As we get closer to Cole's birthday we've been reflecting a lot on the last year and how far we've come. I thought it might be comical to detail a few of the bizzare comments we've heard about Cole over the last year. Below are several of the characters people think look like our son. Although I find the comments commical, I would love some recommendations for good one-liners to respond. Anyone have anything they'd like to share? I don't want to be rude because I know most people are just trying to find something to say. My advice to all of you is that it's ok to just tell someone their child is cute. Or tell them he has amazingly blue eyes or adorable blond hair. This goes for children in wheel chairs, with braces, or any other less common assistive devices. My theory is that people are uncomfortable because they look longer at children with assistive devices (like wheelchairs or very small children with glasses or patches) and then they think they need to say something. I can guarantee we won't be getting comments like this when Cole is 10 years old. 
We've gotten all of these comments...Harry Potter, a robot, the kid from Jerry Maguire, Alvin (I'm assuming she meant Simon since he has glasses)...The only one below that appears anywhere close is the kid from Jerry Maguire. Just for the record, his name is Jonathan Lipnicki.
The latest is Shirlock Holmes. I couldn't find a single image on the Internet with Shirlock Holmes wearing glasses....except the ones of Robert Downey Jr. Oh, and after telling us Cole looks like Shirlock Holmes he proceeded to tell us, "he looks so smart - he will probably be smarter than all of us combined." The foot just kept getting buried deeper and deeper ! So did he look like Shirlock Holmes because he looks smart? I'm still confused !
I wish I had a good answer for you...will let you know if I come up with one! I think you've hit the nail on the head, though, in that people feel they must say something because they are looking...when Joshua was wearing a Doc band we got some strange stares, people asking if he had a head injury, and one person who thought it was there as a safety device like a helmet and wanted one for their kid! I guess all you can do is try to educate people and send them on their way. And like you said, he will get bigger and it will stop. Daniel wears glasses but at age 10 no-one calls him Simon or Harry Potter!
ReplyDeleteI saw a study that showed that people think a person wearing glasses is 10 IQ points smarter than the same person without glasses.
ReplyDeleteCole is adorable with the glasses and without! Don't you think most people want to know why he's wearing glasses but can't think of a way to ask? Of course he's wearing glasses for the same reason that anyone does, to see better! duh.
Jeanine
my oh my that is a SPICY meataballé
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