New Glasses

For a little while now I've been dragging my feet about Emma's eyes.  I've thought a few times over the past couple of months at least that Emma might need glasses.  I wasn't thrilled at this thought though.  I really didn't want her to need glasses, for several reasons:

1. Her face is so flawlessly perfect I didn't want it hidden behind glasses.
2. Kids break things and lose them, and glasses seem like they'd always be the victim, bringing lots of headaches and trouble.
3. Emma has darling sunglasses.  That she won't be able to wear anymore.  They're really cute.
4. The cost.  Ugh, it's just something else to have to deal with right?
5. I was hoping to pass on my perfect vision to her.  Why did she have to take after Eric on this one?

But finally, right after the school year ended, we took her to get her eyes checked.  Wow.  She completely bombed the eye exam.  I was standing right next her, and wow.  I couldn't believe she couldn't see the letters clearly.  I wanted to just turn to her and say, "Come on Emma, this is easy.  The letters are right there.  Just use your eyes!"  Unfortunately she was using her eyes.  They failed her. Sigh.

It turns out Emma is near-sighted.  Just like Eric.  Stupid Eric passing on this stupid gene.  I have always loved Eric in glasses by the way.  I just didn't want Emma to need them.  Right now her prescription is a little stronger than Eric's.  I think she tried on every pair of frames in the store at least three times before settling on two final pairs.  Oh man, I can't tell you how much I hope she doesn't break or lose these things.  I could really do without having to spend this kind of money on something not fun very often.

But really, I'm so glad she can see well again.  It was so fun for the first few days after she got her glasses, listening to her tell us everything she could see even if it was far away.  She told us while we were home.  She told us while we were driving.  She told us while we were at the grocery store.  Everywhere.  I am so happy for her.  And really, now I can't believe I didn't take her right in to get her eyes checked when I first thought there might be an issue.  I feel a little guilty.  Because, as Brian Regan said, "Man, [she] could have been seeing things!  How can instantly improved vision not be at the top of your to do list?"

And in the end, my number one reason for not wanting her to need glasses ended up being a non-issue (Stupid unfounded fears!  Why must you always get in the way?).  Emma is just as darling as ever in her new glasses.  Perhaps even flawlesser.  Yup.  That's a word...probably.  Both pairs are just darling on her.  And she loves them!  Sorry for the poor lighting in these pictures.  This is the day we picked up the finished and ready glasses.

This rim on this pair has two different colors.
The top half is a sort of copper color and the bottom is a teal blue. 

These are the arms of this first pair.  The pattern is really cute with greens and pinks and a little blue.

Her second pair is really a dark blue color, not black as they appear here.

This is the inside view of the second pair.  A light blue with a fun pattern on the inside of the arms.
It looks really nice with the sort of navy coloring of the front.

And finally, do yourself a favor, even if you've already seen/ heard it, and watch this six minute clip of Brian Regan talking about the eye doctor.  So funny!  I had an almost impossible time not laughing all through Emma's exam thinking about this.  I had to stifle laughs as each new test was done.  A few times my shoulder's were just shaking as I silently giggled while simultaneously praying the doctor wouldn't suddenly ask me a question.

Another Family Visitor

We were so happy and lucky to have Eric's sister Melissa come visit us recently.  She was able to come during Emma's last week of school.  We loved every minute she was here, and can't wait to see her again.

We were mostly staying close to home during her visit because Emma had school that week, but we still managed to have fun.  Between lunch with friends, helping a friend make some crafts for girls camp, Emma's taekwondo classes, and games at home, we kept fairly busy.

We started things off by heading out to Lake Geneva and enjoyed dinner at the Sprecher restaurant while we were there (it's Emma's favorite!).  It's always so pretty out there, no matter what time of year it is.  This time of year, however, it's super crowded.  Wow, there were so many people everywhere!

No visit is complete without a trip to the Jelly Belly store (at least according to Emma).  She lives for the sample bar.

Emma's last day of school snuck in there, and I almost didn't get a picture of her.  The one I did get is a little blurry, and was after she got home.  Phew!  Barely made it.  I can hardly believe she's done with 3rd grade.  I swear it was only a year ago she was finishing 2nd grade!  =)

We celebrated her shorter final day by going bowling.  And I'm sticking with the story that I bowled so terribly just so that Emma could beat me.  It was a special gift in honor of her having done so well in school.

Following the bowling we took Melissa to the shooting range.  It was her first time, and I think she might be hooked.  She did a great job.  Emma of course watched from the room behind the range.  This picture was taken from there.  The plastic windows don't really lend themselves to great photos.

For Melissa's last day in town we decided to go explore Milwaukee a little.  First stop: Sprecher factory for the tour.  You get all the soda you can drink on the tour, which sounds great, but you quickly realize how little soda it takes before you start feeling sick.  Adults get some free beer samples too, but of course, we did not partake.





My brother-in-law Brad just happened to be in town on business for a few days, and this was his last day in town.  Lucky for us he had a few hours to kill, so he joined us the rest of our day.  It was great seeing him!

We went to see a gorgeous lighthouse.  I don't think it's possible to take a bad picture of this place!  The grounds were also very amazing.  There were bridges with great iron work, and a path leading down to the beach that looked like it was out of a fairytale.  Melissa even made a crown of flowers for Emma.

Next stop was the riverwalk.  It was the perfect day.  And we bumped into the bronze Fonze.  Ehhhh!

After some late lunch (or early dinner if you like) we headed to the beach just to dip our feet in the water.  Eric and Emma attempted skipping some rocks too.

I think this picture is funny because it looks like Eric just hit that bird with his skipping rock.

Across from the beach was this magnificent house.  This was its backyard.  Whoa.  I would love to try to get used to having this for a backyard.  As long as I didn't have to maintain it!





We then sadly had to take Melissa and Brad to the airport.  It was so much fun seeing them both (even if only for a few hours Brad!).   We hope to see both of them again soon!

Emma and Eric just had to end the day by trying on one of their Sprecher souvenirs and enjoying their favorite Sprecher soda.  Grape vs root beer.  Personally I prefer the root beer.