Well. I don't know what I'm doing, really.

I don't know who this Erb guy is, but because of him, I have been challenged in my life in a way I never even knew was possible before it happened. My beautiful daughter was born on December 22, 2006, and our lives were changed forever. Of course, this happens to everyone who has a child. It changes everything. Just like those stupid Johnson's commercials say.

The conception of our child was not conventional at all. It took a total of 5 people, not including my husband and myself, to conceive this child. And that isn't even counting all the poor lab techs and, oh, I don't know, "fluid handlers" or whatever. You get my drift. So, we were so thrilled once we got pregnant, even it meant my husband had to give me a shot in my ass every day for the first 12 weeks. It was fine. our dream was coming true. We painted the nursey, went to all the appointments, and ate a LOT of food. We eagerly awaited the arrival of her, and her birth day came, 3 days before Christmas.

Sometimes, though, the birth of your child doesn't end up being perfect. Sometimes things go wrong, and it is apparently a fact of life. I didn't know it then, but it just happens sometimes. My daughter was born with a birth injury called Erb's Palsy. It is a Brachial Plexus (a nerve bundle in your shoulder) injury, and it can permanently paralyze the limb of a child. Major bummer. So, surprise, mama, here is your new normal. It's hard to get your head around at first.

Once you get over the shock of it all, you realize you are going to love this kid so hard it wouldn't matter if they didn't have a head, just like all parents who aren't psychotic. But, now what do you do? I'll tell you, because I never knew.