The dentist.

What do you think of when I mention the dentist? Do you think of that Bill Cosby routine where he talks about the Novocaine numbing him so much that he couldn’t talk ?

What thoughts does bringing your children to the dentist conjure up? Is it a lot of work? Do you have a child who is frightened of the dentist? Going to the dentist with a child who has SPD can be a nightmare that goes beyond the typical fear children have from doctor’s visits and unfamiliar situations.

Today I brought both of my kids to the dentist. This was the second time that C5 had ever been to a dentist. Her first trip to the dentist was about a year ago, and it was by far the worst medical experience that C5 and I ever had together – even worse than getting shots. I was frustrated, and she was terrified. The dentist pushed through the exam even though C5 was panicked and screaming. Things really went awry when the dentist insisted that I lay down on the chair and restrain C5 so that she could count her teeth. You can be sure that C5 and I will never forget that, and we’ll never go back to that dentist.

In an effort to avoid living through that again, I got a referral from our pediatrician for a new dentist. Other moms told me how wonderful this new particular dentist is. So I dove in and made an appointment for both kids. It turned out to be a great decision!

Today C5 panicked just as the hygienist touched her mouth. It took some time to calm her down and coax her back into the chair. Our hygienist spent a long time showing her the instruments and explaining the procedures step by step. With much patience the hygenist was able to clean C5’s teeth and finish most of the exam. This hygienist even got C5 to laugh! The dentist himself was also quite successful with his examination. He explained that his approach is to establish trust and then help kids learn cope with the whole dental experience rather than avoid things that cause problems for child such as noise and light. He believes that it is the best way to equip children with special needs for the real world. I completely agree with him. We are returning to the dentist in a couple of weeks in order to establish that dental visits are OK and to build familiarity. He is even going to try to do things that are unexpected in order to teach C5 how to cope with a dentist visit.

C5 was positive and proud at the end of the visit. She was trilled that she was able to tell everyone all the things that she learned at the dentist. She was also particularly excited about one discovery that the dentist made. C5 has two loose teeth.

HERE COMES THE TOOTH FAIRY!

We have been so very busy with house projects and travel lately. Summers really are insane in New England. Everyone squeezes as much into these few months as possible since the weather is so wonderful this time of year. We are no different than all of the other families around here. August looks just as busy as June and July have been. I am glad that we are having so much fun and getting tons of projects finished. Will we ever slow down, though??

We are continuing to prepare for the arrival of the Tooth Fairy even though no one has a loose tooth yet. It never hurts to be prepared, I suppose.

At the library I found a great Tooth Fairy book by accident – Tooth Fairy’s First Night (Carolrhoda Picture Books). The girl in the book does not believe that the Tooth Fairy exists so she sets up a hunt complete with clues to make the TF find her tooth. Then the TF sets up a hunt for the girl to find her treasure. I wonder if out Tooth Fairy will do the same for us… It would be fun to write letters to the Tooth Fairy and to read her responses.

Every kid needs a place to put a lost tooth so the TF can find it. While we were shopping at a local arts and crafts store today, the gilrs picked out two heart shaped, wooden boxes. This afternoon they decorated their boxes. They were so funny talking about having loose teeth while they were painting. The excitement is building!

We have researched the Tooth Fairy pretty extensively now. Plus we have a place to put the lost teeth. We are ready for a tooth to fall out a moment’s notice! Who is more excited about the Tooth Fairy – me or the kids? I’m hoping that her much anticipated arrival lives up to their expectations.

Photo courtesy of Robert S. Donovan

My sweet 5 year old has discovered the Tooth Fairy. A good friend of hers recently lost a tooth, and someone at Vacation Bible School told her about her experience with the Tooth Fairy. There has been a lot of excitement about teeth that might be loose. It has also spurred some questions about this mysterious character. Today C5 wanted to know where the Tooth Fairy lives. I avoided the question because I just didn’t have a good answer for her. I don’t remember ever asking my folks about that. Was I really not that curious as a child? Why is it always my kid who needs to know all of the details about something when she gets interested in it?

I did some research for my inquisitive child. Now I am armed with answers! (Oh, I found out that the TF lives in Tooth Fairyland in the sky, of course!)Maybe you haven’t had the pleasure of preparing for the Tooth Fairy to visit your home yet, so hopefully you will benefit from what I found out.

~ A good friend told me that the Tooth Fairy always left a letter with the cash reward for her daughter. You can find all kinds of letters at this Squidoo page.

~ There are many books out there about the Tooth Fairy. Some even include folklore from other cultures about her.

~ Many parents online recommend that you think about how much money the TF will bring because your child will expect the same thing every time the Tooth Fairy comes. It seems that the going rate is $1, but many TF’s bring coins instead of paper bills.

~ I have a friend whose TF brings a little gift such as brightly colored floss along with the cash. What a great way to promote oral hygeine!

~ Many of your Tooth Fairy questions can be answered at Write the Toothfairy.

Just think of the Tooth Fairy as another opportunity to celebrate the magic of childhood and make memories with your children!

It has been a long while since I have posted, but I have been busy.

I have been painting our living room, hallway, and entryway while C5 was at Dance Camp and we had rainy weather. It pays to take advantage of all of the help you can get when you can get it! I wanted to get the project finished in one week because, in our house, it often takes eons to finish painting. We have been painting our family room for two years now with no end in sight! I am finished with all but one portion of a wall that spurred the painting project in the first place.

