Do You Collect The Stories of Your Female Ancestors?

This month I wrote a post for America's Footprints commemorating March as Women's History Month.    I talk about how we should honor and remember all of our ancestors no matter how big, or small, their deeds.

Here is a small snippet from the post:

My mom is an amazing woman. My grandmothers lived through so much. The women in my family, well, they amaze me. 

March is National Women's History Month and I always try to research a woman ancestor who I know little about. Everyone has a story to tell, but many times it is the women who get overlooked in our histories. Yes, they are at times harder to research, but does that make them less? 

Not in my book. 

Some of my favorite stories growing up were told to me by my grandmothers about the strong women in their family. Now, I say strong, but I honestly do not think if they were alive today they would say that. To them the women they descended from did what they had to survive, they did not do anything out of the ordinary, but to me they did oh so much.

If that hooked you, Click here to read the rest of the post.

Women's History Month and Fearless Females

Badge created by Denise Levenick

Lisa Alzo has once again published her blog topics for Women's History Month.  She has once again put together 31 blogging prompts for you to use which celebrate those fearless females in your lineage.  

The theme for National Women's History Month 2016 is " Working to Form a More Perfect Union: Honoring Women in Public Service and Government.”  Start thinking now about ways you can tie this national themes into your upcoming posts too.  Thankfully, Lisa did think of this, and many of her themes tie into this one nicely.  

It is March 2nd and I am officially behind with the blogging prompts.  But, that is ok.  You don't have to use everyone, or write every day.  Just write something!  Let the inspiration sink in and the words flow out.  Easy!

Fearless Females: Working Women

My mother has always been an inspiration to me. She is intelligent, driven, goal oriented, and in a nutshell does amazing things. Being her daughter was at times daunting. While we share many of the same characteristics, as a child growing up with this larger than life woman in your midst was... in a word.. intimidating.  Several of my past fearless female posts have been about her. You should check them out.

From the beginning my mother was working in one way or another. She married my father during a hiatus from college. Immediately after her freshman year she was married and the month before she went back to college that next year she had me.  She earned her undergraduate degree in Athletic Training and Math Education 4 years later while playing field hockey for Indiana University.  Many years later mom received the W. W. Patty Distingusedh Alumni Award from the School of Public Health (formerly known as HPER).

Next my mother went onto teach high school mathematics and be the high school athletic trainer for 2 years.  It was during this time she and my father discussed her continuing her education to eventually become a doctor.  Mainly she was tired of the local doctors telling her her opinions didn't matter because first she was just the trainer and second she was a woman.  The women in my family, they don't take kindly to that type of talk.

She did go back to school earning another bachelor degree, a masters degree, and finished her pre-med requirements.  When I was eight my mom joined the Army and started her medical education at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.  After many years of hard work, studying, and in some instance out-right gender discrimination in her chosen field, my mother became a board certified orthopedic surgeon.  This of course was not the end of her education as she went on to do a fellowship in hand surgery. All the while writing journal articles and becoming a reviewer for several athletic training and orthopedic publications.

My families most worrying time, and yet proudest, was when my mother was sent to Iraq in 2003.  Her unit, the 745th FST, was attached to the 3rd ID.  They were involved with the initial push into Iraq at the beginning of the war.  While she has talked periodically about a few of her cases and what she saw there, I know I will never really know everything.  Recently during a visit she opened up more about their job, what it was like, and the results of war through a doctors eyes.  She also let me know that they were expected to take heavy casualties in that push.  Her team would have been responsible for treating the casualties of chemical or biological warfare. They were ready, they trained for it, but thankful that there was little resistance and most people were happy to see them.

I have stumbled on articles telling about the time my mom was there and the conditions they were in.  This article, for instance, was written in 2008 during the next deployment of the 745th, but they talk about the first deployment too.  After her return she contributed to the writing of The Third United States Revision of Emergency War Surgery.

Of course, she still laughs about the boys riding bikes in Baghdad alongside their Humvee.  Her driver was a woman also, a medical tech.  They were driving in convoy and stopped on a busy street.  A boy on a bike rode up and started to talk to them. When he heard my mother's voice he stopped and looked at them.


"Woman"

"Yes." My mother pointed at her driver too.

"Two women?"

"Yes." Both she and her driver nodded.

