children

Yesterday was a big day in the Bennett household.  Emma got her braces!

 

 

I hope you can see how excited she is about them.  Truth be told, I think she’s enjoying all the attention.  She likes having All the Things to clean her teeth with.  She even brushed her teeth this morning without me asking.

 

 

 

That *could* have something to do with the contract she signed that said if the orthodontist gave her a bad grade on her hygiene for 2 months, she’d have to pay $50 (of her own money) and go into a Oral Hygiene program. Either way, I’m into it.

I couldn’t help get a bit sentimental about the whole shebang. 

 

 

Yesterday, as we drove as a family (plus a friend) to the office, I was bemoaning how it seemed like just yesterday I was teaching her how to walk and now she was getting braces and starting 5th grade.  She promptly rolled her eyes and said Really?  Even the tween annoyance was cute at the moment.  Aw, see, she’s getting annoyed at me—just like a real tween.

 

 

As we were sitting at the foot of her chair watching small little pieces of metal getting glued onto her teeth, I couldn’t help but steal a glance at Scott.  I was only 15 when we met, halfway through my own set of braces.

How was it we now had two daughters, one getting braces, the other snapping pictures of her on the iPad?  Sure, she’s getting them a lot earlier than me, but still—it was a full-circle moment for me. 

I suppose this is a sign of getting older—a bunch of sentiment brought on by a few tiny pieces of metal.

 

Linking up with LisaJoBaker.com

I got braces during my 9th grade year.  I had to get 4 teeth pulled because my mouth was so crowded. 

I remember having to gnaw on PB&Js at school lunch, change out bands and nurse sore cheeks with wax.  There’s no doubt braces aren’t exactly fun. 

My 10th grade picture, about 6 months after getting braces. (The necklace was a birthday gift from Scott.  Hello 90’s and gold chains.)

 

I’d had them 2.5 years when I begged to get them off for my senior pictures but he said they just weren’t ready.  I finally had them removed at the end of my senior year and all the discomfort was worth it. 

Fast forward 15 years.

I had no idea that orthodontists these days start looking at kids’ teeth as early as 7 or 8 years old. When one of Emma’s best friends got braces on over a year ago, we realized we were already behind.

When Emma saw what her friend was going through at first, Emma didn’t want a single thing to do with braces.  And that meant I didn’t want to either.  There’s no way I would force the issue.  It’s enough work and pain when you want them but it would be absolute torture if she didn’t want them and I was having to force extra hygiene, bands and wax on her.

But now that Emma’s friend is nearly getting hers off, Emma wants her turn.  And listen, I’m striking while the iron is hot.  If she’s into it and ready for the work, then I am too.  The orthodontist said there was no harm in her waiting until she was older.  She doesn’t have any glaring issues worthy of an emergency but she’s ready, she has a buddy that’s been-there, done-that and that’s enough for me.

So, her treatment plan looked something like this: she’ll have spacers for one week in her back teeth to make room for brackets.

Then, get the expander which will widen the roof of her mouth by turning a screw device twice a day for 10 days.  Her mouth is tiny like mine and they’re trying to avoid pulling her teeth like mine. 

The expander will stay in her mouth for at least 3 months to ensure her mouth doesn’t move back.  However, the braces will go in along with the expander and they’ll stay for 2 years.

*Deep breath*

So far we’ve completed the spacers and tomorrow will be our last day of turning the expander.  Braces will be coming in just a few weeks.

The first few days weren’t really fun.  She was having trouble keeping things out of the roof of her mouth and her teeth were sore.  We were keeping her hopped up on medicine almost all the time.  She only wanted to eat things like cottage cheese, yogurt, mashed potatoes and smoothies.  Since we’re gluten free, it made eating EXTRA fun.

Right now, things are getting worse before they’re getting better and I admit I’m a little panicky.

Here she is last week before the expander.

 

Her front two teeth are perfectly aligned but you can see the back of her mouth is very narrow, she has an overbite and her bottom teeth are not growing properly because of it.

She got her expander last Wednesday and here’s how much it’s changed already:

You can see the back of her mouth is wider.  On her right side, you can see a back tooth you couldn’t see before.  Most glaring though is the space in the front. 

Last night I told Scott, “Did we really pay for her to have a gap in her teeth??” 

It’s totally expected (I actually think it’s kind of adorable) and the braces will immediately fix it but still, it makes me a little panicky for it to get worse before it gets better.

I had originally planned to get her braces on several weeks before school started so we were doing all of this during the summer but due to vacation and holidays, it looks like she’ll be getting her braces right as school starts.

*Deep breath*

She’s actually having fun with it all though.  Just this morning, she said she likes turning the key and will miss it after tomorrow and she likes using her waterpik.  She’s already got the color picked out she wants on her bands the first time.

That’s exactly the attitude I’d hoped she’d have when we ever decided to get braces so all in all, I’m calling it so far, so good.

I’ll be updating you (with permission from Emma) through our braces journey to let you know how it goes.  I know it’s helped tremendously having someone we know go through the same thing just before us.

 

Did you have braces?  Do your kids have braces?  Any tips/tricks/advice is welcome!

 

Posted with permission from Miss Emma

 

 

Last summer Emma went to camp for the first time. She surprised us all by loving the outdoor activities like archery and canoeing.  She came home and would not stop about either.

