Mariana Alise Mullen Melendez was born on July 17, 2015, at 5:09 pm. From birth, Mariana entered this world on her own time with her own rules. At a whopping 8 lbs. 3.5 oz., she was two days late and ready to change the lives of her parents, Monique Mullen and Antonio Melendez Sanchez, forever. Only a few short weeks after that, it was discovered that Mariana had a rare brain disorder called Lobar Holoprosencephaly. As a result of this, Mariana never got to experience walking or talking; so she found her own joy in spite of the doctors’ poor prognosis on her quality of life. She found her own ways to communicate with her family and enjoyed falling asleep anywhere she could. Mariana lived her life to the fullest. She enjoyed Minnie Mouse, listening to music, playing with her sisters, and her favorite pastime was biting any and everything she could get her hands on. Mariana received physical, occupational, and speech therapy from her initial diagnosis to the current school year.She achie...
