Hi again cousins, Well, the holiday-time-of-year is nearly upon us and once again, it's time to begin thinking about Christmas. I love this upcoming time of year ... the lights, the music, the decorations ... but not the weather! :) Christmas ... I love the surprises of gift giving and the joy those gifts bring; I hope you do, too. Are you new to the family since last December? If so, you're probably wondering what in the world I'm talking about! :) Those of you who joined the family fold this year will, hopefully, be very pleased by this .... Just as I've always said, we are a family ~ directly related or not, we are a family. Families enjoy Christmas together, and so do we. Here's how it works: We're going to have a family Christmas together, complete with a tree and gifts. I'll set it up as a page off the parlor just after Thanksgiving. Since Santa Claus doesn't make his flight until Christmas Eve, gifts won't be available for opening until Christmas Day (but remain online throughout December into early January). Gifts will be new material that we all have stored in our home files or found recently after forays into libraries or archives. If each of you will send me one new list/record to be placed "under" the tree, then the family's Christmas will be a resounding success! We'll all benefit from this, have fun doing it, AND add some of the magic back into our own Christmas holidays. Even more, we'll do it as a family. Gifts can be: * a list of names on (for example) a year's tax records * a biography * 3-4 generations of a family * a couple wills * photographs * a few deeds * a county's/country's obituaries for a given period * immigration/emigration records * copies of certificates (deceased only - no living) * etc. ~~ whatever else you'd like to give the family for Christmas The list does NOT have to be limited to what I've given above; those were just ideas/ suggestions. The point of this is to give a gift to the family and have fun doing it. Gifts should be submitted DIRECTLY TO ME <[email protected]> ~ NOT ON THE LIST. (We need to be good secret-keepers, don't you know! :) ) Deadline for submissions is December 9th as I'll need time to "wrap" everything. Please make your gifts as close to online-ready as you can. Text files are fine, and so are RDF files. Label your message as CHRISTMAS GIFT so I won't miss it in the middle of all the roll calls and I'll know you have that particular message designated as a gift. Questions? Just send an email to me <[email protected]>. Make your subject as RE: CHRISTMAS PRESENTS. I hope each of you will find at least one special gift to give at this, our third Christmas together. It can be an exciting and magical season for all of us ... looking once again at the holidays through child-like eyes. Colleen