We ended up getting her a bow and arrow but she still kept on about the canoe.

Scott was excited as he’s gone to nearby Catawba River a few times with friends and even camped overnight.  But really, I think we both thought the camp excitement might wear off and she’d change her mind.

I liked the idea though, because it was the perfect Daddy-daughter bonding experience.  With two girls, there’s not a whole lot that Scott and the girls can do that’s purely their thing but this would be perfect.

Last fall we went a few times to the sports store and would look at canoes.  I looked them up a few different times on Craigslist but generally, they weren’t going for a whole lot less than just getting them new in a store.

We still held off since we knew school and winter was coming and we had some unexpected bills come up.

But then, this past Sunday they went on sale and Scott was at the store in the blink of an eye with Emma.

Lexi, of course, was not into it because that’s just what Lexi does.  New = bad.

I started thinking of Scott and Emma on the river though and before long in my head they were lost miles down the river with search crews scouring the banks for them.  I have no idea where Lexi gets her anxiety from.  *ahem*

Yeah, so when Scott came home with the canoe suggesting we try it in the pool first I was like yes!  The pool!  Walls are good!  Who cares about the river?!

So, in true redneck fashion, the canoe went in the pool.

The first order of business was taking care of Lexi’s two fears: sharks and tipping over.  Clearly, sharks were easy to clear up but the second was tipping over.  I needed convinced too.

 

 

 

So, Scott purposely tried to tip the canoe over.  It wouldn’t tip and it didn’t take long for both girls (and me) to be totally comfortable. 

In fact, I insisted we name it and the girls came up with The Mermaid.

 

 

 

It was a hit.

 

So, Monday after dinner, Scott surprised the girls by saying we’d take it out to the river just to paddle around a bit and get used to it.

Both girls were ecstatic and Lexi only put up a little fight about wearing an ugly orange vest.

 

 

So this is the point where I started repeating emergency procedures in my head and reminding myself how much I trust my husband.  And convincing myself there really are no sharks around.

 

 

The really funny part was though, was that as worried as I might have been at times how they might be swept off into nowhere, Scott was basically doing all the paddling and since the plan was to go upstream and then float back down, he was moving at an absolute snail’s pace. 

 

 

I was literally laughing out loud to myself watching them go so slowly.

 

 

He got it though and after just a little circle and they headed back for Lexi to get out.

 

 

Scott and Emma went back out and went a little further. 

While they were gone, a young couple came with just a double-seated pool float and a bag of take out, got in the float and took off down the river sipping on smoothies.  Another double-dating set of high school kids showed up with no apparent goal in mind, presumably wasting time and finding a reason to not be home.

 

 

I couldn’t help but think of my girls and how we’re just a few years away from them doing just that, especially Emma.

I looked at Scott and Emma and wondered if maybe this is just practice for Emma and how she’ll remember her Daddy taking her out on a canoe on the river.

 

 

If she can find a guy that will work this hard to get out on a river just to make her happy, I think we’ll be on the right path.

 

 

I’m praying for that kind of guy because one day she just might have two girls of her own and need a strong, trustworthy husband to take her two little girls out on the river.

 

That picture?  If I could frame their childhood, that’s what the print would look like.

We’re all dressed up in clothes that we went shopping for the day before.  Even though they were begging me to leave by the end of the 3 hour shopping trip, I loved when Emma would lace her fingers through mine walking through the mall. Or, how Lexi straight up told me my dress was ugly.

I love that even though I didn’t push for it, both of them settled on that same green dress immediately.  While I didn’t get patent leather shoes and Easter hats like the little girls in the purple dress in the mall, I still got a little bit of my matching baby girls.

I love Lexi’s long hair and her bare feet because that’s just Lexi, kicking off shoes wherever they land and swinging that hair she says we’re never allowed to cut.

I love that Lexi’s not wearing her jacket like Emma’s because we can’t find it.  It’s missing somewhere under a pile of who knows what in our house.  Emma’s was rescued late last evening from a friend’s house where she left it Wednesday night.

Emma’s wearing sandals she didn’t wear to church because the sole was coming out of her dress shoes—the same ones from last year. We had to hot glue the soles down 10 minutes before church because they kept coming up and irritating her. I told her she could throw them away if she would just get through Easter with them.

I can see Emma’s new earrings she bought through her hair.  She wanted “dangly ones” like a big girl and used her own money to pay for them.  Her left ear is getting infected because she says she has a bad habit of twirling it.

I love that I’m wearing a dress that I bought because I love it.  I didn’t have to call anyone to see what they thought and I ignored Lexi when she didn’t like it. It’s hard for a people pleaser when you have to look yourself in the mirror in the dressing room and just answer, “What do you think of it?”

I love so much that we’re laughing because Lexi kept running her little fingers up the back of my knee just to aggravate me and make me laugh while Mom was taking a picture.  Just. like. her daddy.

Her daddy, might I say, who was off working.  I sure do miss him in this picture but that’s the sacrifice we make.  The three of us girls find ourselves alone a lot on weekends. I love our girl time and this picture reminds me of those moments.

I want so much for my girls to remember me like this—forgetting hot-glued shoes and lost jackets—and just laughing for no other reason than they wanted me to.