Friday was a Grandmommy, Mommy and Kiera day. We try to have Kiera/Daddy or Kiera/Mommy Days from time to time and go do something fun. Friday we included Grandmommy since she is fixing to have to start back to school next week.
We had two main things planned for our day. The first was an eye exam for Kiera at Texas State Optical. She was so excited. Seriously. Aaron and I were both a little nervous. Before we went, we reviewed her letters with her and talked about not being shy to the doctor. She took that part to heart, but I am jumping ahead…
We discussed with her that if she did not know a letter then she needed to say that she did not know the letter but if she could not see the letter then she needed to tell the doctor she could not see the letter. We had actually begun prepping her for the appointment by showing her YouTube videos of eye exams a couple of weeks earlier.
Now, I will go ahead and tell you our second agenda for the day. After Kiera’s eye exam, we were going to Splashville in Stephenville. Kiera was beyond ecstatic about this. To get on the slides at Splashville, she had to be 42 inches. I know this because I called twice to make sure. Kiera is 42 and a half. When we let her know she would be able to get on the big kid rides, she did not stop squealing for a good few minutes. All we had to do was get through the eye exam first.After I filled out paperwork, Dollie with TSO took us back to begin the eye exam. Kiera’s shy button was not only turned off, I think it possibly went into hibernation. She bounced into the chair that Dollie pulled out for her and began asking questions. She even reached out to tickle Dollie at one point.
Dollie, who was amazingly awesome and patient, answered Kiera’s questions while keeping a genuine smile on her face. At some point, Kiera let her know that we were going to the water park after we were done with her appointment.
“So, you are ready for me to be done so you can go, huh?” Dollie asked, grinning.
“Yes!” Kiera enthusiastically answered.
That’s my honest child.
I was so proud of Kiera as she went through each test. We made it to the exam room where Dollie started typing Kiera’s information into the computer as Kiera climbed into the big, gray chair.
“What’s this?” Kiera asked, pointing to the eye thingie.
You know the one that I am talking about? The one that you put up to your eyes and the doctor asks ‘better or worse?’ I know. I am being pretty technical but I am a graphic designer, not an ophthalmologist. Back to the story…
Dollie turned to see what Kiera was asking about. “That is what the Doctor will use to help check your eyes.” She explained.
She turned back to the computer. I smiled, knowing what was fixing to happen. I began a mental countdown in my head. ‘1…2…3’
“What’s that?” Kiera asked as she pointed to another piece of equipment.
Dollie smiled and turned her attention back to Kiera and explained another piece of equipment. She turned back to the computer and placed her hands on the keyboard. I began my internal countdown again. ‘1…2…3… and…’ What’s this?” Kiera asked.
Dollie laughed as she pushed her stool back from the counter. “Ok. I see how this is going to go.” She patiently went through every piece of equipment with Kiera, showing her the lights, buttons and what everything did. Only after Kiera was satisfied did she turn back to the computer to finish inputting her data.
By this time, Kiera is bouncing in her chair with a huge grin on her face.
Once Dollie finished at the computer, she turned to Kiera and began the rest of the eye exam. It was at this point, I became acutely aware that Kiera had inherited my impatience.
After each test that Dollie administered, she would turn back to the computer to type in the results. Now, this took all of a minute… give or take. Basically, it was just enough time for Kiera to ask, “What now?”
I sat across the room from Kiera at the perfect angle. Dollie managed to be directly in between us so I could not make faces at Kiera. You know the face… It’s the stop-you’re-embarrassing-me face.
Poor Dollie. There’s nothing like being rushed by an impatient four-year old. Although, Kiera was very sweet about it and thankfully, Dollie laughed after every “What now?” comment.
As she finished, she high-fived Kiera and promised to hustle Dr. Cavett in the room.
We didn’t have to wait though. As she opened the door, Dr. Cavett entered the room. He smiled a friendly smile at Kiera and settled on his stool.
While he pulled up Kiera’s information and read over it, I decided to say something to make sure Kiera didn’t try to turn shy.
“Baby girl, this is Mommy’s doctor.” I said adding a lot of excitement to my voice to make sure she was at ease.
Dr. Cavett turned to Kiera and said, “You know what that means? It means I’m really old, doesn’t it?”
She returned his smile and nodded her head yes. Dr. Cavett chuckled and started his exam of her eyes as I wondered how I could melt into the corner.
Dr. Cavett was great. He was very patient with her as she went through the letters and pictures he showed her. Once he finished, he turned to type his results into the computer. Kiera asked, “Do I need glasses?”
“Yes, sweet girl. You need glasses to help you see a little bit.” He responded.
“Yeah!” She said as she bounded out of her seat and over to my chair. “I get glasses, Mommy!”
I hugged her and congratulated her while inside I was slightly sad for my little girl. Please don’t get me wrong. Aaron wears glasses and I wear contacts… well one contact. There’s nothing wrong with glasses. I just feel bad that she hasn’t been seeing clearly.
“I am almost finished looking over everything and we will be done.” Dr. Cavett told Kiera.
“Is it ok if she goes to her Grandmommy?” I asked as Kiera continued to bounce excitedly around the room. Once he confirmed that she could, I opened the door to the hall. Kiera ran out of the room and spotted Grandmommy sitting in the waiting area.
She took off at a run while announcing to the entire building, “I get glasses, Grandmommy!”
The water park was briefly forgotten as she ran to the glasses to begin picking which ones she wanted. We managed to leave only after convincing her that we would order her pink glasses and they would be in soon.
Once outside, she called her Daddy to tell him about her good news. It’s going to be an adjustment for all of us. Hopefully, it will be a smooth adjustment. I am thankful that she is so excited about her glasses.
I am also thankful for the great staff at TSO. Thanks for your unlimited patience and care of my little girl. A big thank you to Dr. Cavett, Dollie and the rest of the staff at TSO for making Kiera’s first eye exam a great experience.
