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Where Do You Want to Go? A useful starting point is to ask yourself what you hope to accomplish. Do you want to learn more about the origins of your surname or everything you can about your family tree? Is your goal to identify all eight of your great-grandparents, all sixteen great-great-grandparents, or as many ancestors as possible? Many are simply curious about the entertaining stories that might be found dangling from the branches of their family tree....

His obituary confirmed his parentage and his birth, and his age at death as 37. It added that at age 14 he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, and served as class leader and steward most of the time until his death. He died of pulmonary consumption (tuberculosis). Beginning to Know and Understand Now we start to understand this family and the lives they led. We sense the struggle of the family: moving from New York to Wisconsin and then having the father die before reaching 40; the young mother, nursing her sick, contagious husband, then left alone to raise five children and keep the farm going....

When pregnancy begins and the egg and sperm are joined, you start with a brand new cell, with 46 chromosomes. Each gene is either dominant (meaning it takes only one copy of the gene to have the disease or trait) or recessive (it takes two copies of the gene to have the disease or trait). Dominant Disorders Examples of dominant disorders are Marfan syndrome, Huntington disease, breast and ovarian cancer (the BRCA gene), and neurofibromatosis type 1....

Letting your baby cry himself to sleep makes no sense in the early months of his life. When a young baby cries, he needs something. By six months, however, your baby cries not only when he needs you, but when he wants you as well. Although it’s nice to fulfill your baby’s desires whenever you can, you need not gratify his wants as much as you need to satisfy his needs....

Level: Moderately easy Time involved: Two to three hours, plus overnight to dry Materials: Newspapers Black marker Scissors Stapler and staples Disposable bowl or cup White glue Water Thick paintbrush Pack of white tissue paper White and black craft paints Sharp scissors (optional) String (optional)

Effort: Easy – no sewing required Materials: Solid-colored, button-up shirt Knee socks Solid-colored material to make a sash Felt pieces to cut badges Ribbons for hair Solid-colored knee-length shorts (not the same color as the shirt), or pants cut into long shorts Saddle shoes or penny loafers Small box (shoe-box size or smaller) Black marker Needle and thread and/or glue Scissors Instructions: Cut the fabric diagonally into two equal-length pieces that are long enough to go across your child’s body, shoulder to hip....

While there are reasons that a cesarean section may be planned before labor begins, for most first-time mothers or women who have not had a previous cesarean, the decision to have a surgical birth will be made in labor. Most of these cesareans are not emergencies but are simply unplanned until the course of labor says otherwise. Reasons for a Cesarean Birth A cesarean section might be performed for a number of reasons, including:...

First, let’s consider any benefits to your family’s health. According to the USDA’s standards, “Organic crops are raised without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers, or sewage sludge-based fertilizers. Animals raised on an organic operation must be fed organic feed and given access to the outdoors. They are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.” As we all know, increased exposure to some pesticides means increased health risks – especially in children....

Thanks, Uncle Sam! The federal government gives adopters a big break in the form of an income tax credit of $10,160 for adoption expenses. If you adopt two children, then you can take double the adoption expenses as a credit, or up to $20,320. (Assuming you spend at least that amount to adopt the children, if they are not foster children.) And if you adopt three children … well, you do the math....

Your kids will watch in wonder as flowers that they’ve planted become home to colorful butterflies.Materials needed: · Flowering plants or flower seeds· Clean, empty milk carton· Scissors· Gardening tools · A small garden plot, a few large planters, or windowboxesWhat to do:Step One: Butterflies like flowers that are fragrant, have large petals or blossoms, and require bright sunlight. These types of plants give butterflies easy access to their food: nectar from the flowers....

Get Your Teen Involved Make sure your teen is involved in the party planning. After all, it’s important to throw a party that teens are excited about if you want them to have a good time. Before you begin planning the party, divide up the jobs. Consider hosting the party in conjunction with another teen and parent. Then, you’ll be guaranteed to have at least one more person to help with the budget as well as another adult to supervise the party....

Good stress, or eustress, is positive and healthy. Bad stress, or distress, is the negative stress that you probably think of when you hear the word stress. This type of stress is harmful and can cause health problems. It can even affect your ability to breastfeed successfully. Whether you are in the throes of breastfeeding, or you are considering it for when your baby is born, it can be helpful to know how what triggers stress and how to manage it....

You might get the impression that very painful periods are the norm. Discomfort during menstruation isn’t uncommon, especially in younger people. About half of all people who menstruate experience pelvic achiness during their periods. But even if menstrual pain is common that doesn’t mean you need to suffer, so seek out advice and care options from your OB/GYN to find relief. With that said, really bad menstrual cramps are not normal....

For patients with diagnosed underlying health conditions, treatment can be tailored to improve the chance of a successful pregnancy. Here’s how the blood thinner heparin can have a striking impact on pregnancy outcomes for certain patients. Assessing the Cause of Miscarriage Before choosing a course of action, your doctor will evaluate the potential causes of your repeated miscarriages. This involves reviewing your medical history, discussing prior pregnancies, doing a physical and/or pelvic exam, performing blood tests, and completing karyotype, microarray, and/or imaging tests....

Sleep plays a vital role in all our lives, affecting the quality of life, overall health, and, importantly, fertility. Getting a good night’s sleep helps refresh and restore your brain and organ systems and regulate important hormones in your body – including fertility-related hormones. Lack of Sleep Can Affect Fertility-Related Hormones Unfortunately, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of Americans don’t get enough sleep....

How Are Monozygotic Twins Formed? Monozygotic twins happen when a single fertilized egg divides into two. From there, two embryos grow into two babies. Monozygotic (“mono” means one and “zygote” means fertilized egg) is the term used to describe this process. This type of twin formation begins when one sperm fertilizes one egg (oocyte). As the fertilized egg (called a zygote) travels to the uterus, the cells divide and grow into a blastocyst....

Remember how fortunate you are to have your daughter. Frances, an 83-year-old mother from North Port, Florida, believes that an aunt had spoken the truth to her when she said years ago, “You haven’t lived until you have a daughter.” At the time Frances was the mother of a son and didn’t conceive her second child, a daughter, until eleven years later. Remember you aren’t the only influence in your daughter’s life....

As parents know from their own busy and over-scheduled lives, simply acknowledging that you need time to rest and destress is not enough. Parents need to actively encourage teens to take a break to not only help them get through this time period that is often much too stressful, but also to help them acquire tools to take care of their social and emotional health for their entire lives. More: A Parent’s Guide to the Latest Teen Slang in 2019...

In a statement, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it reviewed data from around 44,000 people before granting approval for Pfizer’s vaccine, which will now be marketed as Comirnaty. It was found to be 91% effective in preventing COVID-19 disease. You may be wondering what this means for you and your family. Here’s what you need to know. Is the COVID-19 Vaccine Safe? All three vaccines authorized or approved by the FDA have undergone—and continue to undergo—rigorous testing....

Do Young Children Understand That Stealing Is Wrong? Not necessarily. In fact, many young children take things without asking because developmentally, they lack the understanding of boundaries as to what is theirs and what belongs to others. Until the ages of three to five, taking something which grabs your child’s interest should not be considered stealing. With teaching, children usually can begin to understand that stealing is wrong around the age of kindergarten through first grade....