Double Dentist Appointments

If Soren ever gets really mad at me someday and wants something to hold against me, it'll probably be that I took him to the dentist on his first birthday.  Oliver's six-month cleaning in August had to be rescheduled because of our vacation and Soren's birthday was the next post-nap appointment I could get.  Since Soren now has teeth (2.5 of them) and it doesn't cost anything extra with our insurance to have him seen, it made sense to have the dentist take a peek in his mouth and verify there are no major problems. 

As you can imagine, there's not a lot you can do with a one-year-old.  My otherwise easy-going baby was very vocal about having his teeth cleaned, but the seasoned hygienist managed to clean them, apply fluoride treatment and inspect his gums for more emerging teeth (a fourth is about the break the gum line).  As soon as she was finished, I scooped Soren up into my arms and he let out an indignant sigh or two, but immediately stopped crying.  The hygienist rinsed off his toothbrush and tried to give it to him, but Soren, who had been curiously playing with it before she used it to clean his teeth, started crying again when he saw it. 

Since Oliver has more than 2.5 teeth, his visit with the dentist was much more tiring for me.  He was terrified of the big chair, but he stayed there, because once I sat him in it, he was too scared to try to get off it.  With the assistance of two hygienists and the dentist, they miraculously coaxed him into not crying long enough to take two x-rays, one of which was too blurry for the dentist to use.  I had talked with him about how the dentist needs to clean our teeth to make sure they stay healthy and that if we don't sit still, it's harder for them to keep our teeth healthy.  Maybe some of that sunk in, because the teeth cleaning was mildly, but only mildly, better than the ordeal of having x-rays taken.  Finally, the dentist wanted to inspect his teeth and even manage to floss them, which I thought was an impossible task!  I had assumed that Oliver has all his teeth by now, but he actually only has 19 of the 20 and two of those 19 aren't fully in.  I still think his proclamations at bedtime that his "teefs hurts" are mostly stall tactics, but I also wonder if there is some merit to them.   

Since Oliver needed so much of my attention during all this, the dentist had asked if someone from her staff could hold Soren for me.  So the receptionist came back and took him to the waiting room to look at the fish and when they came back, she told me that the hygienists, the other receptionist and the others in the waiting room sang "Happy Birthday" to him.  I thought that was sweet.

With both cleanings finished and the crying over, I thought we were in the clear.  But then Oliver dug into the snack bag and pulled out fruit snacks, which he waved in my face while I was talking to the dentist.  The conversation stopped and I could see her hold her breath and I knew I was in trouble for something.  She then informed me that fruit snacks are worse than juice, chocolate and hard candy for your teeth.  So if Oliver wants to know why fruit snacks are now banned from our house, there you have it. 

Since I do ALL the healthcare appointments, I'm used to the routine and was prepared for the crying, but gosh, even I was exhausted once we left the dentist's office.