He rode off and then came back with a handful of other kids all who wanted to see the women in the truck.  She said that he spoke English very well and translated some questions from the other kids.  All who couldn't believe that she was first of all a woman, second of all a doctor  and third there was another woman driving the truck.

Mom retired in 2010 and is now spending her days watching after my dad.  There is a 17 year difference between the 2 of them, so you know he needs to be looked after since he was the one looking after us all these years. She wants to spend more time at home, with him, as well as with us and her grand-kids. Work can wait for now.  Can't say that I blame her.

Fearless Females: Brick walls

Brick walls go hand in hand with female ancestors and I am sure many of you can relate. There are many little stubby branches off of my main tree trunk because I have the name of a woman and as of yet no clue to her identity before marriage. These lost heritages, sometimes due to the lack of importance placed on woman at those times, make my mind go numb on occasion. 

photo credit: Malenkov in Exile
via photopin cc

I have written on this blog repeatedly about the walls I have encounter through my scant three years of research.  I have even celebrated with you as I have watched a wall crumble down and I was able to watch new branches develop on my tree.  Those celebrations are fewer now, but I am still determined to make them happen.  Even if it takes my whole life.

But that is just it, isn't it? This is now my life’s endeavor. I am also sure it is yours as well.

I want to know more about the people who came before me.  I want to pass that knowledge on.  Not just to my descendants, but to the world. There are stories to be told, lives to be shared, and walls to be scaled. I know that some may never be breached, but that is no reason not to try.  Right?

Below are my most frustrating female brick walls, on my and my husband’s lines.  The ones that, well, let’s just say bug me the most.  They needle me when I try to sleep. I hear them whispering to me from my computer. Come find me… you know you want to… Maybe, just maybe someone out there has the key to unlocking their secrets.

While a person is more than just facts and figures, I didn't want this post to go on for pages and pages so stuck to the basics.  Yes, I only listed a few tid-bits but you and I both know there is more to these women.  If I am lucky there will be follow up posts with stories of discovery and stories of them in the future.

Philena L. Brown

She is my husband's 4th great-grandmother.  Born abt 1810 in Maine and died bef 1880 in Swanville, Waldo County, Maine.  She married twice: James Cunningham and Joshiah Emmerson.  Her sister Mary married James's brother William, also in the Swanville / Belfast, Maine area.  There are family rumors are that the Brown sisters were of Scottish decent after a stop over for a couple generations in Northern Ireland, eventually making their way to New England.

Margaret Ann Brundage

She is my husband's 2nd great-grandmother.  Born 25 Dec 1851 in Illinois, died 15 March 1930 in Portland, Washington, and is buried in Pioneer Cemetery.  She married Stephen Crabb 8 feb 1872 in Putnam, Missouri.  They traveled west to the Washington Territory and were among the first settlers in their area of the future Washington State.

Jane DeVault

She is my 3rd great-grandmother, and most of the following information was given to me (with documents and sources!) by a recently found cousin.  Thank you Sue!  Born 7 May 1830 in Harrison County, Ohio and died 5 Jan 1910 in Lost River Township, Martin County, Indiana.  From her death certificate I know her father's name was Strausbaugh and she was buried in Waggoner Cemetery.  She married Andrew Jackson Davisson in Ohio about 1853.

Mary Amelia Dishinger

She is my 3^rd great-grandmother.  Born 11 December 1835 in Baden-Wurttemburg and died 21 November 1921 in Washington, Daviess County, Indiana.  She arrived in this country with her parents, who are unknown to me, and settled in Dubois County, Indiana about 1847.  Mary, or Amelia as she went by both names, married another German immigrant, John Miller, in 1855 at Jasper, Dubois County, Indiana. 

Dorothy Ann Jent

She is my 5th great-grandmother.  Born 1742 at St. Mary's, Maryland and died in 1812 at Nelson County, Kentucky.  She married Rodolphus Norris in 1765 at St. Mary's, Maryland.

Eliza Johnson

She is my 3rd great-grandmother.  Born in Indiana abt 1842 and died before 1900, perhaps all in Orange County.  She married Willis Mayfield Freeman 7 Feb 1861 in Orange County, Indiana.

Maria or Mary Meier/Meyer

She is my husband's 3rd great grandmother.  Born 1853 in Germany and died 30 April 1900 in New York, New York.  She married twice: Augustus Heinritz and Emil Jahnke.  You can read a post about her and my discoveries here.  

