This morning, at around 8am, Irene's daughter Becky gave birth to an eight and a half pound baby boy. Welcome to the world, and the family, Charlie! I'll post a photo as soon as I get one.
Friday, 6 June 2008
Monday, 26 May 2008
PERSONAL NEWS
Whilst the Blog has been offline, Doreen and I have had our own good news. Our son Aaron married his lovely fiance Kwan and we now have a beautiful new granddaughter, Elle. I think the pictures explain themselves.
TRANSFER COMPLETE
Thankfully the transfer of this blog is now complete. The photographs have not transferred so well but I hope to re-scan the originals at a later date. We have lost the impetus a bit but not the interest. George and John Derek are out there somewhere and we're still trying to find them. In the meanwhile there have been more reunions and Doreen is going to Chesterfield, later this morning, to spend a few days with Irene. The first picture shows Betty, Doreen, Audrey and Carol with Barbara at the front during a reunion held at the Dalmahoy Golf and Country Club near Edinburgh.
Ronnie's beautiful daughter Sian has married her fiance Richie (picture 2) and there will soon be another baby in the family. Oh, yes and Barbara paid another flying visit from Australia (picture 1).
FANTASTIC RESPONSE
17 November 2006
I have had the most amazing response to a message posted on Genes Reunited last night. No less than thirteen e-mails with information taking us back to 1841. It is going to take a bit of sorting out but there is so much information that I'm sure we'll get something positive from it. More than half the responses came from "Lew" - you know who you are - and she has given us the most detailed and most promising stuff so far. Thanks again Lew. It still amazes me how people are so generous of spirit that they are prepared to put in so much effort to help total strangers.
OLDER FAMILY MEMBERS
16 November 2006
In a bid to find living older members of the family, who might be able to give us some clues about what really happened way back in the 1950's. I have high hopes of finding someone at last. In the past, I thought it was a hopeless quest but hot matches on Genes Reunited have turned up what I hope is Doreen's biological mother. If I can get an address where she lived, I can refer to the electoral roll and see if I can trace anyone living. I have also made some progress on finding out where her father was born, so I'm hopeful in that direction too. The optimism is coming back. There is one piece of hard evidence of someone who might turn out to be Doreen's father's brother. A man who is the right age and lived in the right village. Unfortunately it is an announcement of his very recent death and I am too sensitive to approach his family at what is a very bad time for them. Nevertheless, the clues are turning up again so I will stay hopeful.
A MAMMOTH UNDERTAKING
10 November 2006
I knew this was going to be a big task but I had no idea just how big. I have spent hours trawling through an adoption message board with forty seven very long pages! At one point, I thought I had found a message from John - it was so close in so many details, my heart leapt. However, the dates and locations were just not right. Never mind, I have found another message board with well over five hundred pages to scour. Even if I give in and just pay an agency, I'll keep on sifting through the plethora of message boards. You never know, I just might get lucky - we have had some spectacular luck in the past. Ah well, the search goes on.....
I knew this was going to be a big task but I had no idea just how big. I have spent hours trawling through an adoption message board with forty seven very long pages! At one point, I thought I had found a message from John - it was so close in so many details, my heart leapt. However, the dates and locations were just not right. Never mind, I have found another message board with well over five hundred pages to scour. Even if I give in and just pay an agency, I'll keep on sifting through the plethora of message boards. You never know, I just might get lucky - we have had some spectacular luck in the past. Ah well, the search goes on.....
THE ULTIMATE BRICK WALL
04 November 2006
We have come to the end of the easy part of our search. It wasn't easy at all but we seem to have hit so many brick walls that it feels like we're standing inside a chimney with solid brick walls on all sides. Rotate as fast and as far as you like and there's still a brick wall to bang your head on! We have now accepted that George does not want to be contacted and we are very disappointed but we have to respect his decision. So we are setting off on the much harder pursuit of John Derek. Because he was formally adopted, we have no idea where to start and we are heading into totally new research territory - and we're going in blind. It is also difficult because it is like going back to where we were when we had found no one. But then, we have had spectacular success so it may be a challenge - and a strong one - but the potential for success is enormous. We are sad at the prospect of not finding George, but we are energised by the challenge of going for John Derek. We hope that, at some time in the future, we can persuade George to get in touch. If he ever reads this, we hope that he will understand that whatever happened in the past, his siblings were no part of the cause and they all want to be reunited with him. So come on George, six sisters and a brother really want to meet you.
We have come to the end of the easy part of our search. It wasn't easy at all but we seem to have hit so many brick walls that it feels like we're standing inside a chimney with solid brick walls on all sides. Rotate as fast and as far as you like and there's still a brick wall to bang your head on! We have now accepted that George does not want to be contacted and we are very disappointed but we have to respect his decision. So we are setting off on the much harder pursuit of John Derek. Because he was formally adopted, we have no idea where to start and we are heading into totally new research territory - and we're going in blind. It is also difficult because it is like going back to where we were when we had found no one. But then, we have had spectacular success so it may be a challenge - and a strong one - but the potential for success is enormous. We are sad at the prospect of not finding George, but we are energised by the challenge of going for John Derek. We hope that, at some time in the future, we can persuade George to get in touch. If he ever reads this, we hope that he will understand that whatever happened in the past, his siblings were no part of the cause and they all want to be reunited with him. So come on George, six sisters and a brother really want to meet you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)