Allison's Life Through The Years

1. Early Adulthood

1.1. This is the period of my life that I was deployed to Iraq. I was physically fit during the deployment due to daily exercise.

1.2. After returning home from my deployment, I soon became pregnant with my son. When his father left me during my pregnancy I knew it was time to change my attitude towards life. I began college a few months after my son was born.

1.3. After getting pregnant with my second child, I decided to marry the man who had taken on the role of the father figure to my son and who was the father of my daughter. We continued with our schooling, while raising our two children.

2. Late Adulthood

2.1. Because of my diligence with exercise and a healthy diet, I was able to help prevent myself from getting osteoporosis. Unfortunately, I eventually needed a hearing aid for my right ear.

2.2. It was very important to me that I continued my education throughout life, including my time in late adulthood. Other than the technology needed for my courses, I tended to not really keep up with the modern technology.

2.3. After dealing with the passing of my husband, it became too difficult to live on my own. My children and I sat down to discuss our options and decided that it was best for me to live in a retirement community.

3. Middle Adulthood

3.1. I continued eating well and exercising throughout my life so I maintained some form of physical fitness. Unfortunately, due to my time in the military, I have lost some hearing in my right ear.

3.2. I noticed around this period in my life my memory was not as good as it was when I was younger. I found it was more difficult to remember much from my childhood.

3.3. I was blessed with becoming a grandma during this period of my life. I was an involved grandparent because I frequently visited my grandchildren and helped my children in raising them.

4. Death and Dying

4.1. At the age of 89, I was diagnosed with liver cancer. As the cancer progressed, life became a little more uncomfortable so I was moved to a skilled-nursing facility.

4.2. Surprisingly, I did not have much denial when I was diagnosed. After having seen death throughout my life, it was somewhat easy to accept.

4.3. The day after my 90th birthday, I passed peacefully and pain-free with my children by my side. I had already made all the necessary plans for my funeral and where I was to be buried. I was laid to rest a plot right next to my husband.

5. Prenatal and Newborn Development.

5.1. I was born on August 30th, 1990. I weighed 6 lbs 12oz, and I was 19 inches long. I was well rehearsed in certain reflexes, such as sucking and swallowing.

5.2. I learned very quickly that if I cried, my mommy would pick me up. I also knew if I kept sucking while my mommy breastfed, I'd be able to stay with my mommy longer.

5.3. Soon, I was able to copy some facial expressions that people made, like opening my mouth or sticking out my tongue. I also found it easier to fall into a sleep routine when my dad rocked me to sleep at night.

6. Middle Childhood/School-age

6.1. I wasn't in very good shape when I was this age. My parents were not very good about feeding me the right foods or encouraging me to be physically active.

6.2. This around the time that i began doing really bad in school. All my teachers tried to help me do better but I didn't care if I was failing or not.

6.3. This is the time in my life that I went into the foster care system. I moved in with my grandma when I was twelve and switched schools. It was a very difficult transition and I had a hard time adjusting.

7. Adolescence

7.1. My body was going through many changes during this phase, including menarche. Adolescence is the also the time period in my life that I started using illegal drugs and abusing alcohol.

7.2. The relationship I had with my family became very hostile from my poor performance in school. So I decided the best thing I could do for myself was to join the Army National Guard.

7.3. Unfortunately, I continued to do poorly in school. I didn't consider school to be important because only one person on my family had graduated high school and the rest all dropped out.

8. Infancy and Toddlerhood

8.1. During this time of my life, I began learning the early stages of speech by "babbling". By the end of this time of my life, I began creating two-word phrases like "Ma up!"

8.2. I grew at such a rapid rate during this time period. By the end of my first year of life, I have about tripled my weight since birth and by the end of my second year of life, my weight since birth has quadrupled.

8.3. This is the period of life that I really began to smile. At first, I would smile at the things that made me happy, such as my favorite toy. Then, I began social smiling, especially when I saw my mama.

9. The Preschool Years

9.1. By the time I turned three, I was able to master jumping, hopping on one foot, skipping, and running. This is the time in my life that I rode a bike for the first time.

9.2. This is around the time I began to really get exposed to television. I used to always watch television with my older brother.

9.3. Unfortunately, this is around the time my mommy started to hurt me. I didn't understand why she would hit me because she always said she was sorry afterwards. I think this is why I wasn't always so good when I was in school.