Family – The Petrini Page

52 Ancestors, Week 6: Social Media

I have some lines of my paternal grandmother’s ancestry traced back to the 1500s and 1600s. I would like to say that is the result of hard work and multiple trips to Italy to comb through church and commune records. Yes, I have done a lot of research (the kind that, unfortunately, does not involvedContinue reading “52 Ancestors, Week 6: Social Media”

52 Ancestors, Week 5: Oops, Wrong Village

It’s Week 5 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project, created by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow. The theme this week: Oops. My “Oops” moment is about the process of uncovering the past. My grandmother had always told us her family was from Serravalle, a village in Marche, Italy. By the time I first visitedContinue reading “52 Ancestors, Week 5: Oops, Wrong Village”

52 Ancestors, Week 4: Mary’s Beauty Shoppe

For the fourth week of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, the theme set by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow is Education. This was a hard one for me. I like to post something visual, and the thing that came to mind first was yearbook photos of my mother and father. But those didn’t seemContinue reading “52 Ancestors, Week 4: Mary’s Beauty Shoppe”

52 Ancestors, 52 Weeks, 52 Themes

Earlier in the month, I posted about the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, encouraging participants to explore something in our family tree each week, based on a weekly theme set by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow. At the time, I listed the themes for the month of January, but I realize I have not yetContinue reading “52 Ancestors, 52 Weeks, 52 Themes”

Back Home Again

I have not posted a lot because I’ve been away for the past few days. My mother had a medical procedure on Thursday, some tests done as a follow-up to surgery she had done in October. I drove down to Williamsburg on Wednesday, drove her to an from the hospital on Thursday, and stayed untilContinue reading “Back Home Again”

52 Ancestors, Week 3: Out of Place

It’s time once again for the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project! This is a challenge started by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow, who sets a different theme for each week of the year. For Week 3, the theme is Out of Place. The ancestor I’ve chosen to highlight for this one is Giovanni DeRiggi, myContinue reading “52 Ancestors, Week 3: Out of Place”

A New Semester Begins

Winter break is over, and my son went back to campus today. It’s also his 21st birthday! So he’s out of that gray area between 17 and 21, when he was an adult for some things and not others. It shouldn’t be that hard to believe. He’s 6-foot-3 and wears a size 15 shoe. ButContinue reading “A New Semester Begins”

January 16 Writer Birthdays

Today is my son’s birthday; he turns 21 today. It’s hard to believe it! It would be a bit of a stretch, but you could call him a published author. When he was 6, he entered a contest for Kids’ Letters to President Obama. He was one of the winners, and had his letter appearContinue reading “January 16 Writer Birthdays”

Throwback Thursday: 21 Years

I am looking back today not to my ancestors, but to my son. He turns 21 years old in a few days! Is a 21-year-old photo old enough to count as a throwback? Here is his first baby picture. This was taken a day or two after he was born, but was not the officialContinue reading “Throwback Thursday: 21 Years”

Command Performance

This evening, my son made an audition video for the symphony orchestra at school. He had several pages of music to play for it. He had to set up his phone to record audio and video, and then play the music all in take. It included some Brahms, some Mendelssohn, and some works by aContinue reading “Command Performance”