More results!

Grandma's brother's results came in this morning.  Still waiting for his raw data to be available so I can upload to GEDmatch, but I at least have a few things I can do while I wait.  :)  I'm working on uploading files into Genome Mate Pro right now.  Once I get the files in there, I can start making some comparisons.

Still waiting on Grandma's sister's results.  Those are due in on Thursday.

I also managed to squeak one more test in before the end of the summer sale, a known third cousin of my grandmother's on the FALK line.  That one should batch next Wednesday, which should yield results between September 28 and October 12th.

Kit Updates!

Currently we have:

-  4 Loewen/Franz kits at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Loewen/Franz kit outstanding
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit in processing, results due end of June
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit still outstanding
-  1 Petkau/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Guenther & Schpansky/Warkentin at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Kroeker/Falk kit still outstanding

So... of the 11 unprocessed kits, 7 are at the lab and 1 is processing!  :)

Kit updates

Currently we have:

-  4 Loewen/Franz kits at the lab waiting for a sale
-  1 Loewen/Franz kit that never got delivered was re-ordered this morning
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit mailed back to the lab on 4/20/16
-  2 Petkau/Klassen kits still outstanding
-  1 Falk/Guenther & Schpansky/Warkentin kit in the mail back to the lab around 4/8/16
-  1 Falk/Klassen kit still outstanding
-  1 Falk/Kroeker kit still outstanding

Yesterday FTDNA announced a sale for DNA Day, so I ordered the Family Finder test for the outstanding Falk/Kroeker kit.  I'll have enough to order the Family Finder test for the Falk/Klassen kit on it's way back to the lab before the end of the sale, so I'll order that one on Tuesday.  :)  Both of those tests will help narrow down what DNA came from Susanna Falk and what probably didn't.  Really excited about those, and very glad I got them on sale before Christmas!

Joy comes in the morning! :P

Called FTDNA first thing this morning.  The kit that was designated for the relative who later refused to test is now going to my grandmother's first cousin.  I spoke to her this morning, and she agreed to test, so I called the lab and got the replacement test sent to her.  I also got in touch with one of my great-aunts who was supposed to have received her kit back in January.  As I suspected, she never received it, so I called the lab back and got a new test sent to her.  :)

So, three out of the four fits from yesterday's post have been taken care of.  Now I just need to get in touch with two of my great-uncles and see if the first intends to test, and the second has received his test.

Did I find a KLASSEN sibling?

I've been working on my Grandma Loewen's 23andme matches for about a year and a half.  Her second highest match responded to my messages, and we've been in sporadic communication.  She has VERY strong KLASSEN ties, including a KLASSEN brick wall at the same generation we do.

Anyway, I was finally able to get in touch with Grandma's top match (other than Mom and me), and from their response, it was apparent to me that they were likely to be the aunt of Grandma's second highest match, because they gave me the name of the person the profile belonged to, and it was the same name as Grandma's second highest match's grandmother.

I got back in touch with Grandma's second highest match to see if she knew about this person who was likely to be her grandmother.  She confirmed that she tested both her grandparents, and that her aunt has the log-in information for both accounts.  Her aunt is not well right now, and was not very receptive to working with me.

So, I asked the second highest match if she's sharing with her grandmother's account, and if she is, if she could compare Grandma Loewen with her grandmother's DNA and then let me know where they match.  It's likely that her grandmother and my grandmother are 2nd cousins, which means that our grandmothers' grandfathers are likely to be brothers!

I'm actually pretty excited about this because that would mean that I found one of Peter Klassen's siblings.  I have a name for one of his sisters as well, thanks to a picture I saw at Christmas time that one of my great-aunts has.

Updates!

UPDATES:
- December 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #3--Arrived at the lab on January 21.  I haven't ordered the test yet, but when I have enough, it will be the first one that I order.

-  February 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #6 and #7--Ordered this morning!
-  USPS raised their prices, so FTDNA had to as well.  Round-trip shipping is now $12.95.

