My name is Misty Lee Hannigan.  I am 13 years of age.  I live with my family in Teaneck, New Jersey; have lived here all my life (born here; still call Teaneck my home).  I am in the seventh grade at Teaneck Middle School.

I have my mom and step dad, my baby brother and two sisters (one older, one younger), and our pet Yorkie; her name is "Cuddles".  My real dad ditched the family when it was discovered that my little brother was born with severe brain damage.  He didn't want to take responsibility in help caring for him, so he left, like the coward he is and always will be.  It still makes me angry and hurt whenever I think about it.

I happen to love my family very much.  I especially love my mom.  She is one of the strongest people I know.  She takes real good care of Joshua and my sisters (Jerrica and Melissa ... Missy) and works part time a few days a week to try to earn a little extra money to help with expenses (mostly for Joshua) and the medical bills that keep piling up.  She wants to make sure we all have a good life and to make sure that Joshua is well taken care of and has all the opportunity to be a productive member of society, even though he is severely disabled.

Mom takes us to church every Saturday (we're Seventh Day Advantists); if she has a little extra money at the end of the month, she takes us out to dinner, but that is a rare treat.  She spends most of her money on Joshua's needs (or the bills).  It makes me mad sometimes, but Joshua can't help the way he is, and she should take care of him first; after all, he IS the baby of the family and still needs a lot of supervision and care, even if he wasn't disabled.

When I am not at school or at church, I like to do many things: play hackeysack, badminton, tennis, frisbee golf, softball, or field hockey with my friends (I also like to bowl, ice skate, snow ski, and go tobogganing), sing, write stories, plays, or poems (I am highly creative; I always have been, ever since I was a small child), read, go to church functions, go out to eat, and go on nature walks, "to get away from it all", when things are stressing me out at home or when Joshua is in the hospital (I'm too young to visit him; at the hospital near us, one has to be 15; I have a year and a half to go yet before I'm able to visit people there).

I stay busy (and active), as you can see.

Well, I have to get back to my homework; I wanted to take a little break and write in the new journal I got for Easter (haven't really written in it yet; too busy with school and other things).  I will be doing more writing in it; maybe it will help me sort out any conflicting feelings or emotions I may be feeling.  It would be good to help me get out my innermost feelings out in the long run, where only I can see them.  Take care and God bless; will write in here another day!  Bye for now!

~Misty Lee.  :)