Teeth are unforgiving

Knees get skinned and heal back. Bottoms get diaper rash which eventually goes away. Heads get goose eggs but eventually return to normal size. Teeth chip and stay chipped. A tooth develops a cavity and only after shiny silver is poured on the hole is it fixed. Teeth don't give parents grace, they proudly display all the accidents or poor habits that take place under a parent's supervision.

That being said, here is a tip for Thursdays. Children's liquid Zyrtec has sugar in it. Which means it is not a good idea to have a habit of giving their "medicine" to them right after they brush their teeth and right before they go to bed. That was our habit for a year. D'arcy developed persistent and extensive hives in June '08 which led us to an allergist who put her on a daily regimen of antihistamines. The allergist who was otherwise amazing, neglected to tell us that this medicine should be administered prior to brushing teeth.

At this point, you might be thinking, "DUH?!" So although Stephen and I both have Bachelor's degrees, and Stephen has a successful career as a Computer programmer, we didn't think to read the ingredients on the bottle.

Fast forward nine months, and D'arcy begins to complain that her tooth hurts. After a quick inspection, I conclude that she has many cavities. The dentist concurs. I, still clueless, ask why this is happening. She wonders if they are sneaking cookies after bedtime. NO! At this point, we have only been brushing their teeth once a day, but our kids don't have juice regularly nor do they have candy regularly (well, besides that month long stint of potty training). They certainly aren't sneaking a bit of ice cream after they are supposed to be in bed. I was, as you can imagine, defensive, and then a light bulb went off in Stephen's head. What about the medicine?

Our dentist then sends us to a pediatric dentist who recommended we put her under general anesthesia in order to complete the extensive repair needed on her teeth. Which brings us to today. We went to the hospital at 6am, and by 9, D'arcy was in recovery. A kid waking up from general anesthesia isn't easy to see. D'arcy had peed herself and was kicking and screaming and lurching her head back. After a half and hour she was more herself.

When I finally got a chance to look at the work that had been done, I was surprised to find that they had to cap six teeth with silver. I knew they were going to use silver in order to protect the nerve, but I didn't realize that would have to fully cap the tooth. D'arcy is insisting that they are not silver but gold. Maybe I should have asked for gold, it certainly would have been more of a fashion statement.

So let me stop and assess what I am grateful for.
#1 D'arcy's hives were managed well with Zyrtec.
#2 D'arcy went back to the allergist a couple of weeks ago and miraculously, her body has began to properly handle it's histamine level so she doesn't need medicine anymore.
#3 D'arcy's teeth have been fixed in order for her to eat without pain until her permanent teeth come in in several years.
#4 Our medical plan is fantastic, and all of this cost me only about two hundred dollars.
And most importantly
#5 For a little girl who is brave, who is proud of her new beautiful silver teeth, and who loves her parents despite their inability to check the bottle of medicine for sugar content.