Bingo

I BOUGHT MY TICKET. THIS IS HAPPENING.

I got a new toy.

Well, I found a neat website on the internet, anyways.

http://www.debeselis.net/

Its this "online Lithuanian school."

Has a lot of the stuff I already know at the beginning, but it didn't take long to find things that I didn't know yet.

Learning learning learning.... nerd.

Pimsleur

This is the program I've been using to try and learn some basic Lithuanian:

Has anyone else used anything different? My brother has used this program before, and gave me his old gold tapes to try and go through on my own. I'm wondering if there are any other resources that people have used, like computer programs, pronunciation help, reading, etc.

Keep in mind that I don't have any kind of contacts really in the US that I could go to who are fluent for help.

Oh hai, Paulukaitis.

Kaip Einas, kids.

My name is Erin Paulukaitis.

Yeah, its a weird and long last name. But for those of you who are familiar can probably tell that it is NOT Greek... nope. Its Lithuanian.

My dad's grandfather, my great-grandfather, immigrated to the United States from Lithuania. He left behind a family of several brothers that we know of for certain, many of whom also came over to this country even before he did. We don't actually know exactly how many siblings he had, who some of them married or if they were married, all of their children, etc. We're actively researching through Ancestry.com records and FamilySearch to try and find out as much as we can, but its a process.

In the meantime, we have discovered a few other family members, and one actually discovered us. (When I say us, I mean my brother and I, who are eager to figure out all of this bidness.) Rima Pabluskiene, a Lithuanian woman living in the Netherlands, contacted Adam one day suggesting they are related, through the tiny town that our family originates. We have essentially confirmed it almost certainly, and through her learned more about the family that so happens to still be in Lithuania, including a cousin Rimante, who shares the last name I would have had, if I actually lived there as well: Pauliukaityte.

Yeah. Feeling grateful for the simple "Paulukaitis" now, aren't you?

Anyway, this entire ordeal has inspired me to do several things, which I decided to document on this blog, seeing as I like blogs, and the internet. And Lithuania. (I hope.)

This blog is to document several things:

My attempting to learn Lithuanian.

My attempts at making Lithuanian food, for kicks and giggles.

My attempts at communicating with my Lithuanian non-English speaking cousins across the world.

Any information or updates that we may find on our Great-grandfather's family as they moved around Lithuania and Europe and/or across America.

And, over all, My attempt at an eventual journey to Lithuania, to visit the aforementioned cousins, explore the "homeland," hopefully find out more about our family that emigrated, and, well.... have a freaking adventure.

A freaking. Adventure.

Woo!