Ancestral Exchange LLC

03/01/2021

Dennis Richmond Jr. was a middle-schooler who took refuge in his family history, some of it very surprising.

08/17/2020

What should I tell them about the lives we’ve all lived? What do they need to know about our family? My journals will preserve our memories.

06/26/2020

Inspirational - older adults who keep growing. ❤️

From tutoring to being a volunteer 'grandma,' they're connecting

03/21/2020

Take this time to share your stories. Here’s some inspiration.

In this moment when everyone’s reaching out to the people they love, we put together a collection of family stories.

03/09/2020

I love Megan Kimble's article about moving to a new city as a millennial, and volunteering with a group that helps seniors, in an effort to understand her new city from the perspective of those who had spent decades living there. She found that "spending time with these more seasoned humans offers a perspective that is grounding, calming." Enjoy.

The lives of the young and the old rarely cross in many American cities. After I moved to Austin, I used a volunteer opportunity as a way to change that.

12/12/2019

Yes, yes, yes!

Telling family stories is a favorite pastime when relatives gather for the holidays. Children absorb more information from family stories than most adults think, teaching them about history and identity.

11/28/2019

If you’re lucky enough to have family elders at your Thanksgiving table, try some of these ideas from Home Helpers....and don’t forget to use the voice recorder on your phone. Happy Thanksgiving.

11/18/2019

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When I think about family dinner I think of my grandma's famous deviled eggs. My grandma would make them for every single family gathering we had. Now that my grandma is no longer with us, my mom has picked up the tradition. While I live far from family, I also have my grandma's recipe and I will make them for Thanksgiving every year.
Food often brings back memories from my childhood, and I love making these with my own family. Every night we eat dinner together, put our devices away, and just talk about our day. When the kiddos are grown and no longer join us every night, I will cherish these memories too.
What do you think of when you think of family dinner? wants to know! Share a photo or video (60 seconds or less) and use the hashtag to share! Do you have a recipe that is a family tradition? I would love to hear your story!

08/01/2019

I just finished reading the memoir About My Mother, written by Peggy Rowe, the mother of television personality Mike Rowe. I loved it. The “true stories of a horse-crazy daughter and her baseball-obsessed mother” had me laughing out loud and brought back so many memories of my own mother. Like the books I write for my clients, no one will mistake this book for “fine literature.” But what a treasure for her family, and all of us. Mrs. Rowe’s book became number one on bestseller lists, and one could argue that being the mother of a famous son was the reason for that. But I agree with her son, Mike, when he wrote in the Foreword, “I think people are hungry for the stories my mother has written, and I can tell you there’s a good deal more than gentle humor and fond memories in the pages that follow. There’s actual comfort. Comfort for every daughter who ever thought her mother was from another planet. Comfort for every mother who suspected her daughter was switched at birth.” Read Mrs. Rowe’s book, then write your own; call me if you need help. And for more wonderful stories from octogenarian Peggy Rowe, like her page About My Mother.