Author: Jen Rios

I saw this meme on Facebook and it made me laugh so much because this SERIOUSLY was me in 2001:

I was pregnant and was not due until December 27. I was hoping to eat my fill on Thanksgiving and maybe even Christmas as well!

Turns out that God had a different plan because I gave birth to him via emergency C-section on November 2, before Thanksgiving! I didn’t even have Thanksgiving dinner that year because I was at the hospital to see him in NICU. he was there until December 3.

I put him in his portable bassinet under the Christmas tree and whispered in his ear for him to grow! He slept for all but 20 minutes for two weeks when he came home. I had to wake him up to feed him.

I have recently been seeing so many March of Dimes fundraisers on Facebook and they show a picture of a preemie baby with a breathing tube in their nose. Seeing those makes me wince a little bit that was such a painful time and I only now am realizing it. Sean was on oxygen the first 24 hours and they told me that was really good for his eyes. Being on oxygen for multiple days can make them blind.

I can’t eat turkey anymore, but seeing this meme made me laugh and remember my plans of gorging myself on Thanksgiving. That didn’t work out.

My extra large pill box arrived a few days ago and also my night mask for my eyes.

This all seems like a lot! I was not ready for this disease progression and I cannot believe that I wasn’t ready?! But, I’m not. This is A LOT.

Today is day #2 of Recovery and I’m thinking it’s going to be a full weekend recovery but I have another appointment on Tuesday so…

Let me talk about these new contacts! They are the easiest thing to put into my eyes! I have been struggling to put them in for the past 31 years?!!!! Each time I go to put them in my eye, they just suction to my eyeball! It’s so surprising!

I thought I was just going to see Liz to get fitted for them, but she wanted me to see Dr. Harris. He looked at my eyes through the machine in the room and had me look up and blink and he poked the bottom of my eye just to see how they were moving in them.

is going to see him on Wednesday and my mom told him and she said, “his”His name is Sean.”

He looked at me and asked a question that I never thought I would ever be asked and to be able to answer in an affirmative way! He said, “I bet he has your eyes.”

I let out a surprised gasp, but I think, I could feel my eyes light up, and I told him, “He does!”

Dr. Harris said that I could discontinue using my Renu re-wetting drops. These contacts fill excellent in my eyes, but I’m not going to discontinue using my re-wetting drops because my eyes are sick. They have been sick for the past 24 years. They got sick when I was pregnant with Sean!