No updates:

-  August 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swab #2--This one is still outstanding, and as far as I know, hasn't made it back to the lab yet.
- December 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs #3 and #4--These two I assume have reached the testers, but I have no further information.
- January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #4 and #5--Ordered. I expect the swabs to ship sometime next week

Two more swabs ordered, and another to be ordered!

Eek!  I'm getting really close to having swabs out for all my grandparents' siblings!

Here's where we're at:

-  August 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swab #2--This one is still outstanding, and as far as I know, hasn't made it back to the lab yet.
-  August 31 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #2--This one made it back to the lab and was processed in near record time.
-  December 8 LOEWEN/FRANZ swab #3--This one has been mailed back to the lab, but to my knowledge hasn't made it back yet.
-  December 31 PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs #3 and #4--These two I assume have reached the testers, but I have no further information.
-  January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ swabs #4 and #5--Ordered.  I expect the swabs to ship sometime next week

AND....

-  January 20 LOEWEN/FRANZ tester #6 agreed to test!  I'll order her test in the morning, I think

This means I have:
-  1 more LOEWEN/FRANZ sibling
-  3 more PETKAU/KLASSEN siblings

Two more swabs ordered!

I just ordered two more PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs!  :)

So, this means that we now have three PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs in the pipeline, in addition to one LOEWEN/FRANZ swab.  I've been in contact with another LOEWEN/FRANZ sibling, and he is willing to swab, so I'll order that one on Monday.  I've got enough money saved I could pay for another swab as well, so I'm hoping one of the LOEWEN/FRANZ sisters I left messages for calls me back so I can order two at once again.  :)

*UPDATED 12/31/15 14:58 PM  Yes!!  I just got in touch with one of the LOEWEN/FRANZ sisters, and she agreed to swab for me!  :)  That brings my LOEWEN/FRANZ total up to five out of seven living siblings.

Early!

Thanks to the generosity of one of my piano parents, I was able to order the second LOEWEN/FRANZ test this morning!  That's two weeks earlier than I was expecting.  I'm expecting this test to batch this afternoon, and we should have results between December 9 and December 16.

We're still waiting on the YDNA for the KLASSEN line, and those results are expected December 9-December 23.  Just in time for Christmas, and no delays yet!

The next test I'm saving for is the second PETKAU/KLASSEN test.  That swab is still outstanding, so I'll call my grandmother and have her call her brother for me.  Since I was able to order the LOEWEN/FRANZ test two weeks early, this one will also bump up two week,s and I should be able to order it January 6th!  :)

Some movement, but mostly still waiting

Let's see... right now we have five tests in some state of waiting...

1)  The first LOEWEN/FRANZ test results are due sometime between now and September 21st.

2)  The second FOX/PERRY test results are also due sometime between now and September 21st.

3)  The second LOEWEN/FRANZ test has been taken, and is back in the mail.  Current location is "being forwarded to destination country".  I'm doubtful it will make it back to Texas by Wednesday, so best case scenario for that one would be batching on Wednesday, September 23.  Probably Batch 641 if I was to guess.

4)  The second PETKAU/KLASSSEN test appears to be stuck at the destination post office.  Intended pick up was Saturday.

5)  We have $103.77 of the $139 we need to order the KLASSEN YDNA which will aid us in our search for Peter Klassen's family.  Target date for ordering that test is still September 30th.  Only 17 days to go!  With current wait times, these results should be in shortly before Christmas.

Long term plan:
-  Run KLASSEN YDNA on September 30th.
-  Commence saving for tests on second LOEWEN/FRANZ test & second PETKAU/KLASSEN test. We should have enough for one on November 25th, and the other on January 20th.
-  Somewhere in there I also want to swab several more of my grandparents' siblings (for inclusion purposes) as well as my great-grandmother's half-siblings (for exclusion purposes).

Generous donation!

