Open Wide!!

The boys all went to the dentist this morning. I made the appointment ages ago, and cannot for the life of me remember why, the hell, I would have scheduled 3 appointments at 7:30 in the morning when it is summer and we don't have to worry about missing school. But - I did. 7:30?? Ouch!

In very un-Jensen like fashion, we were out the door in plenty of time and made it to the dentist's office with even a few minutes to spare! (who are these boys and what have they done with my children?)

And all went swimmingly at the dentist's office. Well, except for Christopher who refused to let the doctor clean his teeth, and then he had to have x-rays which was, in his mind, torture to beat all other forms of torture, but hey - he got a bouncy ball out of it so all is right with the world.

Parker got to do the two-hands-in-the-air-touchdown-celebratory NO CAVITIES MA!! dance. But, I most certainly hope he has no cavities because he had SIX the last time we went to the dentist, and he has since had them all filled and had those protective sealents put on his teeth.

Matthew has one cavity. It's a contact variety cavity, meaning he needs to get better at flossing (he's not alone there - can't remember the last time I did that, but SHHHH don't tell anyone!) He, too, will have sealents put on the next time we go.

And that leaves Christopher. Poor bloke has a big ole, see-it-with-the-naked-eye cavity on a back molar. Which will need to be filled, obviously. Which was most likely caused by the "unusually deep grooves" in his back teeth. Which the dentist wants to file down and seal. Which is unusual in children so young.

Just what I want... an unusual dental patient!

So we have some sedation and a bit of nitrice-oxide in our future... They will try to get his teeth cleaned at the same time they fill the cavity.

I know the ADA recommends that children start seeing the dentist as soon as they have teeth. We are, knowingly, a bit late, then, in getting Christopher in. But I really can't imagine how they DO anything with the younger kids - Chris knows how to follow directions like "Open your mouth BIG" and he was reluctant to go along with the whole gig. I simply cannot imagine using sharp instruments around a child even younger who is more likely to act erratically.

Guess that's just one of the reasons why I did not choose to become a dentist!