It all started when A2 decided to “decorate” the wall with a black ball point pen. She didn’t just scribble a little bit either. She colored the entire length of the wall and as high up as she could reach. I thought that it would be easy enough to cover the ink with a couple of layers of paint. Silly me! The ink keeps bleeding through the paint even though I have seven layers over that section! We finally bought a fancy primer that is supposed to cover everything including mold and mildew. I hope that it does the trick with this, too. I have long lost interest in that project!

Now I just have to paint our school room. I’m taking a break from that for a bit, though, and hoping my budding Picasso doesn’t find another wall to decorate…

This is the first summer that we are sending C5 to camp. A friend of hers has offered a great deal to join her at the dance camp that she enrolled in. We had to do it when we found out that many of her buddies would be at that camp, too. I am excited that she will see her friends for a whole week and get a chance to try out all sorts of styles of dance without making a commitment to any one in particular.

She ended up LOVING her first day, but drop off was a disaster. She clung to me and cried, begging me to stay with her. I asked the director to just take her from me since I knew she would be fine if I left the room. Of course, she stopped crying as soon as I was out of ear shot, and she did great the whole time. Tomorrow will go better because Papa is dropping her off. I’ll keep you posted on how the week is going!

The focus of today’s Fitness Friday is finding more time in your schedule to exercise. In my case I have been forced into that scenario because the kids are not napping anymore. In the end I have gained more than I have lost from the new no-nap schedule.

I have an extra two hours in a day to get up and move now. We have spent nap time doing various things in order to keep the kids from falling asleep, especially after 3:00. On Monday we had “quiet time” and then went to Open Swim. We cleaned the entire house on Tuesday. On Wednesday we went shopping for a few gifts and spent over an hour walking around the store. Yesterday we moved furniture around, and today we cleaned up so I could vacuum up all of the mystery stuff we found from moving the furniture.

I’ve also had to incorporate more “Mommy directed” activity in the afternoon to help the kids stay awake until bedtime. We have gone for strolls around the neighborhood, and I even ventured out on a walk to the playground with them in the wagon (which is horrible to pull for a mile, but worth it for all of us). Another favorite activity is going to our neighbor’s house late in the day.

My next goal is to start doing yoga with the kids at least once a week. I know that we all will benefit from the stretching and muscle strengthening that comes with the practice of yoga. Maybe I will even improve my focus a bit!

Photo courtesy of Vimages

I remember when I was a child that my mother rearranged the furniture regularly. Did your mom do that? It was always a big project for us and pretty exciting when the work was done. I  liked the feeling I got after the job was finished.

Yes, folks, I have turned into my mother!

I rearrange the furniture in our home with each season and a few times in between. I try out new configurations in order to accommodate our family’s changing needs. The traffic pattern fluctuates during different seasons. As the children grow, I have to adapt the environment to meet their needs. Besides sometimes I am in this house for 36 hours straight! Why wouldn’t I move things around? I need to at least feel like I have gone someplace new!

It drives E nuts when I move the furniture! I guess his mom didn’t rearrange the house much when he was a kid. His big complaint is that I am tired and sore for a few days after pushing the couches, the piano, and such around. He doesn’t see the benefits at all.

I know that there are benefits from all that furniture shifting and switching. First, I know that the kids and I have a new perspective on life for a while when we finish. Throughout the process, we also find lost toys and clean up messes that we didn’t know existed. The house becomes more user-friendly, too. I like the sense of accomplishment that I get, and I think it is good exercise!

If by simply organizing my working and living space we end up staying in our current home longer and avoid an expensive renovation, I think that E should be thankful and encourage me to do anything I want with the decor!

Photo courtesy of youngthousands

My dad is my hero. Week after week he visits us and brings muffins to share. Then he spends the day helping with laundry, cleaning, and taking care of the kids. Plus he has a contagious laugh and a winning sense of humor! It is such a  joy to have him around. We have a standing date at this local hot dog place that the kids love to go to when he visits. He and the kids joke back and forth about where we are going for lunch. It is all part of the fun of it!

I have to start taking pictures of him with the kids. They are hilarious together, and my dad is a great sport about dressing up and pretending. Today he wore a crown at the tea party the kids set up. He helped the girls with their dress up clothes, too. It was precious to see them all playing together!

I also appreciate how my father tells stories. He talks about times he spent with my mom, times when I was a kid, and times when the girls were younger. My grandmother, his mother, told stories like that, too. I remember asking her to retell those stories over and over even though I knew them by heart. I just loved the experience of spending time with her and hearing about our family history. I’m happy that my children will have that same experience to look back on.

I treasure these days, and I am grateful that my kids will have memories of my dad visiting each week.

Photo courtesy of rocketjim54

The kids and I survived a weekend without Daddy! It really was a great weekend. They were both well behaved, and they even let their poor sick mother snooze on the couch while they played quietly. It was a great help for them to play so well together. I have been waiting for a time when they would play more independently, and it has come. They really are growing up.

One key to our success this weekend was my decision to eliminate their nap. They were sleeping for two hours, but giving me trouble at bedtime, sometimes staying up to 9:00. I kept them up one day to see what would happen. The girls were a bit cranky in the afternoon, but we saved TV time for that grouchy time. Then they didn’t fight me at bedtime. Now at bedtime they simply go to sleep. It has been the best decision I have made. But it is a sad moment in time. Now we have lost our nap – my precious time. And so it goes with growing up…

Photo courtesy of jefield