Genealogy, I am doing it!

So, I helped plan a couple of huge genealogy PR events in Seattle that were great successes. However, I hadn't really done much family history myself. I prefer to preserve what we have rather than trying to research my ancestors. For example, I worked with my mom to scan in pictures from her dad's missionary service in Tonga in the 1930s, which was great. We also typed in some letters he had written home, but most of the letters he wrote were lost in a fire with much of his memorabilia. However, we have preserved what we can and have shared it with many in the family.

Becca, on the other hand, is very interested in finding her roots and figuring out what she can do to benefit her ancestors. She has started to research where she came from, and she would like to do the temple work for all of these ancestors.

Anyway, Becca's middle name (Effie) was named after her great-great-grandmother who shared the same birthday. Becca researched the info she needed and performed Effie's baptism several weeks ago at the Provo LDS Temple. (Pics of the temple follow -- the first is from my nephew's wedding in January 2007 and the second is Becca's first temple visit in 2006. :)


I had the chance to finish Effie's temple work this weekend, and it was a wonderfully touching experience. I have no relation to this lady, but I am raising her great-great-granddaughter. It was a sweet feeling to think about these generations being bonded because a 14-year-old was faithful and got to work. Becca has had almost nothing to do with her Nielsen side, so she is determined not to fail her ancestors like they "failed" her.

What a wonderful example of faith and forgiving Becca has been. She has overcome a childhood of neglect and fear to become exactly what it is she wants to be, and I'm grateful to say that is a young woman of faith. She has been blessed with a strong testimony of the Savior, and she is a great example of His love and forgiving.

I'm so grateful that Becca has her mind focused on the temple -- they are wonderfully peaceful and beautiful places to spend time! I look forward to the day when all of my children are old enough to go into the Lord's house, and I hope they all live worthily to do so.

I am eternally grateful that Paul and I were married in the Salt Lake City LDS Temple for eternity and that our family is sealed together forever. That's part of the good news of the gospel, and I love it!

Following are bad scans of that wonderful wedding day of ours nearly 8 years ago:


Don't I look happy? If you think I was happy, you should see Paul:


He's happy to be stuck with me. :)

(For those not of our faith, please read about temples here and baptisms for the dead here.)