Video shows 'overwhelming' moment baby sees mother properly for first time

Leopold Wilbur has a rare condition that leaves his vision severely impaired

This is the emotional moment a baby saw his mother properly for the first time.

For the first four months of his life, a rare condition left Leopold Wilbur “seeing with his hands”, but specialist glasses have now corrected his vision.

His father, David, recorded the moment he wore them for the first time at the family’s home in Woodinville, Washington state.

Leopold Wilbur Reppond was filmed smiling and giggling as he saw his mother properly for the first time

The footage shows Leopold looking down in confusion before responding to his mother Erin saying “hi, honey”.

He immediately breaks into a smile as he focuses on his mother’s face, adjusting to his surroundings before breaking into giggles.

“I had some issues holding the camera because I was crying so much,” Mr Reppond told Mail Online.

“I was overwhelmed with emotion. It’s just very touching. You cannot anticipate how you’re going to feel when something like that happens.”

Leopold Wilbur Reppond was filmed smiling and giggling as he saw his mother properly for the first time

In a post accompanying the video on Facebook, Mr Reppond said he and his wife decided to buy the glasses after Leopold was diagnosed with Oculocutaneous Albinism, which leaves him with extremely impaired vision.

“But he can now see the world clearly for the very first time,” he added.

Around one in every 17,000 people has some form of albinism, according to the NHS, and ocular albinism affects males more.

The genetic condition reduces the pigmentation of the iris and retina, which are essential for normal vision, causing problems with sharpness and depth perception.

Leopold’s problems were so severe he had to “see with his hands”, his father said.

But with the help of the glasses he is now interacting more with people and the world around him, and now loves playing in the sunshine outdoors.

“He’s seeing the world differently,” Mr Reppond said.