My Life!!!
Table of Contents
I would like to dedicate this book to my mom and my dad because they believe that I can do anything as long as I try to do my best.Dedication page
Chapter Two: "Before, me there was"
Before me and still with me now are my parents and there families. On my mother’s side there’s my grandma, my grandpa, my uncle, and my aunt.
My grandma (Lorraine) grew up with her four brothers and sisters in Selma, Al and later moved to Detroit, Mi. There she met George Alford and married him around 1950. Soon she had my uncle Trent and my mom. When my mom was only 4 years old my grandma had my aunt April. Sometime during 1981 when my mom was just graduating from high school my grandpa passed away.
On my father’s side, my grandma (Myrtle) grew up in St. Ann, Jamaica with her sisters. She soon married my grandpa and had 7 kids. Their names were Lynn, Ann, Derrick, Kirk, Randy, Barry (my dad), and Wayne. When my dad was only 11 they moved to Detroit from Kingston, Jamaica. In 1980 when my dad was a freshman in college my uncle Kirk passed away.
My cousins Abigail and Christina (are my Aunt Lynn's daughters), Kelly Ann and Duray (are my uncle Derricks kids), and Brittany (is my Aunt Ann’s daughter) were all here before me and are the oldest. Now my Uncle Derrick lives in Florida and my aunts Lynn and Ann live in New York. My Uncle Randy lives in Detroit and my Uncle Wayne lives in Huntsville, Al.
Chapter One: Who am I?
My name is Ashley McDonald; I am 14 years old. I live in Ypsilanti, Mi with my Family and two cats (Tommy and Chucky). I am in the 8th grade. I have two sisters, my twin sister Allison, and my younger sister Morgan. Morgan is 9 years old and attends Carpenter elementary in the 4th grade.
Allison and me both are 14 and we attend Scarlett middle school. My Parents are Barry and Tracey McDonald. My father is an employee at a plant called Visteon in Dearborn, Mi and my mother is a sectary at EMU (Eastern Michigan). My pastimes are drawing women's clothing, going to the mall, hanging out with my friends, going to the movies, and writing letters. The things that I do not like to do are chores, homework, reports, and math (anything school related).
When I grow up I think I might want to become a fashion designer or a costume designer. I would like to do both of these jobs because I think I could be very creative and fancy in doing them. In fashion designing I would have more freedom in making my own designs and in costume designing I would have to stick to the setting of a movie and still be creative.
Both of these jobs would be very interesting and fun to do. But the only way I could be a fashion designer or a costume designer is to complete school and go to college. I expect to reach these goals by staying in school, doing my best, and making the right decisions in life. By doing these steps I would have a better chance go to a good college and get a better education. When I get to college I will take a major in design, or art. Then I will stick to that major for three years at least.
If I want to have a back up plan just in case I do not become a fashion or a costume designer. Then I might want to take one more major in something else that I am interested in. That way I will be more prepared for life and I would not have to feel that I have failed because I did not and if I have I will try to do my best to fix it.
If I follow these steps and succeed then I will know that I have not failed and I will be proud to know that I made the right choices in life. I would also know if I succeeded is if I made it to a higher level than I would expect to be in.
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Chapter 3: "Suddenly I became me"
I was born on March 18th (1987) at the University of Michigan hospital in Ypsilanti. I weighed 2 lbs, 15 oz.
One of my earliest memories was, When I was 3 years old. I was at my grandmas house for my cousins outdoor birthday party and me and Allison were wearing these white dresses, and when we sat down to eat I dropped my food on my lap. Then my grandma’s big black dog came over and ate it off me and I started to scream and cry because I was scared of her dog.
Another one of my earliest memories was when I went to Alabama for a family reunion. When we went to eat dinner Allison and me were wearing these black and white dresses and then we were dancing to different songs. My last memory of me when I was younger was when I went to Wonderland (a theme park). While we were there I got my face painted and I remember going on this one water ride with my grandma, my cousin, and my mom and I remember that as soon as we went over a hill lots of water got us wet.
The cutest thing my mom said that I used to do when I was little was that I would dance to my favorite songs on the radio and that we were very fast learners. The cutest thing my dad said I used to do when I was little was when I would take Lego's a stack them on top of each other and pretend that it was different types of color lip stick that I could switch around. He also thought that the cutest thing that I did when I was little was when Allison and me started to talk to each other.
One of the oldest toys that I used to have when I was little was a Teddy Ruxpin bear. A Teddy Ruxpin bear is a bear that tells you stories on tape. So you can listen to the cassette or you can follow along in the book while you read the stories. I also remember having a toy dog that you could walk when you pushed the button on its leash.
When I was little my room was filled with toys that me and Allison used to share. There was a dollhouse, a table with some chairs, our cribs, boxes of Lego's, and different amounts of volumes containing books by Doctor Seuss.
I went to Thurston (or E.C.D.C) in kindergarten. My teacher’s name was Mrs. Peterson. The only thing that I remember about kindergarten was when I did this painting and the last day of school. The painting was of me and what I was wearing that day. So when my art teachers saw it they put it up in a building so that the people could look at other students artwork along with mine.
On the last day of school I made this shirt with my handprint on it. We had the choice of red, yellow, or blue paint for our hands. I picked yellow and placed my hand on my shirt. That afternoon we had a B.B.Que and when our shirts were dry we got to take it home.
