EYE think it's time for an update.

Ha ha.

Seriously, where are the EYE posts?? I know you have been wondering this, too.

I cannot believe we have made it to a point in this EYE journey where I have to force myself to do an update on progress/life with an eyepatch. Literally cannot believe it. I feel like we are so far removed from the blubbering/terrified/overwhelmed/exhausted mess that I was for basically the first year of the EYE.

I'm just going to take a moment to pat myself on the back. Way to not cry for a few months, Melissa. Way to go.

Anyway, the patch is still with us,of course. It still consumes our daily lives. It is still the first thing we do every morning, the thing we do about more than anything else during the day. The thing we ask about first thing from Noni, GG, his school or each other. "How was he?" will never mean anything in our world unrelated to the patch. When Brandon asks that I know he doesn't mean how did he eat/sleep/feel/play/read/attack other children. He only means the patch. It is the sun and everything else revolves around it.

I still get a little sad when I get to see his face during bath time because I miss it during the rest of the day. I miss the idea of raising a baby whose face you get to see all of the time. I see blue plastic. If that doesn't sound like a big deal to you then you are not an imom. It is just hard to explain. It is very petty, but it still bothers me.

I still get a bit anxious when I hear kids say, "What's wrong with him? or" Why does that kid only have one eye?" I worry about the days when Anderson is old enough to really understand them. (Mostly I am worried about my reaction. I am serious. I have a small tendency to "respond" to people when they are rude. Just ask Nicole about the rude woman at Chick Fil A. I literally was not involved, but heard her talk to Nicole and was ready to thrown down in the parking lot. I won. She had crunchy hair. But, seriously, I am going to really have to hold back to not lose it on some 6 year old one day.)

I still feel just a bit of tingle when I see Crayon Pirate hanging on my kitchen wall & I realize how this pirate boy was really supposed to be mine all along.

I still worry about the patching not working, of course. That is just a part of it.

However, I no longer think about the patch all day, every day. I don't have to stalk him anymore. If he takes it off in the car I let him. I LET HIM! Did you hear me? This is huge. It is the greatest feeling to know I don't have to freak out and almost wreck trying to keep it on him in the back seat. I just know that will come from his total hours off at the end of the night.

The 4 hours off was huge. I honestly don't know if anything will ever have that much of an impact on the EYE journey as when Dr. Cogen said, 4 hours. The 4 hours has brought me some peace of mind that it is working, it has literally returned my sanity.

My bug continues to amaze me. He truly is an inspiration with his ability to do so much with one eye. Think about what he does with ONE eye. He is a climber, a runner, a tackler, a jumper, etc. He is awesome.

So, that is where we are right now. The patch is very much a part of our daily lives, but so much so that I almost forget about it. Can you believe it?? imoms who have younger kids-IT WILL GET EASIER!! Anderson had to get those first 2 years under his belt and now it is almost routine. Hang in there, the good times are coming your way, too!