Sally Padgett

She is my 5th great-grandmother.  Born abt 1757 in Maryland and died 1817 in Port Tobacco, Charles County, Maryland.  She married Edward Arvin (Harvin/Harbin/Harben) abt 1785.

Agatha Reichter

She is my 3^rd great-grandmother.  Born about 1822 in Baden-Wurttemburg and died before 1900 in Indiana (most likely Dubois or Daviess County).  She married Hubert Negle (Nagley/Nagali/Naigly) 19 May 1855 at St. Celestine Church in Dubois County, Indiana. 

Mary Rice

She is my 5^th great-grandmother.  Born abt 1770 on a plantation in Tennessee and died in Harrison County, Indiana 24 June 1835.  She married 5 times: Job Poteet (a Frenchman), Mr. Whitaker, Eliasen Goodwin, and Mr. McCaslin (I list them as Mr. because I don't have a first name for them).  You can read a letter written about her at this post.

Isabella "Bella" Ruddy

She is my husband's 3rd great-grandmother.  Born abt 1838 in Ireland and died between 1920 and 1930 most likely in Hartford, Connecticut or Westchester, New York.  She married James Bennett either in Ireland or in New York City.  

Ann Tachell

She is my husband's 2nd great-grandmother.  Born 1846 in Coates, Sommerset, England and died before 1874 in Wales (most likely in Llwynypia, Glamorgan, Wales).  She married Thomas Pittard before 1869 most likely in Somerset.  Thomas went on to marry her younger sister Jane Tachell after Ann's death.  Thomas and Jane immigrated to the United States with their and Ann's children through New York in 1883.

Fearless Females: Favorite Recipe

 Share a favorite recipe from your mother or grandmother’s kitchen.  Why is this dish your favorite?

My mom doesn't cook, she burns water.  No really, she is an excellent surgeon but unless it is baking (very similar to lab experiments) or can be microwaved my mom is pretty useless in the kitchen.  However, her mother was a fantastic cook.  Homemade noodles, soups, roasts, you name it she could cook it.

One of my favorite recipes, and my mom’s too, was grandma’s Shrimp Creole.  I have begged for this recipe for years, after I lost my first copy, and finally got it from my dad this past December.  One of the last times I remember grandma cooking for our family she was making this dish. 

She lived with us the last few years of her life and usually she sat in the kitchen talking with my dad as he cooked.  Grandma was a talker.  She could spin a yarn that had you hanging on every word.  One night she decided to make Shrimp Creole, probably as a favor to my mom, and we loved it.  I can still see her sitting at the stove on a bar stool stirring the ingredients, tasting it, adding more, and being completely content. 

I have made this twice in my life.  Once in college for an “adult” dinner (we had friends over and I wanted to have a nice sit down dinner, you know, like adults) in which I learned the value of already peeled and deveined shrimp.  A few years later I cooked it again when I had a craving for shrimp, thankfully I remember the lessons from the previous attempt and the preparation for cooking took a significantly less amount of time.

If you search for it online there are several other versions of this dish out there.  Some call for celery to be added, or different spices   One day I may try these, when I am being more adventurous and not wanting a taste of grandmas cooking.

Hope you enjoy and if you try it let me know if you like it!

Shrimp Creole

Ingredients:

1 tbs butter

1 tsp flour

½ C water

1 C strained tomatoes

1 C chopped onion

3 lbs peeled and washed shrimp

2 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 thinly sliced green pepper

Chopped parsley

Salt and pepper taste

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Rice

Directions:

Melt butter in skillet.  Add flour to thicken.  Add the ingredients in order listed except Worcestershire sauce.  Cook for 20 minutes over low heat.  Add Worcestershire sauce.  Serve over rice.

Notes:

• 2 or 3 cans of shrimp may be used but just ass long enough to reheat (today I would say this means precooked frozen shrimp since I never remember seeing canned shrimp in my life).
• My grandma and dad both added garlic juice to taste for a more subtle flavor.

Fearless Females Posts for Women's History Month

I am a bit behind already this month, and I was looking forward to participating in the Fearless Females prompts by the Accidental Genealogist.  Well…better late than never I guess right?

This is the 4^th year that Lisa Alzo has done her Fearless Females prompts for the month of March.  March is Woman’s History month which leads to this perfect way to celebrate your female ancestors.  She provides a prompt for each day; however you don’t have to write each one.  You can pick and choose, or write about the women in your family who have inspired you. 

