u/RespectExpensive9126

Somewhat new to ancestry and discovering all the things on my own. Both sides of my family have had at least a recent relative or two dig pretty deep and have written about people dating back to 17th century. I am finding considerably more information being able to research online and actually find out who these people were. The connections across multiple generations within the same family of career choice and general contributions to society. Even though each of us are technically 50% from each parent, does it not get less and less each generation? There are crazy instances where someone from say the 1700s or 1800s have lived through something that someone from my generation has a special interest in or draw to. Are these not actually coincidental, but more because they are just “part of us” but it’s unconscious unless we actually slow down enough to follow our curiosities? I have some family who have no interest in ancestry because it has nothing to do with them today. But doesn’t it kind of have everything to do with them? Anyone else have crazy similarities to someone in their tree from hundreds of years ago??

Somewhat new to ancestry and discovering all the things on my own. Both sides of my family have had at least a recent relative or two dig pretty deep and have written about people dating back to 17th century. I am finding considerably more information being able to research online and actually find out who these people were. The connections across multiple generations within the same family of career choice and general contributions to society. Even though each of us are technically 50% from each parent, does it not get less and less each generation? There are crazy instances where someone from say the 1700s or 1800s have lived through something that someone from my generation has a special interest in or draw to. Are these not actually coincidental, but more because they are just “part of us” but it’s unconscious unless we actually slow down enough to follow our curiosities? I have some family who have no interest in ancestry because it has nothing to do with them today. But doesn’t it kind of have everything to do with them? Anyone else have crazy similarities to someone in their tree from hundreds of years ago??

Struggling with what to do about last names. Both of us in a hetero marriage prior and still have married last names of ex husbands. We both have children and feel very connected to our kids and I don’t want a last name different than my kids and neither does she.

We are also both teachers. Right now we are “Ms.” which after 20+years in education still feels strange. When we get married, if we keep exs last name we’ll be “Mrs.” again-with their last name? Even weirder.

Too many negative childhood memories with maiden names, I don’t want hers and I don’t want mine. I do not feel in any way connected to my maiden name.

Anyone in a similar boat or have ideas/suggestions?