It's Like Pulling Teeth

 

 

 

It's been like a tooth-pulling factory over at our house lately. Mary Conlee started the trend on Christmas Day when she lost a tooth. Since then, Cole has had a couple of loose ones, but he won't let anyone near him within a 2 mile radius that is claiming to just "look" at the tooth. He doesn't fall for that line anymore! When I taught school, my favorite thing to do was to pull teeth. My students would take home their little tooth in a tooth-shaped necklace, along with a cute little certificate claiming their newest loss. I even had kids from other classrooms come to my room asking me to pull their tooth. My Granny once told me, "You'll quit that once you get a free bleeder." Sweet Granny was thinking back to her days as a 1st grade teacher and pulling teeth. Thankfully, I never ran into one of those free bleeders, Granny!

Since Cole doesn't want his Mom searching his mouth (and his Dad won't get anywhere close), he has learned to pull his own teeth. Actually, he begs for me to pull it at night while he is asleep, but I did that once...and lost the tooth somewhere in the bed--never to be found! So, either we restrain him in a straight jacket or just let him muster enough courage to pull it himself. Last week, he came home from school so excited that he had swallowed his tooth while eating his chips for snack. The tooth fairy understood that sometimes it happens, and came to see him anyway. We sure weren't going to be checking the potty for that tooth! Then a week later, he came home with a tooth hanging at the most unnatural angle, and he begged and pleaded that we just leave it in there. After 15 minutes of torture, begging and pleading for another way out...he finally yanked it out. Mary Conlee's big front tooth made it's way out of her mouth yesterday afternoon. When telling Bubbe where it was located, she referred to it as one of the "sitral cisors" (central incisors). She was a little panicked after seeing her brother's recent displays, but she was such a brave little girl and let me pull it for her. So we are all sporting new smiles, fewer teeth, and we are running low on "petty cash," if you know what I mean! The tooth fairy is worn out from her 4 trips to Tupelo in less than a month. I hope we can give her a break for awhile! On her way to school this morning, MC said, "This is just going to be the biggest surprise. They won't recognize my new smile." I hope she always loves pulling teeth like I do!