Beauty is in the EYE of the beholder

Last week Aaron had his first eye appointment in a few years, don't judge. His eyes are the one thing I know are healthy other than the small prescription for reading glasses that he acquired even before the accident. Which brings us to the important part of this story. It was definitely time for new glasses. 

Those of you who know me well know that it takes hours for me to even narrow down my choices when it comes to the little things like shoes. But we are talking frames and for someone else! It didn't help that men's choices all pretty much look the same to me. Total disaster. The staff was very helpful. The lady helping us even put up with us pulling pair after pair off the shelf. 

Aaron sat there with a smile and was agreeable to pretty much any pair we gave him. So after 15-20 minutes of trying on frames I was over it and we had been at the doctor for over an hour. I was ready to leave. Aaron agreed to a pair that was a little different than his last ones, okay a lot different but we both thought the frames themselves looked pretty cool and were pretty bend-able when we were looking at them as we held them. The lady helping us seemed to like them too, I was over it, and Aaron said ok. So we were done right?!

I had a sudden lapse in my judgment and wasn't sure if we should commit so I texted a picture of Aaron in these frames to one person who will remain anonymous and who I also knew would give an honest answer but I got no answer (at least not as quick of one as I wanted). So I texted person number two, who will also remain anonymous, and still no answer. By the time I texted the third person (again anonymous), the second person texted back pretty much telling me they didn't like them in a nice way. Then I got a text from person number one saying "Ummmm did you buy those?" and then the third person chimed in with "What are the other options?" 

I knew we were in trouble and as the sweet lady helping us was starting to enter the information in the computer until I told her we needed to start over! She kinda looked at me funny but told us it was not a problem. I literally laughed out loud because I never would have guessed out of our three people, that they all would have gave thumbs down to the first choice. Thankfully they did though because I had obviously failed my one and only important job of the day and they were able to save Aaron two years of ugly frames. 

After choosing some options that seemed do-able we got a little silly. The lady helping us joined in and there were also a few requests from one of the people we were texting who still will remain anonymous. We also got a little mixed up with all of the pictures of the choices we were texting so Aaron had to start holding up fingers with numbers to identify each choice. We emptied off over half of the shelves for the second time that visit. After almost an hour of trying on frames, 25 texts, and at least 15 pictures we finally found a pair that everyone could agree on. See the evidence below in no particular order. 

Maybe...

Maybe not?

Definitely not...but they were a blast from the past and a special request by one of the people we were texting!

Now the staff is helping us have some fun and brought us these, Harry Potter anyone?

Not so much!

Here is the part where we were losing track of the ones we had tried and took pictures of so we started having Aaron hold fingers up too! 

Option 3!

 

We are getting warmer!

Here's my public service announcement...I don't plan on revealing the first choice (the ones that I thought were okay) and you may be smart enough to figure out which choice we actually ordered. I don't need opinions from anyone for any reason, we have already ordered frames that should be here in about a week and we can't change our minds for at least another two years! This is just a glimpse into some of our everyday craziness and we thought you might enjoy a good laugh with us!

They say "beauty is in the eye of the beholder", unless you are me and Aaron trying to pick out new frames for him and then we probably need a few other opinions!

pReSsINg fOrWaRd...EIGHT yEaRs lATeR!

And just like that, here we are EIGHT years later!

I have spent that past week looking through old pictures. I even found some of the first things I journaled right after Aaron's accident, long before blogging was even popular.  I am in awe. Believe it or not, I am speechless by the story they tell, the one I so vaguely remember, and all of the many details that have since faded into memories. I often forget is that Aaron's only real memories are from the stories he's heard or pictures he has seen, at least during the first few years. 

Even though I do it on a somewhat regular basis, June 16th will always be the day that I remember that we are not where we once were. I am thankful that we didn't go where the doctors and nurses thought we might go and that God had a much better plan. We are also blessed with second chances and many miracles over the past eight years; Aaron's ability to relearn and his body to heal, the family and friends who have loved us through this and continue to do so, friends and acquaintances who have become our village and do life with us, the doctors and specialists and therapists who all have helped Aaron get better in big and small ways, the many prayers that have been answered, and our ability to find joy in this journey.

It's not always easy and even though we still face a few obstacles here and there, we are always excited to see what the next year brings as we keep pressing forward!