Variable Information is in red.

 

Title Page

A New Baby
in
Tommy's Family

 

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 This book was created
especially for

 

Thomas Allan Parker
at the age of 4

With Love From,
Mom and Dad
September 5, 2004

 

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  Once there was a little boy named Tommy, age 4.  He lived in Seattle Washington.  One day, something very exciting happened at Tommy's home.  A brand new baby girl came to stay.

 

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   "This is our new baby," everyone said to Tommy.  "Her name is Nicole."  Tommy could hardly believe it.  "Wow!" Tommy said out loud.  "I'm Nicole's big brother!  I wonder what this is going to be like."

 

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    From that day on, Tommy began to discover what it was like to have a new baby sister in his family.  The first thing Tommy noticed was that everyone seemed very happy.  Tommy also noticed that everyone seemed very busy.

 

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   There was always a flurry of activity around Nicole.  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.

 

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    Nicole was very nice to look at, but she wasn't able to talk, walk, or play!  She wasn't even able to sit up by herself.  There were only two things she could do!  She could sleep, and she could cry.  Little Nicole was pretty good at sleeping, and she was very good at crying.

 

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  Nicole needed a lot of attention.  She had to be washed in warm, soapy water;  the water had to be just warm enough and just soapy enough.  She had to be dried with a soft, fluffy towel;  the towel had to be just soft enough and just fluffy enough.  She had to be dressed in special clothes and fed special food.  Everyone had to be very quiet, so that little Nicole could get to sleep.

 

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  It wasn't just friends, relatives, and neighbors who wanted to see Nicole.  There were doctors and nurses too.  They wanted to have a look at her, just like everyone else.  They even had special gadgets for listening to her heart, her lungs, and all of the other things inside her.

 

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  Tommy wondered if Nicole sometimes just wanted to be left alone.  Everyone was always making such a fuss over her!  Actually, Tommy sometimes wished that everyone would leave Nicole alone.  "Maybe they should make a fuss about me for a while," Tommy thought.

 

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    Sometimes, Nicole was taken for a walk.  She was wrapped in a special little blanket, and there was a special little buggy for her to ride in.  Wherever they went, it was baby Nicole 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," Tommy thought to himself.

 

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  Because Nicole was a baby, she was given all sorts of special presents:  beautiful flowers to brighten up the house, big fluffy teddy bears to watch her as she slept, and all kinds of toys!  There were toys to shake, toys to stack, and toys to roll.  Tommy's toys were mostly old ones that he had played with for years.

                                                                                                                                                                         

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     It seemed that no one had much time for Tommy.  "Let's go to the park and play," Tommy said.
     "We're sorry, Tommy.  We're busy with the baby."
     "Will you read a book to me?" Tommy asked.
     "Maybe later, since the baby needs me just now."
     "Could we play a game together?" Tommy questioned.
     "That's a good idea, but the baby is a little fussy."

     

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  One morning as he was waking up, Tommy had an idea.  "When I was a baby," he thought to himself, "everyone made a fuss over me."  Tommy thought that maybe he should become a baby again.  "If I were a baby," he said to himself, "Nicole wouldn't be the only one they would fuss about!"

 

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 Tommy thought about doing what baby Nicole did.  He thought about lying on his back and crying the way Nicole did.  "Would I get lots of hugs and kisses if I acted like that?"  Tommy wondered.  "I don't think so," he said to himself.  "And I think that I would feel pretty silly."

 

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  At play time, Tommy 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 Tommy!  After all, he was Nicole's big brother!  Instead, he picked out a few books and a few toys from the toy box.  They weren't brand new, but they were his favorites.  He still had lots of fun with them.

 

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  "Being a baby is fine for Nicole," Tommy said to himself.  "But I'm happy being a big brother!  When baby Nicole gets a little older, we'll have lots of fun playing together.  I think she's going to like having me for a big brother!"

 

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 "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," Tommy thought.  "I'm glad that this is Nicole's time to be a baby.  I'm glad that she has come to live with us and that we will grow up together!"

 

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Tommy Parker,

 

Hope you enjoy this gift.

 

Mom and Dad