If you don’t have a blog to write on, consider picking up a journal or typing out your response to her writing prompts.  It would be a great keepsake for future generations.  Let Lisa know if you do this.  I am sure she would love to hear about it.

My posts from last year’s March prompts are located under the Fearless Female Tags on this site.  Feel free to go check out who I wrote about in the past.

So, without further ado, my first post honoring my female ancestors for Women’s History Month.

Post a photo of one of your female ancestors.  Who is in the photo? 

When was it taken? Why did you select this photo?

This picture is of my grandmother, Maxine Armstrong Arvin.  It was taken at the Sky Club 1630 N. Harlem Ave, Chicago, Illinois.  My mother thinks it was taken in the late 1940s when my grandfather did a short tour of duty in Chicago. 

I recently discovered this picture at my parents’ house and fell in love with it.  She is so carefree and happy in the picture.  Her smile is contagious too; I can’t help but smile when I look at it!  At this point she has everything she could hope for in her life.  A little boy, her husband has returned from WWII, and they are really beginning their life together.   She had second chance after not knowing where my grandfather was or if he was going to survive being a POW. 

The cover to the picture intrigued me too.  What was the Sky Club?  I quickly found out that it was a restaurant and dance hall that featured live music and the latest entertainers.  The Illinois Digital Archives had several pictures and advertisements from the club.  The menu looked delicious, especially the lamb for $1.50.

Fearless Females: Profile

Pick one female ancestor and write a mini-profile (500 words or less).

My great-grandmother Ila Sanders was born 19 February 1881, in Martin County, Indiana.  Family legend tells that she was being courted by one of John Armstrong's older boys.  Their mother, Catherine Holt, had died in 1897 leaving him to raise eight children on his own.  The boy (either Claude or Robert) brought Ila by the farm to introduce her to the family.  Great-grandpa became smitten with her himself.  Ila and John were married 24 November, 1901.  They had 12 children together, including my Grandmother Maxine.  In 1941 the US Government sized land comprising the township of Trinity Springs, their farm, and several other neighbors farms for the creation of Crane Naval Surface Surface Warfare Center. While they were paid for their lands, being removed for their home was an unpleasant experience.  Ila died in 1949, twenty years after her husband.

On a side note, several family members (on both my father's and mother's side) worked at Crane in various capacities.  As the nearest military instillation, my grandmother would visit the PX, Commissary, and the family graveyard frequently.  Members of the family can be escorted to the graveyard for visits still.

*Image: cindy47452 via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Wisdom

Did you receive any advice or words of wisdom from your mother or another female ancestor?

My grandmother's were full of sayings and advice.  Some, not fit to repeat in polite company.  We'll just call it their farm girl charm showing through and leave it at that.

The best piece of advice was given to me by my Grandma Combs when my long time boyfriend (now husband) and I were having some problems.  I went home to her for the weekend from college and spent most of the first night crying my eyes out to her.  She calmly looked at me.

"Does he have close friends?"

"I think so... sure."

"Well they are probably just giving him a hard time about being tied down, it'll pass."

"Oh, I'm not so sure, he was pretty sure we shouldn't be together."

"Yeah, well, boys can be dumb.   Your grandpa did the same thing at one time.  Know what I did?"

"What?"

"Hit him with a 2x4, that brought him a round."

<silence>

"Not a real 2x4 Shannon.  You just have to figure out what his 2x4 is, the thing that will bring him out of the stupid.  All men have one and once you figure out what it is, he'll be yours.  Just drag it out from time to time and let him remember you know best."

My husband and I will be married 13 years in August.  I don't think I ever figured out what his "2x4" was, but obviously we worked out the problem.  Sometimes I think about this evening in her bedroom watching old black and white movies, eating chocolate, and drinking her homemade wine.  It always brings a smile to my face when I remember how serious she was telling me about her 2x4.  That night was one of the last times we were able to have an evening like this.  She died a few months later in December 1997.

*Image: simonov via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Trading Card

Create a free Fold3 (formerly Footnote) Memorial Page or a Genealogy Trading Card at Big Huge Labs for a female ancestor. Some of you may have created your own card back in September 2009 following Sheri Fenley’s post over at The Educated Genealogist. This time, the card is for your ancestor.

