Our Little One

Our journey started shortly after we welcomed our second child. Not long after she was born, we observed her eyes moving side to side and it never stopped. At her 2-month check-up, we addressed this concern with our pediatrician. We were referred to a local ophthalmologist who was unable to diagnose her but made a referral for a pediatric ophthalmologist. We didn’t have to wait too long before heading down to that appointment.

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The pediatric ophthalmologist entered the room and stated she has ocular albinism before really examining her. Our older son who wasn’t at the appointment was suspected of also having ocular albinism and would need to be seen at the next appointment in 6 months. She was only 3 months old and we were completely overwhelmed and unsure of what our next steps were supposed to be.

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In Home Support

We began early intervention at 6 months as she wasn’t sitting up on her own. We were approved for PT and OT during the next 20 months. During the time we were enrolled in early intervention we did not have any provider to support her visual needs or how we can help make things accessible for her. When she aged out of early intervention, we had her evaluated to be eligible for services from the school. At this point the only option was developmental preschool which wasn’t the most appropriate for her.

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We opted to enroll her in our church preschool without any support from the public school and TVI. She continued to grow, thrive and do all things like other children. While we made sure she had a spot closer to story time, sunscreen, hats and glasses, we knew heading to kindergarten would require more support.

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Next Chapter Professionally

During this time, as she transitioned to kindergarten, I began my journey to support children and families as a Developmental Therapist in early intervention. I was able to go back to school to complete a TVI program that would allow me to serve children who were blind or have low vision in their homes. I was happy to provide support and personal experiences for families that I wish I would have had when our daughter was younger.

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Over the years and experience more children I served were diagnosed with CVI. I found it important to learn as much as I could to support families and their child. As many parents find it hard to find books that represent their child as well as those that are most appropriate for their child. This led to taking action by starting to write simpler books with simple images using students preferred colors to help children and students access literacy.

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Eye Am is Born

Eye Am was started as a subscription box to support children 3 to 6 years old. The boxes provided books, sensory bin activities, a tactile craft activity and Expanded Core Curriculum activities to use with the book. This began the beginning of writing short books and adding images cut out using a Cricut. While I was aware this was a very time-consuming process, the feedback from families was encouraging.

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Eye Am took a pause as jobs became more demanding, as did personal life as wife, mom and the many other hats we wear. But here we are today, taking a slightly different approach and one that we feel can be better incorporated into our lives. Eye Am also includes a few other team members who are excited to share their passions and abilities. We are excited to share more stories, tips and ways to support your child at home in their literacy journey.