Finesse Your Family Tree

Perhaps your children spent some of this holiday with relatives who were not born in the United States. Well I’ve got just the perfect way to help you delve into your family’s past. In our home, a copy of My Heritage Book arrived just in time for my third-grader’s Family Pilgrim project at school. He began asking questions about which of his grandparents or great grandparents came to America from another country.

My Heritage Book (KidsHeritage Inc., www.myheritagebook.com, $39.95; ages 5 and up) by Deanna Bufo Novak with beautiful watercolor pictures by Alicia Bresee, helps children embrace their heritage and is sure to become a treasured keepsake. In this personalized book, children foray into the past to learn about their family’s ancestry with more than 60 countries to choose from. My Heritage Book also includes a letter to the child from the person(s) purchasing it, the child’s birth date, the child’s name throughout, a glossary, and pages where the child can fill in his or her own family’s traditions and a family tree. Each book contains up to four countries, making this an ideal gift for multi cultural families. The ordering process is easy: simply go online, choose up to four countries of origin (see website for complete listings), then fill out the required fields with the child’s first, middle and last name. There are also prompts for the child’s birth date and a closing for the letter on the first page (i.e. We Love You!) along with names for the closing letter (i.e. Mommy & Daddy).