“Like Mother, Like Blurry-Eyed Son”

Growing up, my mom and my twin sister were the only ones who needed glasses. I can still picture my sister, Tab, sitting in that big chair at the eye doctor while they dilated her eyes. She’d come out squinting, blinking hard against the light, complaining that everything looked funny for hours. I used to feel bad for her — not in a judgmental way, but in that innocent kid way where you just don’t fully understand what someone else is going through. Meanwhile, I sat there with perfect vision, never thinking twice about it.

Back then, I thought blurry vision was just something other people dealt with. It wasn’t my world. But motherhood has a way of reminding you that nothing in life ever stays the same — not your sleep, not your body, and apparently, not your eyesight either.

Two pregnancies later, everything looked different… literally. When I was pregnant with my second son, Alex, my vision started to blur. At first, I assumed it was just one of those strange pregnancy symptoms no one warns you about. The eye doctor told me it was probably temporary — just hormones, they said — and that it would likely go back to normal after the baby came. Well, four years later, I’m still wearing glasses 24/7. So much for temporary!

The real full-circle moment came this year when Alex had his very first vision test. I sat there watching him do exactly what my sister used to do — sitting in that same big chair, following the doctor’s instructions, trying to read those tiny letters on the screen. He did such an amazing job, sitting still, taking it all so seriously. When the results came in, I couldn’t help but laugh — his prescription is exactly the same as mine.

My heart sank for just a moment — that tiny ache only a mom would understand. The thought of my baby needing glasses so young tugged at something deep in me. But before I could get too

emotional, he looked at me with that big grin and said, “Do I get to pick which ones I want?” That’s when I knew he’d be just fine.

Trying on glasses was a whole adventure for him. He checked himself out in the mirror, tilted his head this way and that, and flashed the biggest smile. He looked like a mix between Sherlock Holmes and a little scientist who’d just discovered something amazing. I sat there watching him, realizing he wasn’t bothered at all. He wasn’t seeing it as a flaw — just as something new that made him him.

Now he wears his glasses all the time, except when he’s on the playground or wrestling with his big brother. He’s proud of them — and honestly, I can’t blame him. He looks so dang handsome in those little frames that I catch myself smiling every time he pushes them up his nose.

It’s funny how life comes full circle. I used to watch my sister deal with her blurry vision, never realizing one day I’d be doing the same — and that my son would follow right behind me. It’s humbling, really. A reminder that we can’t control everything, but we can find beauty in the things that change us.

When I look at Alex and me side by side, both wearing our glasses, I can’t help but think how far we’ve come. My vision might not be 20/20 anymore, but motherhood has given me a whole new way to see — not through perfect eyes, but through love, patience, and perspective. And honestly, that’s the clearest view there is. ❤️👓