Ancestry.com Review & Giveaway

This year at my daughter's first birthday party, my great aunt told us something that took us by surprise. It seems her grandmother (my great great grandmother) was a DeLuca. That was her maiden name. My husband's dad started chatting with her, and they discovered that his family and mine were even from the same area of Italy. So what does that mean? It means my husband and I might very well be distant cousins. Willow turned out okay, so I think we are far enough removed that it isn't a bad thing, but it is something we would love to prove one way or the other. It would be interesting if Willow's family tree leads back to the same people on both sides. So when I had a chance to work with Ancestry.com, I was excited to see where this search might lead.

Its been about a week since I received my complimentary subscription and I have been working on our family tree on and off. The first steps are to add in the information you already know. I added in my husband, kids, parents, etc. One of the first interesting things I learned on this website was that my biological dad was actually married a few more times then he has admitted to. Which makes me wonder if I might have more half brothers and sisters that I didn't know about.



Next, I looked up my grandparents. They both passed away about ten years ago, and their death records came up instantly. On those records were their dates of birth and where they were born as well as their parents information. It also listed all of their brothers and sisters, and from there I found a few of my cousins exploring as well. So I found my great grandparents, but there I hit a brick wall. Even though I know my great grandmother's name and the area of Italy where she was born, I wasn't able to find any information on her to prove whether or not my husband and I are related. I haven't given up yet though. I have a six month subscription so I am hoping to get in touch with my inlaws and see what I can track through my husband's side.

All in all, even though I have not yet accomplished my primary goal, I am very impressed with Ancestry.com. The system was fun and easy to use, and I did learn a few things about my family that I didn't know before. Its exciting to have so much information at your finger tips and to be able to see things like your grandparents marriage license. I definitely plan on searching for more in the months to come, and may even renew my subscription if there is still more to learn. Like they always say in their commercials, you don't need to know what you're looking for. You just need to start looking.

Genealogy has become an immensely popular hobby in recent years. Television shows such as NBC’s “Who Do You Think You Are” (Ancestry.com supervises the shows research) and PBS’s “Faces of America,” have further piqued American’s interest in tracing their ancestors.  Ancestry.com gift subscriptions begin at $69 for six months of access to the U.S.-focused collections and max out at $299 for world-wide access for 12 months. In addition to gift subscriptions, users can create unique family memory books, posters and gifts that showcase their family histories.

One very lucky winner is going to get to try out Ancestry.com for themselves. The winner will receive a World Deluxe Membership. To enter, just visit Ancestry.com and tell me something you learned. For additional entries, you can do any of the following, but you must complete this initial entry first. Any entries that do not follow these guidelines will be deleted.

1) Subscribe to my blog by email
2) Follow my blog on friend connect
3) Blog about this giveaway with a link to New Age Mama & Ancestry.com(5 Entries)
4) Follow me on twitter and tweet this giveaway using the button at the top of this post (Daily)
5) Become my friend on face book  or a fan of New Age Mama on Face Book (one entry each)
6) Grab my main button and tell me where I can find it
7) Follow New Age Mama on Network Blog
8) Follow my author blog on friend connect, twitter, or  face book (one entry each)
9) Post this giveaway on any sweepstakes site, Mr Linky, or other networking website-leave the link where I can find it (1 entry each)
10) Follow Ancestry.com on twitter
11) Become a fan of Ancestry.com on face book
12) Subscribe to the Ancestry.com Blog
13) Subscribe to Ancestry.com on you tube


This giveaway will end at midnight on 7/9/11 and is open to the continental US only. Only one set of entries per person/household/IP address. The winner will be chosen via a random number generator. Thanks again to Ancestry.com for offering this great prize!


***Please note that I received no form of monetary compensation for this post. I did receive a sample of the product to try in order to write a fair and honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own and were not influenced in any way.  Please note that I  am not responsible for the delivery of this prize and can not be held accountable if, for any reason, is it not received. Furthermore, I am in no way liable for any injuries that may result from the use or misuse of this product. ***