people in my family tree, which is nothing compared to my husband’s tree of more than 7,200 ancestors and distant relatives. My husband’s DNA results have connected him to more relatives, mostly because American records are easier for us to research.

My absolute favorite part of this journey is finding photographs of these people. Looking into their eyes really connects with my heart. These were real people with real desires, hopes, dreams and struggles, just like us. It's just so fascinating to me!

With Ancestry.com, I've researched newspapers, yearbooks, and passport archives and found lots of photos. I’ve also connected with other members on Ancestry who have photos of our family members because they were friends or distant family.

A never before seen photo of  my husband’s grandmother as a baby
and her parents. We had never seen a photo of her mother, because she died young.
An extended member of our family shared this with us.

I always try to share new found photos, even if we may not be related, because it my help someone else in their research.

Another interesting piece of our family puzzle is this old  newspaper article I found recently mentioning my husband’s great-grandmother. We don’t have any photos of her, but when I found this article, I was able to gather clues to help me research in another direction, and I found that she had been featured in a prominent silent movie with Clara Bow, one of the most popular actresses of her time.

With that info, I found several photos of Martha Douglas Carroll, my children’s great-great grandmother! And not only that, but we have knowledge now of previously unknown chapter in her life, when she was married to a film producer and acted in a full-blown western movie!  

Here she is with the dark hair, next to Clara Bow!

Sadly, this film is no longer in existence, but my research has directed me to the archives of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science Library in Beverly Hills that have several archives, and documents (and photos I hope) of Frank Carroll. I’m planning a visit very soon! 

My ancestry locations

So when I found out Ancestry.com was offering their lowest price of the year for DNA tests, I wanted to share a little bit of my story with you. The regular price for the test is $99, and sometimes it goes down to $79, but this weekend they’re offering the kit for $59, the lowest I’ve ever seen it!  

By the way, it’s so easy to do. You just send in a little sample of your saliva in a test tube and put it in a pre-addressed envelope. That it! My mom recently submitted her info, and the results, compared to mine are quite interesting!

I had quite a bit of ethnicity from the UK, which my mother did not. My father passed away many years ago, so I must carry his British and Croatian DNA, yay!  

With this information, I was able to trace this branch of my family tree all the way back to the 16^th Century!

The graphics, maps and details on the website are really fun to study! Here is some of my info. 

Over the past year, I’ve help two of my friends find their long-lost parents, with the help of census records and other documents on Ancestry, and they tested their DNA as well, which confirmed the results! 

This is something I do for free for friends and others I've connected with on Ancestry. I've had so many others help me over the years, and it's been a really generous community of people who just share the same passion for this hobby we call genealogy. 

Some of my favorite TV shows are “Finding Your Roots”, “Who Do You Think You Are” and “Long Lost Family”. Oh, I’m just intrigued by the whole search! I truly think we are all shaped by our DNA, and I’m always so humbled by the stories of our ancestors.

Bringing their long-forgotten lives back to light, I can really appreciate the blood, sweat and tears of their struggles and am proud that my body and soul share these elements with them.

If you have any questions on how you can begin your search, or continue your hunt for further info on your family, I would love to gladly help in any way. Genealogy is truly one of my biggest passions!     

I’m not affiliated with Ancestry.com, but I saw this amazing offer and wanted to share it with all of you, who may be curious about your family tree. 

Now you can delve into your family history this holiday weekend and enjoy 40% off an Ancestry DNA kit, available for only $59 from Black Friday through Cyber Monday. 

Check it out here: ANCESTRY.COM

 

(Offer valid 11/24/17 - 11/27/17)

ciao! fabiana

vintage finds from antiques cottage

 

Don’t you love discovering new little shops right in your own neighborhood? There’s a sweet little antiques shop called Antiques Cottage right here on 17th Street here in Costa Mesa that I never knew about before.

 

I found some really fun little finds last week when I stopped in, and it just so happened that they were having a sale, so the prices were really reasonable. What more could you ask for?!

Just a few little fun things to add to my collection, and some of them make really cute additions to my tablescapes too.

 

I’ll show you some of these fun finds individually… first up is this darling depression glass double-handled sugar bowl in just the most perfect shade of green.

 

This type of glass is also known as Uranium glass because it has minute traces of this element, and it actually glows brightly under a black light. So cool!