I went to Henry Ford for my first year of elementary school. My teacher’s name was Mrs. Koch. As soon as we got into reading I had no problems with it because my dad had read me lots of books when I was little and I was reading smaller words all ready. For art I remember drawing this cat and getting it put in the same building where I had my last painting put up in. But this time I was able to see it and bring it home.
In the second grade my teacher’s name was Mrs. B. Unfortunately she got sick and had to leave in the middle of the school year. So we had a sub for the rest of the year. The science fair was coming up and I wanted to be in it so I told my teacher to sign me up for it. That day I told my dad and he help me with my project the title of it was how The Body Works.
When it was time for me to explain my project to the judges I got nervous and did my best. The next day I went down to the gym I looked at my project I got first place and I was able to present it at a different school. The next day over the announcements I heard that everybody who got to present their project at the other school got first place. So I went down to the office and I received a blue ribbon and a certificate.
Before the science fair my teacher picked me to have the lead role in a polish play. I forgot what it was called but I remember almost forgetting my lines because I was so nervous.
In the third grade my teacher’s name was Mrs. S.Hood. My friends in this class were Rachel, Amanda, and Devon. I remember going to this play ground where we got to play and eat lunch. Then I remember having this Halloween party in our class and we got to make these masks.
Chapter four: "School Bells"
Chapter Five: “More School Bells”
Before I entered the fourth grade I moved from Ypsilanti, MI to Bloomington, IN. I did not known any body that was my age except for this one girl named Ashley Hunter. I found out that we were going to be in the same class at Clear Creek elementary.
My fourth grade teacher’s name was Mrs. Robertson. In her class math was the only thing that got harder for me. The only field trip I remember going on. Was a trip to a one room school house. While we were there we played games and we also got to see how it was like going to school in those times. In music class I learned how to play lots of songs the recorder.
In the fifth grade I had the same teacher because there was only one teacher that taught fifth grade in the whole school. So they made Mrs. Robertson's class a fourth and fifth grade blend. But that was not the only change for that year Allison was going to be in the same class as me. Around the fall all the fifth graders went to camp. The camp that we went to was called Bradford woods. We stayed there for a week. While I was there I did archery, and I went to play games. Around Christmas our class and the other fifth grade class did a Christmas concert and in one of those songs I did sign language with a group of people.
Before the ending of the fifth grade I found out that I was moving back to Michigan. So on the last day of school I said good bye to all my friends.
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Chapter six: “I grew up here”
I grew up at the address of 9171 Ascot Dr. Where my family and I had lived for a total of seven years. There we shared good and bad memories of our time living there. These memories range from the time me and my sister said our first words to the time a arsonist set fire to our home. One of my most unforgettable memories of that house had to be when I had my sixth birthday party there.
The one place that I will never forget about in that house would be my old room. I will always try to picture my room with the red shades, my red lamps, my white dresser, and my red bunk bed. I also will never forget my swing set that I had at my house and all those times I played on it.
I also remember my friends that used to live around me while I was living in that house.
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Chapter Seven: "Hide and Seek"
When I was little I played lots of games with my family and friends. Some of my favorite game board games I remember playing were. Perfection, Candy land, Guess who, Hi Ho cherry O, Sorry, and Topple. Even though I probably had more games than this that’s all the games I remember playing.
When I was around 3 or 4 my mother and father got me the game Hi Ho cherry O. This counting game not only helped me learned how to count the number of cherries in my barrel. But it also helped me know the importance of numbers. By spinning the spinner I was able to distinguish the number of cherries that had to go in the barrel.
When I was still around 3 and 4 my mother and Father got me the game Candy Land. This game both teaches you skill and the use of colors. It teaches you skill because you have to pick the right paths so you do not land on a wrong spot on the board that might affect your move. It teaches you colors because when you pull a card and it shows you purple then you should put your player on purple.
When I was 5 I got the game Perfection. This game challenges your speed and your use of shapes. This was the most fun and most surprising game to me because you have to take shapes and fit them in to the slots before time runs out. But if all the shapes are not in on time the game board pops up throws out whatever pieces that were in the slots.
When I turned 6 I got the game Guess who for my birthday. This game does not really take skill because you would have to guess who the other players person is before he/she guess your person. I would say that this game was my favorite game to play because it was very easy and fun to do.
When I was 8 I got the game Sorry and Topple. These games were fun and challenging because in Topple you would have to balance the pieces on an wobbly board and in Sorry you would have to make sure that all you pieces got home before they got pushed off the board by the other players. But I think that I played Sorry more than I played Topple because after a while I started to get bored with that game.
Chapter Eight: "My Best Friend"
I do not just have one best friend I have three best friends. My best friends are Amanda Nichols, Brittany White, and Dorian Jordan. They are my best friends because they respect how I feel about certain things and I can talk to them. They are also my best friends because they respect me and I respect them.
Amanda is 13 years old and attends Edmondson middle school. We used to go to the same school but when I moved to Indiana that changed everything. But we are still very good friends. While I was living in Indiana we always wrote each other and asked about school and what was taking place where we lived. Sometimes when me and my family came back up here to Michigan to visit other family members we would stop at her house.
Brittany is 14 years old and attends Edmondson also. Before I moved down to Indiana she was my neighbor and my friend. She wrote me for a little while and then stopped. After I came back from Indiana Amanda told Brittany that I was back in Michigan and what my phone number was.
Dorian is 13 years old and attends the same school as me.
I meant Dorian in the sixth grade but we never really talked. So when she was in my class last year we got to know each other better. Since Dorian is in Allison's class this year the only time when we get to talk to each other is on the bus and when I stop by her house.
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