The Tooth Fairy and Other Tooth Related Stories

I'd say I have fair claim to the title, "Worst Tooth Fairy Ever." It's certainly not an honor I've worked hard to win. For example, I didn't mean to forget to put a dollar under my daughter's pillow the night she lost a tooth. And it was an awful shame when it happened twice more.

My oldest has lost a number of teeth over the years. Once she bit into a hot dog, and it came out the victor! Another time Daddy, a little tired of listening to the constant complaint of just how much her loose tooth hurt, made a fist and pretended he was going to knock it out. In an attempt to avoid the make believe show down, our daughter scooted to her right and made for the kitchen door. Unfortunately at the same time my husband's fist went to his left. It was like watching a movie in slow motion. Her laughing face made direct contact with his knuckles. Her hands gripped her mouth. His eyes widened in shock.

We all heard the plink, plink, plinkplinkplink of something dropping to the floor. It took a bit of searching, but sure enough, there was her tooth. Needless to say, she didn't complain much about the next loose tooth.

After years of not allowing anyone near her dangling teeth I couldn't help laughing when, recently, she claimed to be tired of the most recent culprit and announced she was going to pull it out herself. I stood in mocking silence, thinking to myself there was no way she was actually going to pull out her very own tooth. Imagine my total and complete surprise when she grabbed a tissue, reached into her mouth, and pulled it out bearing a happy little prize. She should have gotten a buck-fifty for that.

My older son has been losing teeth for several months now. The funny thing about his method is that he never realizes it's gone until after the fact. I've had to search under a messy bed for one, under the couch (almost just as messy) for another, he lost one at school and managed to find it amid glitter, discarded crayon wrappers, and other things I'd rather not think about. Twice his teeth have split from top to bottom (I swear, he brushes!).

Most recently his two top front teeth have become loose. Our family was having dinner at Grandma's house where he walked point blank into something and came out bleeding everywhere. A few days later tooth #1 came out. Yesterday his younger brother kicked him in the mouth (don't ask...I didn't) and managed to knock the other one so loose, it was hanging on by the nerve. Today Dad became the coolest ever because he took a tissue and popped the thing out (never mind all the teeth I've located in impossible places). This one was hollow. Seriously. I could hold it up to my eye and see his toothless face through the other side.

To say the least, the Tooth Fairy has been paying a lot of visits to our house, especially recently. My oldest likes to write her letters, and expects answers in teeny tiny handwriting. One morning she woke up really early and was so disappointed when the Tooth Fairy hadn't shown up. Being up, she decided to go watch cartoons in the living room. Apparently the Tooth Fairy had been running behind that night (or went to bed so late she completely forgot) and didn't get to our house until the wee early hours of the morning. Poor kid.

So here's hoping the Tooth Fairy is once again able to make the trek to our house tonight. Here's hoping she's stored up enough cash to help reinforce the idea that buying dicarded teeth is a good thing. Most of all let's hope she goes to bed at a decent time and with enough awareness to put the cash under his pillow so he can wake up happy.

Unlike his sister.