It's just the right size for a little impromptu bouquet of flowers from the garden.

 

I also found this amazing zester with vintage green wooden handle. These vintage kitchen utensils still work great, and I’ve gathered a useful little collection over the years.

 

After a thorough scrubbing, this little beauty is set to create beautiful ribbons of citrus peel for a my next yummy recipe or cocktail.

 

Now how about these cute little piggy napkin rings? I found a larger set, and I’m keeping half and selling the second set of 4 on my eBay store. You can check them out here.   

 

These little guys are so charming, they’d be a fabulous addition to any tablescape, from country to farmhouse to grandmother chic.

I paired them with this bright and festive blue and white check napkin for my 4th of July table. They just add such a fun whimsical touch, don't they? 

One of my favorite finds that day was this beautiful embossed antique creamware pitcher. I listed it on eBay last week, and it sold immediately.

 

Pitchers are one of my favorite ways to display flowers. I don’t know what it is, but flowers always looks so good in a pretty pitcher.

 

These soft purple Downton Abbey rose grows like mad in my garden, and I just love it in this creamware pitcher.

 

Here are some other ones, both large and small, that I have listed on the blog shop. 

This McCoy striped mixing bowl is my absolute favorite find of the day. It’s the perfect size for my big salad. This one has bacon, egg, tomato and is topped with a home-made ranch dressing… super yummy!

 

Here are some similar McCoy bowls for you to check out and if you're interested, here’s a link to my ranch dressing recipe. It whips up in minutes and it's dairy-free, paleo, and full of delicious herbs. 

 

The two matching polychrome transferware bowls I found at Antiques Cottage are just the perfect vessels for going out to the garden, picking fresh veggies like these peas and tomatoes, and bringing them right into the kitchen for a fun and tasty display.

 

These beauties went right into our salad for dinner, and now the bowls are ready for more fresh garden produce. 

What I love most about bowls like this is that they can go straight from the garden to the table, and always look beautiful.

Here’s a pretty eye-spy of vintage kitchen utensils. This is the green handled part of my collection. Can you spy my new little zester?

 

These fun and colorful kitchen gadgets are sometimes spotted at garage sales, thrift stores and on eBay, and best of all, they usually work better that their modern versions.

 

So far I've gathered mostly red and green handled ones utensils, with only a few blue ones to be found in the wild. And of course, blue would be my favorite color.

They add such country charm to the kitchen for a timeless nostalgic look. 

 

I’m telling you this zester works better than any I’ve tried, and the citrus peel becomes very fragrant after being sliced so neatly.

 

My husband also loves vintage kitchen gadgets, and since we both love to cook, it’s one of the things we’re always on the lookout for when we go thrifting together.

 

Here’s my little stash of treasures again. The pudding mold in the back will be used during the holidays to make an old-fashioned Christmas pudding full of spices and fruit that we all love.

The wicker coffee cups are just sooo cute, and I got two sets of 4 that are in the original boxes. 

They're from the1970's just as I suspected. (You can just see Mary Richards and Rhoda using these while gossiping at Mary's kitchen table on the Mary Tyler Moore Show.) 

They'll make adorable options for coffee at brunch or they'd even work great for a hot toddy during the winter months, topped off by a fragrant cinnamon stick, and maybe a twist of orange peel from my new little handy-dandy zester. 

All in all, I'm really pleased with these fun little treasures. What are you collecting these days?

ciao! fabiana

 

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials”*. 

 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.

 

coffee: some of my favorite things

Every morning I wake up and look forward to a warm cup of espresso with a little foamed milk on top. I make it right here in the comfort of my kitchen with my stove top espresso maker, just like my mother and grandmother have done. It's so easy to prepare Italian coffee this way, and it’s ready in 5 minutes! 

Trudeau makes a beautiful sleek espresso maker that is so functional and so easy to clean.  I recently got one for myself, and it’s one of the best ones I’ve tried. And, Trudeau’s white porcelain espresso cups are the perfect size to enjoy my brew. The fun part is, any time a friend stops by, I am ready with coffee in minutes!     

Top it off with a little cocoa powder, and we're all set! 