I received a generous donation this morning which will allow us to bump the KLASSEN YDNA test back up two weeks, so we should be able to run that one September 30th.  :)  There's a little extra leftover which will probably go toward running the tests on the outstanding LOEWEN/FRANZ & PETKAU/KLASSEN swabs ($99 each).  Barring any more financial delays, we should be able to run the first one November 25th, and the second one January 20, 2016.

Delays, Purchases, and more Delays!

Here's a quick update about where we're at with our project.

1)  The FOX/PERRY test that was batched a couple weeks ago has been delayed.  Results are now expected between September 9 and September 23.  This delay is no fault of ours.  The lab had some processing issues a few weeks ago and they're still working their way through the back log.  I'll still keep checking though, just in case it comes in before the 9th.

2)  There is currently no delay on the LOEWEN/FRANZ test that was done at the same time.  That one is still expected between September 9 and September 23.

3)  I finally purchased the second PETKAU/KLASSEN test, and the second LOEWEN/FRANZ test.  They have not shipped yet, but I'm hoping they will ship by the end of the week.  They're both going to Canada, so I'm not expecting results on them until at least mid to late-October.

4)  The KLASSEN YDNA test slated for September 30th has been delayed until October 13th due to lack of funds.  If anyone would like to donate toward a test, please let me know!  We're about $10.23USD short of being able to purchase the test on September 30th.

Batched!

Here's a small update:

1)  The FOX/PERRY test did indeed batch on Wednesday.  We're in batch 635, and results are expected somewhere between September 2 and September 16, so possibly a week earlier than I expected.

2)  The LOEWEN test has been received in the States, so it should be back to the lab by next Wednesday, but I'm keeping an eye on it anyway.

3)  I still need to order the LOEWEN and PETKAU swabs.  MUST do that today!

4)  Our first FOX/MARVIN test is scheduled for October!  Thanks to my dad's first cousin who agreed to test, and offered to pay for it.

Update!

1)  The FOX/PERRY test previously mentioned has made it back to the lab.  I'm hoping that the batch number will pop up later this afternoon or tomorrow so we know that it is processing.  I'm expecting results between September 9 and 16.

2)  The LOEWEN test has been mailed back, and last I saw it was in Richmond, BC, being transferred back to the US.

3)  We have a PETKAU volunteer and another LOEWEN volunteer, but I still need to order their swabs (tomorrow)!

4)  We have about $30 saved for the KLASSEN YDNA test.  This will be the next test I run, and the target date for the purchase of that test is September 30th. Donations happily accepted!  :D

The latest

Here's the latest on the two tests we have ordered and out right now:

1)  The LOEWEN test was ordered as previously mentioned.  It has shipped, and has cleared Canadian customs (as of August 2).  Hopefully it will be delivered by Friday.  The earliest we could possibly have results on this test would be early October.

2)  There's another FOX/PERRY test in the pipeline!  I apparently forgot to post when I ordered this one, for my aunt.  She's already received it, and mailed it back, so I'm hoping it will batch next week, and we'll have results from that one sometime around September 9-16.

In other news, I've recruited my grandmother (PETKAU) to help me recruit her siblings, and it sounds like one of her brothers is willing to test.  Family Tree DNA will ship swabs out for $9.95, so I'm planning to ship a swab out to him.  My Grandpa LOEWEN's oldest living sister also agreed to test, so I'll be shipping her a swab as well.

Right now the short term plan is to order those two swabs & then save for the KLASSEN YDNA test ($139).  That should happen at the end of September.  I'm hoping to get those results around Christmas.

After the KLASSEN YDNA test has been ordered, I'll run the autosomal tests for the LOEWEN and PETKAU swabs.  I'm not sure on the timing of those tests, it will depend on how many more of my grandparents' siblings have decided to join in the fun, since I really want to order those swabs as soon as I can, but not have them waiting at the lab for more than a year (because the sample may begin to degrade).