When Peter was 3 1/2 and Sarah was 2, I took them both to the dentist for the first time. We went to the man who was my dentist growing up. I really liked Dr. Brown as a child. He was a sweet gentle man and I thought my kids would like him. And they did. He wasn't scary and I think they had fun laying back in the chair while he counted their teeth. However his office was a mess.There were piles of junk laying all around. The whole office had a very 1970's vibe too it and honestly, it looked like it hadn't been organized or cleaned since then. As the good doctor was digging through some junk drawers looking for toothbrushes to give my kids, I decided that we wouldn't be going back.
It took me a year, but I finally took them back to the dentist that Dan and I see. I asked her if the kids needed to be brushing twice a day and she told me yes. I groaned told her that they were great about letting us brush their teeth before but it was always a fight in the mornings and in my rush to get us out the door it was a fight that I usually let the kids win. (Bad Mommy!)
She told me to let the kids do it themselves. My husband and I needed to help them at night before bed but in the mornings it would be perfectly fine for them to do it alone. She also told them directly as they were in the chair that they needed to brush in the mornings.
I'm not sure whether it was the dentist telling them that they needed to brush in the mornings or whether it was the novelty of brushing by themselves that did it but it worked! We no longer fight about brushing teeth in the mornings. The kids willing do it all by themselves. I will admit that they manage to get toothpaste all over the sink, the mirror and the towel but I figure that is a small price to pay for fresh breath and clean teeth!
Now, if I could just get the dentist to tell my kids to clean the playroom we would be in business!
Head on over to Rocks in My Dryer for more Works for Me Wednesday tips!
3 comments:
Aldi and I'm sure some other stores, sell little "Firefly" toothbrushes. You press the handle and a light in the handle flashes on and off for one minute each time it is pressed.
These don't cost anymore than a regular toothbrush (about $1) and it helps the kids to know how long to brush - once the firefly "fire" goes out, they can stop.
Whoooooooo! I'd been stressing over this myself. Thanks for the tip. Bean will willingly brush her teeth alone in the morning, but I just can't seem to make myself fight her to do it myself, so now I can just leave her to it without feeling like a "badmom."
I'm afraid I spent more than the $1—$12, in fact—to get my 6-year-old one of the toothbrushes that plays music "through the teeth"! My little guy picked the one that plays "Let's Get It Started" by the Black-Eyed Peas. It takes just over two minutes to finish the song, and the kids can't hear the tune unless the toothbrush is in contact with the teeth. Then he dances while it's playing, so we have a two-minute creative cardio before bedtime stories. Well worth the money!
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