HAPPY BIRTHDAY CATHY

Happy Birthday to my cousin Cathy. The one I didn't know I had.

Interesting, isn't it, how people find one another later.

Mother had an older sister, Viola, who gave up her child. That child grew up in a foster home and loved her new parents but always wished to know her real parents. It seems this mother also gave up a son. There is a long, painful story about all of this.

Connie became an adult and had three children. Cathy is one of them. Cathy and her two siblings are first cousins, once removed. Her mother is my first cousin.

Why is it that she isn't my second cousin, isn't that easier?

Daddy called Mildred Ostgaard his second cousin.
Mildred was the child of Corina Ranum, Benhard's sister.

It looks like this:

Stanley K Ranum
Benhard Ranum
Knute N Ranum (common denominator)
Corinna Ranum Ostgaard
Mildred Ostgaard

That means Benhard and Corinna were brother and sister, therefore, Mildred was the neice of Benhard and Corinna was the aunt of Stanley. The next group, Stanley and Mildred, are first cousins.

According to Family Tree Maker: Stanley and Mildred are first cousins. Mildred and I are first cousins, once removed.

Just when does it become second cousin?

So, if you know Cathy from Facebook, give her a shout on her birthday!

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