Title Page

This book was created

especially for

Jessica Ann Smith

at the age of 7

With love from

Mommy and Daddy

August 10, 2001

Page 3

Once there was a little girl

named Jessica, age 7. She lived in

Fort Wayne. One day, something

very exciting happened at Jessica's

home. A brand new baby boy came to stay.

Page 4

"This is our new baby," everyone

said to Jessica. "His name is Alex."

Jessica could hardly believe it.

"Wow!" Jessica said out loud. "I'm

Alex's big sister! I wonder what

this is going to be like."

Page 7

From that day on, Jessica began

to discover what it was like to have

a new baby brother in her family.

The first thing Jessica noticed was

that everyone seemed very happy.

Jessica also noticed that everyone

seemed very busy.

Page 8

There was always a flurry of

activity around Alex. Friends,

relatives, and neighbors were

dropping in all of the time.

Everyone wanted to come for a visit,

and everyone wanted to see the new baby.

Page 11

Alex was very nice to look at,

but he wasn't able to talk, walk, or

play! He wasn't even able to sit up

by himself. There were only two

things he could do! He could sleep,

and he could cry. Little Alex was

pretty good at sleeping, and he was

very good at crying.

Page 12

Alex needed a lot of attention.

He had to be washed in warm, soapy

water; the water had to be just warm

enough and just soapy enough. He had

to be dried with a soft, fluffy

towel; the towel had to be just soft

enough and just fluffy enough. He

had to be dressed in special clothes

and fed special food. Everyone had

to be very quiet, so that little Alex

could get to sleep.

Page 15

It wasn't just friends, relatives,

and neighbors who wanted to see Alex.

There were doctors and nurses too.

They wanted to have a look at him, just

like everyone else. They even had

special gadgets for listening to his

heart, his lungs, and all of the other

things inside him.

Page 16

Jessica wondered if Alex

sometimes just wanted to be left

alone. Everyone was always making

such a fuss over him! Actually,

Jessica sometimes wished that

everyone would leave Alex alone.

"Maybe they should make a fuss

about me for a while," Jessica thought.

19

Sometimes, Alex was taken for a walk.

He was wrapped in a special little

blanket, and there was a special

little buggy for him to ride in.

Wherever they went, it was baby Alex

that the people wanted to see. "Oh,

what rosy little cheeks!" they would

say. "And, what pretty little eyes,

and darling little fingers!" "People

sure do like babies," Jessica thought to herself.

Page 20

Because Alex was a baby, he

was given all sorts of special

presents: beautiful flowers to

brighten up the house, big fluffy

teddy bears to watch him as he

slept, and all kinds of toys!

There were toys to shake, toys to

stack, and toys to roll.

Jessica's toys were mostly old

ones that she had played with for years.

Page 23

It seemed that no one had much

time for Jessica. "Let's go to the

park and play," Jessica said.

"We're sorry, Jessica. We're

busy with the baby."

"Will you read a book to me?"

Jessica asked.

"Maybe later, since the baby

needs me just now."

"Could we play a game

together?" Jessica questioned.

"That's a good idea, but the

baby is a little fussy."

Page 24

One morning as she was waking

up, Jessica had an idea. "When I

was a baby," she thought to herself,

"everyone made a fuss over me."

Jessica thought that maybe she

should become a baby again. "If I

were a baby," she said to herself,

"Alex wouldn't be the only one they

would fuss about!"

Page 27

Jessica thought about doing what

baby Alex did. She thought about

lying on her back and crying the way

Alex did. "Would I get lots of hugs

and kisses if I acted like that?"

Jessica wondered. "I don't think

so," she said to herself. "And I

think that I would feel pretty silly."

Page 28

At play time, Jessica wondered

about sitting in the middle of the

floor and making funny little noises,

the way babies sometimes do. But it

was just too embarrassing for

Jessica! After all, she was Alex's

big sister! Instead, she picked out

a few books and a few toys from the

toy box. They weren't brand new, but

they were her favorites. She still

had lots of fun with them.

Page 31

"Being a baby is fine for Alex,"

Jessica said to herself. "But I'm

happy being a big sister! When baby

Alex gets a little older, we'll have

lots of fun playing together. I

think he's going to like having me

for a big sister!"

Page 32

"There's a time to be a baby,

and there's a time to be big. Every

time can be happy in its own way,"

Jessica thought. "I'm glad that this

is Alex's time to be a baby. I'm

glad that he has come to live with us

and that we will grow up together!"

Page 35

Jessica Smith,

Hope you enjoy this gift.

Mommy and Daddy

Page 36