This was a very cool thing, and I had never heard of creating a trading card for people.  Must investigate further... thinking playing card game al'a Magic the Gathering, but with ancestors instead.  Oh, my gears are spinning!

Feraless Females: Best Friends

Do you remember your mother’s best friend? Your grandmother’s? How and where did they meet? How long were they friends? What activities did they share?

Oh goodness, that is a tough questions.  I know my mother had a very close friend in high school.  They were in all the same extracurricular activities, and as my mother put it "social outcasts."  Meaning they were too smart and therefore not popular or in the boys opinions very pretty.  They lost track of each other by the time my mom went to medical school and moved away from her home town.  Her mom had many friends who where fellow officer's wives, and I know she corresponded with several of them until the day she died.

The most intriguing one is my father's mother, I never recalled her having a very close friend.  Many acquaintances, but no one ever very close to her.  That is until I found an unnamed picture in a shoe box a few years ago.  There she is as a teenager, with another girl, and written on the back is "friends forever" barely visible in pencil.  I wonder who she was.

Fearless Females: Immigration

Do you know the immigration story of one or more female ancestors? Do you have any passenger lists, passports, or other documentation? Interesting family stories?

I only have one immigration story from my family.  It has been passed down through five generations to me.  To prove it, or disprove it, has been a driving force in me taking so many classes on immigration.  Family legend states that Bridget Gerharty and her sister boarded a boat in Ireland bound for America with their husbands.  Halfway to America both men die and are buried at sea.  There is a panic among the women because they have been told they must be married to get off the boat on the other side.  Bridget and her sister find the Brennan brothers and marry them on the ship before they reach America.  The story continues that they were turned away from the ports in New England, Philadelphia, and Baltimore before being allowed to dock in New Orleans.

What a story, and I wish I could even prove a scrap of it!

*Image: Jeffrey K. Edwards via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Education

What education did your mother receive? Your grandmothers? Great-grandmothers? Note any advanced degrees or special achievements.

My mother has several Bachelors degrees, a Masters degree, and her Medical Doctorate.  She also did her fellowship in hand surgery at Johns Hopkins, and is a board certified hand surgeon.  Mom has been recognized for her teaching ability and contributions to  the field of Sports Medicine and Orthopedics in and outside of the military community and in 2008 she was recognized by the School of Health Physical Education and Recreation at Indiana University with the Williard W. Patty Distinguished Alumni Award.

My father's mother earned a teaching degree from Indiana State University.  She was a school teacher for almost 40 years.  First kindergarten, then 7th grade English, and finally High School English/Drama.  She was very active in the AAUW and her local teacher's union.  She ever was the president of the union at the same time my grandfather was on the school board.  I have been told that there were some very lively family dinners during this time period.

*Image: surroundsound5000 via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Children

Tell how a female ancestor interacted with her children. Was she loving or supportive? A disciplinarian? A bit of both?

The only interactions I know of are the ones between my mom and myself.  My parents have told me about how they were raised, but never in great detail.  I can piece together that my grandmothers were very different.  One was a stay at home mom, one worked.  They were both caring, and loving.  Pushed their children to do the right things, and to never settle.  Each of them felt that their kids could do great things.  Like most parents. 

My mom was mostly absent from my early life.  She was in college from the time I was born to 4 years old, then worked as a high school math teacher for two years.  The next two years she was in grad school, and finishing her pre-med requirements.  Ages 8-12 she was in medical school, then there was a year of internship, a year as a General Medical Officer, then four years of residency.  So, yeah... she wasn't home much.

When my mom was available she did her best.  Most of our interactions focused on academic advancement, athletic training (the discipline and the advancement of my sports) or shopping.  Yes, as a woman she has the shopping gene and at times we took full advantage of this common trait.  Especially after she was out of residency.  My favorite times were when she was stationed in Germany.  A college student and her mother on a shopping spree in Europe... dangerous!

*Image: quinn.anya via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Traits

Do you share any physical resemblance or personality trait with one of your female ancestors? Who? What is it?

Oh this is easy... my mother.  I look like her, and her mother, more than anyone else in the family. Baby pictures get messed up, and my youngest seems to be falling into the trait as well.  Other than that, lets just say I get my over opinionated, stubborn, hard headedness from her.  Actually, I have a double dose of that... but we aren't talking about my dad right now.

