One in 729,000 humans are born into this world as a quadruplet ! I am one of these unique human beings who is included in this amazing statistical number ! My life began at 34 weeks gestation at only two pounds, eleven inches long . I was the second baby born of the four and the smallest. My co-quads were bigger than I by almost 2 pounds each ! We were all fortunate to be very healthy and were patients in the neonatal intensive care unit for only about four weeks. Quite amazing for a set of quadruplets !

However, being born prematurely has it's disadvantages. Although physically healthy, I experienced multiple developmental delays from my very first days. I was the last of the four to crawl and walk. In Kindergarten I had difficulty printing and "crossing my midline". It was predicted that I would most likely have difficulty with mathematical concepts and spatial relationships. Birth to Three became involved with my siblings and I and we all soon were followed closely and received services to overcome our delays. My siblings seemed to progress quicker than I in many areas.

I realized at about age seven that I would never be as athletic and coordinated as my co-quad sister, Daphne. She could play just about any sport and do it well. My brothers , Austin and Bailey also were developing physical strength and enjoyed playing baseball and basketball. It was frustrating for me, and I worried I would never find anything I really liked to do and be able to do it well. In elementary school I received extra help with math and required extended time for tests in order to succeed. I worked hard though and I did eventually start to do very well in school.

High school began and I held high expectations for myself. I continued to receive assistance with math and extended time for tests. It was at this time that I met Mrs Fagan, who would be my case manager throughout my high school career. From the start she was positive, encouraging and challenged me to work hard and reach for higher goals ! She taught me to never look at my disability as a negative, but to take ownership of it , and reach far beyond it. At one time , a teacher told me that taking Geometry would be like torture for me ! I was anxious after hearing these words and almost dropped the class. However, Mrs Fagan again reminded me to look beyond my struggles, work hard and be positive . To my surprise I actually started to enjoy Geometry and do well in the class. I no longer use extended time for tests as I am doing well in the specified time frame . At this time I am proud to say I am in the top 50 % of my senior class and a high honor student ! Most importantly though, I know I can succeed at something which may be a challenge for me with a bit of hard work. I'm so excited to move onto the next phase in my life and begin college in the fall of 2014 ! A developmental disability will never hold me back from achieving my goals in life .