The Eyes Have It

Corey had an appointment with his Eye Specialist in Grand Rapids this morning so the three boys and I were up early and on our way. I left Corey to sit in the big chair alongside the eye doctor and sat myself fifteen feet away at the other end of the room. Finally, an eye exam where Corey actually cooperated! It was amazing to see him read off the pictures that were on the monitor across the room without pausing between each one to ask mommy some off-topic question like, "Remember when I fell in the lake? That was scary." Corey decided to ask the eye doctor those questions instead.

I stifled Riley and Shannon today so that they couldn't cheat and give Corey clues as to what was on the monitor. (A couple of times Riley tried to flap his 'wings' and say 'bwak-bwak' to clue Corey in to the fact that he was seeing a chicken, but I pulled out the super-mean-mommy-glare and all was good.) Riley watched wide-eyed and it was all he could do to keep from bursting. "This one?" asked the doctor. "A cake!" yelled Corey. "Good, this one?" "A tree!" "Good! This one?" "A hand!" Finally Riley couldn't take it any longer, grabbed my arm in frustration and said very seriously, "But, Mom, he's getting almost ALL of them wrong!"

He had a good point, Corey was getting most of them wrong. It was decided to do the eye-drops so that Dr. Peters could do a more thorough examination, so I explained to Corey what was going to happen. Before any appointment I'm always totally honest with him about shots, medicine, pain and having to 'lay down' (the worst thing that can happen to Corey in a medical setting.) I'd had him prepared for this visit with the typical reassurances, "No, you won't have to wear a patch at the doctors, yes, he will cover your eye, yes, you might have to see the light." I wasn't expecting the eye-drops, which Corey particularly hates. I also forgot that they try to get him to lay down so they can put them in. Oops. Mommy became a liar and after a lengthy attempt at cajoling him, I was forced to physically restrain Corey in a reclined position for the drops to be administered. "Mommy, you're rude!" Corey huffed after it was all over and the tears eased up. "I know." I hate being the bad guy, but I'm getting really good at it.

Anyhow, after letting me know that Corey was wearing his back-up pair of glasses and not the ones with the stronger prescription, (WHAT? How did that happen, and WHEN did they get switched? No wonder he hasn't been able to see anything!) the kind doctor sent us packing. Corey hadn't lost more vision, but new lenses were prescribed to adjust the balance of vision between his eyes. I was also reminded that the scar-tissue from his retinopathy was the main cause of Corey's 'book-next-to-his-nose' way of looking at things. So no worries, and this next pair of glasses will be florescent green or something so that I never confuse them again.

On the 1 1/4 hour drive home Corey decided to skip the nap that usually happens after he sees the eye doctor. "Mom! I'm going SIGN HUNTING!" "Good, Corey, now let me drive." "Stop sign!" "Traffic light sign!" "Reduction in lanes sign!" "Mom, what's that sign?" No answer. "Merge left sign!" "Trucks entering sign!" "M 89 East sign!" All the way home.