The Long and the Short

The Short

The kids and I went down to North Carolina to spend New Year's with our favorite people. We weren't even out of Chesapeake yet when Cakes suddenly yelled that Silly's tooth fell out!

...while he was eating an apple.

...and he swallowed it!

I didn't even know that tooth was loose, and I don't think he did either. He'd certainly never wiggled it. I was a little afraid that he'd never eat a whole apple again, but he went right back to it.

Kinda disappointing for a first lost tooth, since there isn't anything to put under his pillow, but I told him we could write a note of explanation to the tooth fairy (I've got a few notes to the tooth fairy myself, my mom saved them and gave them back to me recently). He doesn't seem all that broken up about it.

We had a great time with our friends - as much fun as you can have with 7 children. They also happened to be dog-sitting for a neighbor. Their two year old was completely in love with that dog, in true mauling, loving it to death, two year old fashion. We don't think the dog was too upset about going back home this morning.

This was our third New Year's Eve together. The kids decorate, which involves lots of tape...



My decorators

 we have dinner, cake and ice cream...

Waiting for cake

play a fun game or two and then celebrate on the hour, any hour, and send the kids to bed.

 

We're both surprised that the older girls haven't yet realized they're getting jipped by not staying up anywhere close to midnight.

They also had some fireworks going off somewhere in the neighborhood, so most of the kids were out on the back porch, yelling on the count of three, "Please set off another firework! We're your neighbors!" They were sure it was working, because the fireworks kept coming.

 

And best of all, the kids went to sleep without much fuss after that, certainly not the case for years 1 and 2.

 

Sunday we went to church together, saw the temple next door, and ran into my former Young Women president, who is now my friend's visiting teacher. I just love those little connections.

 

And now...

 

The Long

 

Cakes has had a loose tooth for somewhere around a year - and a half. No exaggeration. The kids have dentist appointments this month, and I know I mentioned it at their last checkup, saying it had already been loose a year. Inspired by Silly's sudden loss, and a little positive pressure from her two friends (which entailed nearly an hour in the bathroom this morning, using lots of tissues and lots of offers of "do you want me to do it for you?) she finally, finally got rid of that tooth! Thank goodness! I was tired of looking at that snaggly little thing. Have you ever heard of someone having a loose tooth for that long? Craziness. I never would have let a tooth stick around that long myself.

 

The tooth fairy will be busy at our house tonight.

 

This morning we were on the road heading for home, and it's back to real life tomorrow; school, laundry, things to sort and organize to start the new year off right, stuff to make the kids get rid of to make room for their new stuff, and all the other regular life stuff I do around here.