Family Relationships

Is your kids' grandmother narcissistic or just self-centered? Here, you will find a checklist of telltale signs of a toxic grandma and a list of ideas for how to deal with it if she is.

This is a collection of the sweetest, nicest, and most heartwarming things you can say to your dad to make him feel cherished and appreciated.

This is a collection of the sweetest, nicest, and most heartwarming things you can say to your mom to make her feel appreciated and cherished.

Were you the quiet, introverted child growing up? Or maybe you know such a child? This isn't necessarily a negative thing as people so often seem to think. For me, it was totally normal and was just who I was. Even today, as an adult—being introverted is still totally normal and is just who I am.

Bonding with stepchildren isn't easy. They have different personality traits, you haven't always known them, and they have different opinions than you. Here, I discuss how I worked at bonding with each of my fiance's kids through the last few years.

I share how I made my family history research more productive, more educational, and more fun by using commonly available GPS tools.

Strained family relationships have been shown to cause an increased number of chronic health conditions, particularly in the older family members. In this article, negative and positive family relationships are reviewed along with their outcomes.

My father is homeless, and we have no relationship. I wanted to share with you 5 things I want others to know about what it's like.

Make the magic of Facebook groups work for you. You can find lots of help from other genealogists, create your own family groups, get photos restored or colorized by volunteers, research in history groups, and contact museums and libraries through this social media platform.

Mothers with BPD frequently oscillate between over- and under-involvement in their parenting style.

Unidentified photos of mystery ancestors are tempting to toss. Don't do it. Here are suggestions for those.

Your sisters are your first friends, but after you grow up and move away, how do you stay close? Here are a few ideas to help you keep your sisterly ties strong as you juggle life.

Sinkholes are where the ground sinks under you without warning. My husband and I fell into so many of these sinkholes, I felt it necessary to share a warning with other blended families in hopes of helping people avoid these.

Guidelines for visiting new parents with their baby in the first few weeks. Don't turn up unannounced, don't create extra work, be helpful and admire the baby.

Parents often have a favorite child, no matter how much they deny it. Favoritism impacts how parents think, feel, and act towards their offspring. It also affects the kids. Here are the signs Mom and Dad are playing favorites.

Have a friend that is estranged from one or both of their parents? Here are a few things you should avoid saying to them, as well as three things they need to hear.

Genealogy is a fun and informative hobby; however, it's easy to be misled if you aren't careful.

Every day, adult children, spouses, and family members place their aging loved ones into nursing homes. Although society has become very accepting of this practice, it isn't always the best choice for the person. This article looks at the legal and moral side of this increasing social practice.

Newspapers.com is a wonderful resource for researchers. Genealogists love it! Here are tips from a librarian for getting the best results from your searches.

How do you use ThruLines and other new tools on Ancestry? Here's what I've figured out about these new features added by Ancestry in beta form in March 2019.

Independence... or assisted living? It's a very hard decision to make. These are the things to look for if you're wondering if your parent is getting too old to take care of themself.

Congratulations on becoming a grandfather. Here are 100+ alternative names for grandpa to choose from, including some from languages other than English that are sure to stick for a lifetime.

Congratulations on becoming a grandmother. You are looking for a fun name to go by other than the traditional name of "grandma." Here are 100+ names to choose from.

More and more parents are being cut out of their adult children's lives. This is a difficult phenomenon and completely heartbreaking. It's hard to find comfort, no matter which side you're on. My intention with this article is to provide some comfort for parents and adult children alike.

In American genealogy, most researchers consider gateway ancestors as colonial immigrants who migrated to America, settling in Jamestown or Plymouth Colonies with an ancestral link to the great Magna Carta Surety Barons.

Whether you are single, married without kids, older without children in the home anymore, or just from a different perspective, understanding the younger generation of families is something that seems difficult to do. Younger families have different needs and priorities. Let me show you.

