Sunday, September 28, 2008

New Chances

For those of you that are Jewish I would like to wish you a happy and healthy new year. This message that I am about to say I believe can be applied to anyone at anytime in their life not just Jewish people.

It is never to late to be happy!

It is never to late to say I am sorry to someone you love.

It is never to late to make a new friend and hang out with old ones.

It is never to late to make a phone call to someone near or far.

You are never to old or too tough to tell someone I love you or show them affection.

It is never to late to pray or to learn something new.

It is never to late to love your family friends and pets..

It is never to late to get a new job or make a career change. It is never to late to go back to school. It is never to late to have fun!

These are often things I forget about from time to time but I try to live by them to the best of my ability and I wanted to share them with you.

I figure if they help me to be a better person they probably would help you too.

Please let me know what you think.

Love to all!

Xoxo

-Jessi

Monday, September 15, 2008

Appreciation

Hi everyone,

I thought this would be a perfect quote for today and it
actually is very similar to how I have been feeling lately.

Stop pushing against anything or anyone, focus on what is right, what is
working, the positive aspects, and appreciate that.....as you give your
attention to what you desire.

Appreciation is the key!

Inspired by Abraham Hicks

I got a bracelet a few years back from my good friend, Hannah, who most of
you know or have heard about. It is helping me get through the hard times
of living on my own. I am going to write the words that are on my bracelet
and tell you how they relate to my life. They are:


Honor: I would like to honor the people that we have lost in 911, the people
that we have lost in Iraq, the people that we have lost in hurricane
Katrina, and the people that I have lost that are close to my heart.


Loyalty: I have realized over my life that it is important to have loyalty
toward the people I love.


Unity: An important virtue because it helps people stay connected to my
family and friends both near and far. That’s how I stay connected to my
family.

Passion :Dance is my passion; it helps me get through my days.

Joy: Being with my family and friends brings me joy as well as humor and
being in this new apartment.


Kindness: I have found that kindness helps me when I am trying to get my
needs met and that it is a powerful thing.


Love: I love all of you and I am so glad that you are in my life.


Hope: Helps me to plan for the future and to become a better person. I hope
that I have a good life in this apartment and I hope you all enjoy reading
this blog.


Humor : I like to joke around with family and friends and most of you know my
favorite comedian is Josh Blue from Last Comic Standing. Humor is what I
believe is what makes us have better lives. Without this we would have
pretty boring lives and nothing to look forward to.

Courage: The power of courage can take you really far in all aspects of your
life. It has for me.

Trust: Though it is hard to maintain trust with people, it is important for
someone like me who needs help with personal care, and I find myself always
struggling to maintain a sense of trust with people, especially when they
are knew.

Family: I am blessed to have such a wonderful family that always cares about
me, especially in this new phase in my life. You have all been there for me
asking me, “what can I do?”, “what can I bring?” to make you feel more
comfortable in your new home. Having so many wonderful family and friends
means the world to me and makes me feel all warm inside.

Truth : Though it can be hard to be truthful at times, I have learned that it
is better to be honest and truthful with people otherwise, if you are not
truthful with your family, friends and, in my case, people who help me, then
those feelings can get all bottled up inside. However, even though I am
saying this, I will also be the one to admit that it is a hard thing to do.

Charity: One thing that I am reminded of, especially in this time of trouble
with Hurricane Ike and wars in Iraq, is that it is important to give charity
even if it is not in the form of money.

I hope these words have helped you in your life somehow just as they have
helped me.

Love Jess

Saturday, September 6, 2008

2 Pieces of Mail, Junior and Shopping

Hi everyone,
I am back in Northbrook giving my aides a break and visiting my family and working until Saturday at three. I have enjoyed being at my apartment and experiencing the freedom of being on my own however, it still feels a little like camp or a hotel because I still come home a little bit.
Thanks to Chi Chi and Amazon, I received my first to pieces of non junk snail mail at my new address. It was so cool! Thank you Chi Chi I love snail mail!
Junior had a hard few days but I think he is doing better now. We had to give him doggie Valium because he was very anxious and out of sorts. Hopefully he will do better in the weeks to come.
One thing that Norine and I already learned about each other is that we eat very differently. For someone like me who doesn’t like to go to the grocery store I had a pretty good time. When we came back to the apartment my mom was there putting stuff away and she almost fell over laughing because both me and Norine came in with bags and bags of groceries wrapped around our chairs.
Now here comes the big news! The next day I went with my day time aide named Faith and we did what I have wanted to do since I turned twenty-one. I thought this would be a perfect time since I had no homework and my parents weren’t around. I bet you can guess what I did since you all know how much I love it! Yes you're right I bought my first twelve pack of beer! It was so exciting!
Cheers to everyone! Lol!
Love
-Jess

Monday, September 1, 2008

Moving Day

Hi everyone,

I have decided to create a blog so you all know what life is like for me as I enter this new phase of my l life.
Moving Day!
August 29th 2008.
Thanks to Mom and Dad, Nana and Papa the place is really shaping up and I couldn't have done it without you. Having your love and support made it even more special. You definitely have helped make it feel like home.
September 1st is the first official day I move in with Norine. I have a lot of emotions about that day, but mostly I am excited! My dream is coming true with the help of my parents, grandparents and Microboard. I want to also include the help of our two new aides, Faith who comes during the day and Amanda who comes during the late afternoon and evening.  My only hope is that my dog Junior begins to feel safe and secure there. I think the next time I will be writing you, I will be at the apartment. I can't wait for you all to see it! It really is a Purple Pad.
For those of you that want to, you can leave me a message on my blog or my new address is 
750 Pearson #607
Des Plaines, IL 60016
Home # 847/813-5152
Press 025 when you visit
My cell - call first is 847/254-1151
One more quick story then I promise I won't make my entries so long in the future.
Anyways, I was walking with my Nana through the garage to get to my apartment but we didn't realize we had walked so far and we walked right into the other apartment across the street from mine and all this time we were thinking ...why is the swipe card not letting us into the building??? Then a nice man let us in because at that point we thought we were in the right place. We went up to what we thought was my apartment building and at first I thought I was going the wrong way because I knew that the trash room was right next door to my place and I didn't see it.  Also, my door opener that my dad had just gotten for me a few days earlier didn't work, Hummm.  So my grandma knocked on 607 and a little old lady about my mom's size  answered the door and looked at us like we were crazy. We apologized and realized only then that we were in the wrong building! We were embarrassed but had a good laugh for the rest of the day and had a good story to tell. 
Love to all!
-Jess