The Requisite "Why am I Blogging?" Post

Search for disabled mother. Go ahead and pop on out and search, then pop on back. What did you find? Probably not much about being a disabled mother. Tons on being a mother of a kid with a disability, or being the daughter of an elderly mother who is disabled, but almost nothing about being a disabled mom. I know I can't be the only one out there, so I figured it was time to give us a voice.

Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Erin and I was diagnosed with Sjögren's syndrome in 2010. To boil it down, I appear perfectly normal, but routinely suffer severe joint pain, brain fog (more on that one later) chronic dryness (eyes, mouth, nose, and everywhere else one would expect to be... not dry), and worst of all debilitating bouts of fatigue and muscular weakness. BUT that's not how I usually introduce myself. I'm usually Erin, wife to G., mother to M, D, J, and Z ages 7, 4, almost 2, and 6mo. I'm a conservative skirt-wearing Christian woman who is also a super Geek, minor health-nut, free-lance seamstress, and somewhat musically inclined. I also love gardening, dream of urban homesteading, and have four backyard ducks and a gray tabby cat. The ducks are named Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and Chuck (just in case they don't produce eggs & wind up on the table). The cat, well, his name depends on who you ask. I just call him 'Cat' so we'll go with that for now.

So how do I, who have all this going on, manage to do all the things I love, raise four children, support a wonderful husband, and nurse a baby while hindered by a disability? Long story short: I don't. I do many things in a mediocre fashion and often rule the roost from my armchair. And yet I love my life, more often than not! Sure, there are many ups and downs to being me, but I'm slowly learning to cope and even to laugh from time to time.

Alright. Let's start this blogging journey as I bare my soul, expose my weaknesses, and show how a real-life disabled mother does(n't?) it!