A reader, Amber, posted a question yesterday about what size glasses she should get for her son. I said I’d post it here and see what you all think. So I’m counting on everyone to have an opinion (we all know what they say about opinions, right?) and to share it. Here’s the question:

My 12 month old has just been prescribed glasses. Though you can’t tell by looking at him he has a lazy eye, Amblyopia. I have been to two different places to try on glasses for him, but just can’t decide. Our doctor says that his percription will probably change again when he comes back in 6 months. So, I don’t know if I should just get the ones that fit him the best now or if I should try to by a little bigger so that we can simply change the lenses in December. What do you suggest?

It’s kind of funny that this question came up, since I’ve been thinking a lot about replacing Zoe’s frames, what with her prescription changing, and the last time we took her in for an adjustment, the woman at the glasses shop said she thought Zoe’s glasses were getting too small for her face. But Saturday when we took Zoe in, the guy at the glasses shop said the frames looked like they still fit. And since her lenses are still under warranty for doctor changes, we’ll only pay half of the replacement costs for the lenses, as long as we don’t change the frames. Well that was an easy enough decision. I guess it all depends on who you ask.

Here’s the answer that I sent to Amber, but again, I hope you all will chime in with your thoughts and experiences:

Here are some things to think about, though I’m kind of muddling my way through this myself. The place where we got Zoe’s eyeglasses recommended not getting glasses with the earpieces that curve all the way around the ear, rather get ones that look like adult glasses, where the ear piece just curves down but doesn’t make a full C shape (hope that makes sense). They said that the glasses with the C curve tend to get outgrown more quickly. I know that some places specifically say not to get frames that are too big, as then they won’t be comfortable and your son won’t be as likely to wear them, and there’s probably some truth to that. But I think you could probably find frames that are a little big that would still fit now.

Another thing to think about is what the warranty offered on the frames and lenses is. Zoe’s lenses are covered such that if a prescription change happens in the first month, the lenses are replaced for free, and if the prescription change happens in 9 months, the lenses are replaced for half price, BUT you must keep the same frames. So for us it was definitely worth it to get frames that would last, since her prescription has change (both within the one month time, and just now at 6 months). That warranty was standard at the shop, and not an additional charge. However, it’s also worth considering how hard your son might be on the frames, and whether those are covered if he breaks them. For us, the frames aren’t covered at all, if they break, we have to buy new ones. So, if the glasses places don’t offer a warranty like that, and you find inexpensive frames that you like that fit your son, it may worth just going with those, just in case the frames are broken.

Ultimately, I think if I were in your place, I’d get frames a little big and hope they don’t break, but if you know your son is the type to be really rough with things like glasses (and let’s face it, he’s 1 and why would he know any better?), maybe just get the ones that fit him now.

For reference, here is a picture of Zoe in her glasses on Jan 6, and again Jun 8, so you can see how she’s grown into the frames (they look really tiny in the Jun 8 picture, but they really don’t look that small in person):

Zoe in glasses, Jan. 6

Zoe in glasses, Jun 8