Who wouldn’t be smitten by these lovely cups and saucers covered with little red and white hearts? I'm in love with these larger cups because they are so fun, but they are the perfect size for cappuccino, which is basically espresso with steamed milk and foam. I like my milk thick and frothy, so I can mix it into my coffee like meringue! So yummy! 

Just in time for Mardi Gras, my favorite coffee flavor right now is “Mardi Gras King Cake” by Community Coffee. It’s a blend of cinnamon and vanilla flavored coffee, made from only the best coffee beans in the world. It’s not really sweet. This coffee, believe it or not, the amazing aroma of cake, and hints of spices. You’ve gotta try it! 

 

And lastly, I’ve started journaling this year, during my morning coffee time.  Sometimes, it's not first thing I am able to do in the morning, but I try to make time for myself, even if it's only for a few moments. 

This pretty Eccolo journal is small and easy to take with me.  Each page features an inspirational bible verse that helps me gather my thoughts for the day. 

My morning alone-time usually isn’t too long, and I try to enjoy every moment! "Pray more, Worry Less" is a great reminder too! And, as you can see, here is another one of my favorite coffee cups!  I’m hooked! 

ciao! fabiana

farmhouse style for fall

 

Country Sampler Farmhouse Style for Autumn has arrived! It’s filled with pages and pages of fabulous fall inspiration. That means my absolute favorite season kind-of unofficially starts in a few days when the calendar hits September.

 

Yes, it’s all about muted fall tones, crunchy autumn leaves, cozy throws and that all important pumpkin!

 

So today I’m sharing some of my favorite highlights and details about the projects I’ve contributed to this issue.

 

My fall mantel from a few years back is highlighted in an article called “Give you Fireplace More Style.”

 

You can see how we updated the stark brick look with the addition of shiplap. I love the warmth and texture it now adds to the room as the sole focal point of our large family room.

 

My friend and contractor George is wiz with these types of projects, and you can see how he prepped the space to enable attaching the shiplap.

 

After he was done, I finished off the mantel wall with a couple of coats of the same white paint as the mantel. The material we used was Windsor One which comes pre-primed to save time!

I absolutely love how it looks, especially with our special portrait of my husband's great-grandmother Nell.

 

Pumpkins are one of my absolute components of Autumn. They are just so darn cute and festive, and now-a-days they come in all sorts of beautiful colors and shapes.

 

I love getting inspiration for new decorating ideas for pumpkins and starting on page 84 with an article called “13 Pumpkins with Panache”, there are loads of new ideas!

 

My contribution is #6 with my white “Barnyard Silhouette” pumpkins. 

Originally, I was going to go for cats, bats, and owls for this look, but we decided to do farmyard critters, which I think is even more fun for this farmhouse style issue.

 

Rosemary Apricot Garlic Pork Tenderloin 

“Slow-Cooker Specialties” has all the right ingredients and recipes for cozy fall dining. My "Rosemary Apricot Garlic Pork Tenderloin" is a recipe I’ve been making for over 20 years, but recently just started cooking in my slow-cooker, or crock pot.

 

The blend of ingredients is magical when they’re all combined, and I just love the gravy that’s created in the mix that’s perfect for serving with rice or mashed potatoes.

 

I’ve even made this recipe with chicken before and it’s also equally yummy!

 

Sticky Toffee Pudding

 

Have you ever had “Sticky Toffee Pudding”? It’s actually a lot healthier than its sounds, as it contains dates as it’s main ingredient, not chocolate. Don't let that put you off, because dates add the most delicate sweetness to this cake.

 

It looks like a chocolate dessert, but it’s not. This is actually an old-fashioned English dessert, that can easily be made in your slow-cooker.

 

I have to honestly say, this is the MOST amazing dessert I’ve ever made. 

The depth of flavor with the addition of pumpkin pie spices and orange zest makes this perfect for fall, but also perfect for the Christmas holidays, when it’s traditionally served.

 

This simple corner table just struck me as simple beautiful! I love the rustic table and chairs, and the carefree way the sunflowers are displayed in these over-sized glass bottles.

 

An example of just one of the many beautiful farmhouse style homes included in this issue.

 

 

ciao! Fabiana

 

For lots of fun extras, follow me on instagram!

 

 

 

You can check out some of my favorites here at “Tablescaping Essentials”*. 

 

 

 

 

Please note that this post may contain affiliate links.