Taking Care of that Smile

My friend had a post on her blog about some things she doesn't tell her pediatrician http://www.conscienceparenting.com/2011/12/07/why-i-dont-tell-my-kids-doctor-the-whole-truth/, and I kind of laughed because I hadn't told our pediatrician the Rylie hadn't gone to the dentist yet, and before our appointments I would stick Liam's pacifier in my purse in hopes to avoid a lecture.  It wasn't like we hadn't talked about Rylie going to the dentist before, my husband would say, "They are her baby teeth, they will fall out anyways, what's the point of the dentist at her age, and I don't want to expose her to x-ray for teeth she is going to lose."  I can hear that horrible comments now on how we were neglecting our daughter's teeth and oral health.  That isn't true, in fact we did brush her teeth and watch them for any issues.  It was just our choice for her not to go before now.

Well today, I took Rylie to her first dentist appointment.  I had imagined her screaming at the top of her lungs like a wild animal trying to escape.  I would have not been surprised if she didn't make it through the appointment due to the screaming and tears.

However, I didn't give her enough credit.  She did great through the x-rays, the tech assured me that the dose of radiation was the lowest possible, and that it was no different from us walking around outside.  I couldn't be in there with her because of being pregnant, but I could hear everything from the hall.  She did great following directions.

She sat in the dentist chair like a perfect little lady and got the highest behavior score.  I guess some kids have to get their teeth cleaned in a sound proof room because of their less than happy behavior.  She squirmed a little during the cleaning(even I do that), but she did great!  Unfortunately she has a cross under bite(from the pacifier, go figure), this means her top teeth go over her bottom teeth on on side and under on the other.  To fix it, she has to get a quad helix appliance to fix her jaw before she loses her baby teeth so it doesn't mess up her permanent teeth.

                      She wanted me to stop taking pictures so she could play!

I was very proud of my girl and she already has her six month cleaning appointment, so yes the dentist is now part of Rylie's appointment routine of check-ups. At least I don't have to withhold the truth about the dentist from her pediatrician anymore!