Alijah Nadal

At times in life there are no answers for the trials that come our way, and in saying goodbye to a little boy whose life came to an end much too soon there are certainly no answers to why some are given decades in which to leave their legacy while others are given a mere whisper in time. Alijah Angel Nadal was truly an angel given to those around him, and in his short life he touched countless hearts. He taught others so much about what love is and even at his young age he recognized the love he received from those around him. Alijah has been described as a great big ball of sunshine and happiness whose smile went from ear to ear. Life will never be the same without him here, but the memories he made in moments shared with his loved ones will remain forever on their hearts.

The year 2012 found the nation abuzz with the upcoming presidential election. Candidates were chosen, and in November President Barack Obama was victorious over Mitt Romney. This was also the year that saw the release of Windows 8, popular movies such as The Avengers and The Hobbit while Rihanna and Taylor Swift were among the top names in music. It was during this same year as summer was drawing to an end that a young couple from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was eagerly anticipating the birth of their baby. The big day finally arrived on August 26th when the baby boy they named Alijah Angel made his arrival at St. Francis Hospital. Although the plan was for the baby to be born at St. Joseph Hospital, Alijah was in a hurry to meet his parents, Alexis Nadal and Jasmin Lissette Sendejo, so a quick decision was made to head to the closer hospital.

Alijah grew up with his mother at his great-grandparent’s house, but his grandmothers also frequently picked him up and took him to their homes, too. Even though he loved being with his mommy and daddy, as he got older he was thrilled when one of his grandmothers came to pick him up since he recognized that they loved nothing more than spoiling him.

It was amazing to see how Alijah recognized the deep love his family had for him. He always ran towards his daddy like he hadn’t seen him in years, and if his daddy had to work late Alijah waited up for him to get home since he wouldn’t go to bed unless his daddy tucked him in. Mornings were his special times with mommy as every morning he jumped into bed with her and laid his whole body on her face to give her a big hug and cover her face with drool-filled kisses. Alijah also deeply loved his great-grandpa and wanted to go everywhere with him. If he couldn’t, he would cry and sometimes even throw a small fit to show his disappointment. Even before he could walk one could tell that Alijah admired his cousins as he loved being around them. He often sat in his high chair and laughed as they would be running around and trying to free him from the chair. Alijah loved being with family because he knew there would always be more than enough people around to hold him and give him more love than he could imagine. He loved being around other children, especially when he got a bit older as he made it his mission to do his best to keep up with them. Alijah was clever, too, as he would even befriend his older cousins and then start bullying them by pushing them down.

Life around Alijah was never boring as he was a bundle of energy. When he was just learning to crawl, his mother came back after getting a load of clothes out of the dryer to find him with something black in his mouth. Imagine her surprise to discover that it was a grasshopper that jumped out of her son’s mouth! She went to scoop Alijah up to comfort him, but he only laughed. From that point on his great-grandmother called him grasshopper in Spanish. At times he could also be a bit of a “sassy pants” according to his mother as he would pretend not to hear when either of his parents would get after him for misbehaving. Sometimes he would also stare at his parents while doing something naughty because he knew he was going to be in trouble.

Expressive and communicative in his own way, it was easy to see what Alijah enjoyed. He loved being outside – especially at the park where he could go on the slide and the swings. In fact, he loved to keep his parents pushing him on the swings for hours on end. Alijah loved music and dancing, cars, trucks, and planes, and it has been said that he had more toy cars than anyone could count. He received Despicable Me 2 for Christmas, and he loved it so much that repeatedly handed it to his mommy or daddy to signal that he wanted to watch it, which they did every single time! Alijah loved all things SpongeBob and during the past few months he learned to sing the entire SpongeBob theme song. Even though he was a young boy, he had an adventurous spirit as he loved the rides at Six Flags and Chuck E. Cheese. When it came to his favorite foods he was still discovering more, but most recently pizza, fruits, French fries, and chips were among the foods he liked. Even before taking a bite of his food Alijah would say, “haawt,” no matter what it was. He was learning to say more words; he knew to ask for apples or “ackles” and bananas or “nanas.” When passing a semi on the road he loved to point and would try to say, “truck.”

Someone who brought nothing but joy and happiness to those around him, Alijah Nadal was a true blessing in every way. His smile warmed the hearts of all who were near, whether he was being goofy or giving out hugs. Alijah loved cuddling, and despite being so young he loved others deeply. Happy all the time, there was no one who saw Alijah and wasn’t immediately smitten. He will never be forgotten.

Visitation at the Niemann / Suminski Funeral Home on Thursday, August 14, 2014 from 11:00 AM until 12:00 Noon. Funeral Services at 12:00 Noon followed by interment at St. Adalbert Cemetery.