Gathering information about early Kansas photographers to help people determine a date for an old picture they have.

Getting along with your family during the holidays may sound harder than it really is. By using a little self-control and offering some peace, patience, understanding, and positivity, you could really turn this stressful time into one full of happy memories and positive relationships all year long.

Many parents struggling with the financial woes of modern times are already under pressure and are susceptible to feeling like they’re not doing a “good enough job”. Many grandparents feel it’s in their right to pass judgment on the way their grandchildren are raised.

Every day, hundreds of family ties are severed by a parent due to a lack of understanding and communication. How do we cope with losing a parent this way? Keep reading to learn my take on this unfortunate phenomenon and the coping strategies I've used.

What's the best thing about asking children funny questions? Their answers can be funnier than the questions themselves! So, to get you started, here's a list of funny questions that you can ask kids right away.

Will a subscription to Newspapers.com give you valuable information for your family history research? Here are examples of how it helped me, and why I recommend it.

Most people have a lot to say. And believe it or not, children are no exception! In fact, kids have an immeasurable amount of interesting things to share. It’s all just a matter of talking with them. Luckily, this list provides 120+ conversation starters for kids that are ready for use!

The main issue in most Christian families is the neglect of Bible principles. This article encourages Christians to alleviate problems and improve happiness in four basic areas, including awareness.

In a day and age when mother and daughters-in-law seem to always be at odds, hope towards peace and reconciliation can still be found, as long as both parties seek compassion, kindness, and understanding. If you are a MIL, consider changing your tactics, as well as remembering how you felt as a DIL.

Daughters of absent fathers (whether through death, divorce, or emotional neglect) often make the same mistakes, causing themselves immense anguish. By ignoring their anger, not being vulnerable, and blaming themselves, they can't move beyond their victimhood.

Here's how to connect your DNA to your family tree on Ancestry.com so you can learn how you're related to your DNA relatives and unlock more about your heritage.

Whether her dad was physically or emotionally absent, a girl can get stuck in grief and self-pity because of it. As an adult, she doesn't want his rejection to lessen her joy and limit her potential. The author gives 5 pieces of advice so fatherless daughters can move on and enjoy purposeful lives.

Since August 2016, I have been building a family tree and trying to identify my ancestors who originated in Europe. Based on successes and failures, I suggest a number of tips for doing genealogy research.

In this article, I show you how you can download your raw DNA data from My Heritage and various websites where you can upload your DNA data so you can compare results.

What do parents do when their child goes through a divorce? What about the grandchildren, if there are any? What is the role of the parent or grandparent in the changing family landscape?

Working on your family history seems like a never-ending task. Setting some goals and spreading it out over five years makes it less overwhelming.

Relationships with your mother-in-law can be particularly trying, because women tend to stick their claws out when threatened, which is exacerbated when two women love the same man. If you can handle this article, then you may be on the way to mending your relationship with your MIL.

Does your mother-in-law suck the joy out of your life and make you feel powerless? Then it's time to take your power back.

I wanted to share with readers that even though growing up in a toxic home can be difficult, there are also lessons to be learned from it that can be applied to your everyday life.

Now that you've welcomed your baby home, you've also welcomed a whole new version of your in-laws: grandma and grandpa. With new grandparents comes uncharted territory for all involved. Let's figure out how we can get through it together.

Grandma, granny, nana, or mimi; there are many names that can be applied to the family matriarch. Sometimes the title is chosen because of language or cultural norm, or it is a selection made by a grandchild who is not yet able to voice the traditional title so the name is shortened.

Some parents don't let go. Here is an article for the adult children of control freaks and children or toxic or misguided parents. Hold onto your cell phone, it's going to get bumpy.

We had no control over our birth order, but scientists say the order in which we were born has a great deal to do with how successful we will become. Is that really true? Let's discuss it.

Puzzled about how to get the most out of your Ancestry DNA test? Here are some tips from an experienced genealogist.