This is my parents favorite picture of me.  I was five years old, and was just as much trouble as I looked.  This could be my 5 year old right now, or my mother.

Fearless Females: Timeline

Create a timeline for a female ancestor using your favorite software program or an online timeline generator such as Our Timelines.

I just did this for a handful of my female ancestors and I learned a very important lesson... I need to do more research.  Wow, a listing of dates is really boring!  Shame on me for not filling in more information and not breathing life into these women (and men).  Guess what I am going to be doing in my copious amounts of free time...


*Image: Pixel Fantasy via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Casting a Movie

If a famous director wanted to make a movie about one of your female ancestors who would it be? What actress would you cast in the role and why?

This was a hard one, wow, who do I pick?  If I could find out more about my colonial ancestors who moved from the east coast into the wilderness of Indiana I think I would have a screenplay written about them.  They had to be tough, strong, and hardy women to move from New England, Virginia, and the Carolina's into a territory that was not even tamed yet.  A few of them had lived through the Revolution, and all through the War of 1812.  Imagine the stories they could tell!  To portray such strong women, you would need strong actresses... gosh, who would it be?

*Image: I took this on board the Susan Constant Replica Jamestown Settlement, Jamestown, Virginia.

Fearless Females: Brick Walls

Is there a female ancestor who is your brick wall? Why? List possible sources for finding more information.

So far the only brick walls I have are my pesky 19th century Irish and German immigrant ancestors.  Right now I am taking the immigration master class through Family Tree University, taught by Lisa Alzo, in hopes that I will have some good strategies on where and how to search.  It is going to take me years most likely.  I keep telling myself that Rome wasn't built in a day... right?


*Image: jox. via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Tender Moments

Describe a tender moment one of your female ancestors shared with you or another family member.

My mom started medical school when I was eight years old, which meant I did not really see her again until I was a Senior in High School and she was the Senior Resident.  The few moments when she was able to have down time from school, or the rare vacation, she would try to make the most of the moment by being with dad and me.  That was a struggle, by the way, as I am sure should really would have rather been in bed sleeping. 

Downtime with my mom usually involved school in some way.  I get my persnickety perfectionist tendencies from her.  My favorite moments growing up were when she would work with me on school projects.  The most memorable of all was when I had an assignment to create a pressed plant journal for biology.   We spent an afternoon traipsing through the countryside of El Paso, Texas collecting the best specimens.  She helped me press them using her medical texts (as those were the biggest books in the house), and a few weeks later we spent another afternoon mounting them.  It was the longest amount of time I had spent with my mom in years.  Plus, I got the only 100% in the class, and I still have the album.

*Image: garlandcannon via photopin cc

Fearless Females: Surprising Fact

Have you discovered a surprising fact about one of your female ancestors? What was it and how did you learn it? How did you feel when you found out?

My great-grandmother Sylvia Freeman Combs was a twin.  Her sister, Goldie, and her were nothing alike.  In fact there was nearly a foot between them!  One had light colored hair, the other dark.  One was mischievous, one was serious.   This always fascinated me as a child, before I figured out that twins didn't have to be identical.  Just the thought that you could be twins and so different sent my head spinning.

Below is a picture of the Freeman (or sometimes seen as Friedman) family.  I am sure you can tell why Hattie was 5'8" by looking at her father!

Back row (standing on bench):  Goldie, Hattie, Sylvia, Pearl

Front row: Alta Eldora (Davison), Stanford, John

Virgil was not home when picture was taken

Taken near French Lick, Indiana about 1905

Fearless Females: Shining Star

Shining star: Did you have a female ancestor who had a special talent? Artist, singer, actress, athlete, seamstress, or other? Describe.

mom in the back of her
transport, Iraq abt 2003

On both sides of my family there are talented woman artists.  My grandmother excelled at water colors of landscapes as well as experimenting in oil painting.  Several of her landscapes are hanging on the walls of my parents house.  Grandma and I would sit during my summer visits and paint for hours.  She tried desperately to teach me how to make those fantastic landscapes and create still lives.  I was not patient enough to put it mildly.

Then there is my mother, the surgeon, which is an amazing talent to excel at.  She has another skill to, art.  Mom has created amazing pencil and charcoal images over the years.  She is so meticulous and detailed that she even illustrated her own articles that were published in medical journals.