Day 1

"It's the little things in life that matter." That is one of my favorite things to say because I feel my life so far has taught me that. I have 3 sisters, two of them being younger and my older sister has special needs. My parents found out when she was about 18 months. She is autistic and nonverbal. She has no form of communication and cannot express the way she feels to us. It was very hard for my parents at first but with their faith they have made it through. My parents have devoted their lives to taking care of my sisters and I and they spend a lot of their time caring for Madison. It is hard for us to do simple things like going out to eat because Madison does not like too and since she has to be in a wheelchair it is hard to transport her places that would be normal and easy for most families. Even though it can be difficult sometimes, I don't like to complain or talk negatively about having a sister with special needs. She has made me who I am today and I don't know what I would do without her. People with special needs are normal to me and they always have been. Having Madison as a sister has allowed me to be so much more accepting of people and I try to help other people to be more accepting as well. Because of Madison I want to become a speech therapist and work with other special needs children. I know that Madison is my sister for a reason, and I wouldn't change that for anything.
I am going to blog to share with you some experiences we have had with Madison so that I can educate families with special needs children who may be having a hard time or people who may have discriminations against people with special needs.