On September 6, 2010.../
On September 7, 2010
...life with an infant was starting to settle down./
...I found out my 10 week old had cataracts.
...I bought baby sunglasses because I thought they were cute./
...I had to order prescription glasses for my baby.
...We thought it was so cute that Jack always wanted to look at the lights./
...We learned that was because lights were all he could see.
...We were packing for Florida./
...We unpacked the Florida bag, and repacked for two overnight hospital stays.
...We had yet to venture into DC with our new baby./
...Our first trip to DC with him was to visit Children's Hospital.
...Someone sneezing in the same room as Jack had me running for the door./
...I don't think I noticed another human being.
...Jack wore his Virginia Tech gear as we all prepared to head to Fed Ex Field./
...Jack wore his Virginia Tech gear on his way home from the hospital after his second surgery.
...I couldn't watch anyone put contacts in./
...I became the person putting contacts in Jack's eyes on a daily basis.
...I had freakishly small hands./
...I had perfectly sized hands for inserting contacts into an infant.
...Jaundice was the worst thing in the world./
...Cataracts made jaundice look like a cold.
...Aphakic sounded like something you said when someone sneezed./
...Aphakic described my son's condition.
...I had never seen a baby wearing glasses./
...I was fending off questions and stares about my baby's glasses.
...I didn't really have a reason to write a blog./
...I was able to share Jack's story with others facing the same thing.
...I didn't know anyone who's child had cataracts, or even eye issues./
...I have made lots of friends, either cyber or "real life," that I never would have met before.
...I'd never heard of the Children's Eye Foundation./
...Jack is a Little Ambassador and I'm so proud to be a part of their mission.
Life changed. Not for the better, not for the worse. What we saw as normal just became defined a little differently. At the end of the day, Jack is an extremely healthy and happy baby. We wouldn't change a thing about him and if this is the path we were meant to take, so be it.
So, while I approached this anniversary with a lot of sadness and a heavy heart, writing this has made me realize that our lives have been opened to a world that we never knew about. I remember writing early on in the "Journey" that although we knew it could be much worse, we weren't ready to accept that.
I think we are ready to accept that while the hand we were dealt was a difficult one, God wouldn't give us what we couldn't handle. On to another year of health and happiness!
