Wednesday, June 10, 2009

This ain't your parents' dentist


My children go to a pediatric dentist. They LOVE going to the dentist. On dentist day they get up and get going-- no complaints, no lollygagging. They are in the car, getting their seat belts on. They love to get new toothbrushes. They love to wear sunglasses and watch movies on the ceiling. The office is totally decorated with every character kids love. In this picture Faith is getting her bag of dentist goodies. She wore her fairy wings for the occasion.


So, the kids love the dentist. But I also love our dentist. He makes me feel so good about myself. He thinks I'm wonderful! He thinks I take such good care of my children's teeth. He praises me about the spacing of their teeth. He gives me thumbs up and tells me to "keep up the great work!"

I would be horrified if people knew all the teeth brushings that have been skipped in their childhood. We are diligent brushers as they get older because they get stinky breath if they don't. I think flossing is WAY overrated. We are certainly no poster family for the American Dental Association.

And yet. . . he is right. The kids have amazing teeth. They've got Abe's teeth of steel and my humongous mouth with plenty of space for their teeth. I can put my fist in my mouth. It's not pretty, but I saved my parents a load of cash because I didn't need braces.

I'm going to schedule our next dental appointments for when I'm feeling a little down. Of course it will probably all come crashing down when we have a child who gets my soft enamel and Abe's crooked teeth! I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

1 comment:

Katie Reall said...

Betsy, dear, I'm a bit disappointed. You were such an avid flosser in college...tsk...tsk...I wasn't and I got the cavities after our freshmen year. I'm sure it couldn't have been the vending machine pink Granny B's I ate on the way to class. Hmmm...we didn't get such nice teeth spacing in our oldest....we are guaranteed braces and a daily NEED for flossing. Oh, if we could skip the flossing. Okay, I don't floss my kids every day - they have to do it with those overpriced floss picks. I take mine to the dentist and am reminded EVERY time that I "should" floss them every day. I only have three, but really, floss them every day? Okay, I should get off my soap box.