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After our third baby, the doctor said, "No more."
I was OK with that because we had three children
and the oldest had cerebral palsy; he's a handful.
A couple years later, we felt we needed to add one more.
So we adopted Derek, and he has Down syndrome.
Now we have four kids, two little girls
and two boys who both have mental disabilities.
When you're the mom of a special-needs child,
you learn one of the first things out the window
is your ability to control the situation.
The sooner you learn that—
I'm still working on it— the easier it is.
This is my job, and I take it seriously.
And I always wanted to be a mom.
I didn't necessarily imagine that my family
would look as it does, but it's very rewarding.
It's fun to be in a community that understands you.
Other moms talk about how their kid hit the teacher,
and I'm like, "Yeah, been there, done that." It's fun.
There's something about being at the Special Olympics.
You're surrounded by all those special spirits,
and there's such a love you don't find anywhere else.
And when you come here, it's a palpable feeling.
I feel like my boys' mission is bringing love to the world.
It's an exciting thing to be a mom for that.
And it's hard. It's really hard.
But there are days when it pays off.
And when they cross the finish line with a big smile
and everyone's cheering 'em because they love 'em
and they want the best for 'em, you get this feeling
of, "I can't believe I'm blessed to be a part of this."
Their purpose on earth is to teach us compassion,
and we are such a lucky family.
I'm Rochelle.
I'm a redhead, I'm a Texan,
I'm a wife, I'm a mom,
and I'm a Mormon.