Cash sees the Dentist

This morning Cash went to see Dr. Amy. She's a pediatric dentist. I didn't have very high hopes for this visit since Cash hates to brush his teeth and the last time we went to the dentist he pretty much just cowered in my arms the whole time. Dr. Amy is a pediatric dentist so that was the first step in the right direction. There are lots of toys in the waiting room and friendly office staff and hygienists to make the kiddos feel comfortable. They do not pressure the kids to do anything they don't want to and focus on making the experience enjoyable and stress-free (mother, take note! i am sure these pediatric dentists existed when i was younger).

Cash didn't want to have his x-rays taken, so he didn't but he did sit in the chair with the big heavy jacket on and got to look at the camera - when it came time to put the bite guards in his mouth he was done. so we moved on. He sat in the dental chair for a few minutes and played with the stuffed animals - who all had dentures. Cash brushed their teeth for a while and showed Dr. Amy how he brushed but when it came time to laying back he got freaked. so he sat in my lap as Dr. Amy told us all about how pacifiers could do irreversible damage to a pallet! and how children really should only be drinking juice/milk twice a day with meals. so right there i thought i was going to be in big trouble when the exam started! But i held Cash in my lap and he laid his head on Dr. Amy's lap and she examined his teeth with her little mirror. She said he had no cavities that she could see (and only x-rays could show cavities between teeth) and there was no decay that she could see either. She did say that he has a pretty good cross bite - he does have a cute little crooked mouth doesn't he? And she said that he'll need an appliance at some point to correct that. She said that he has some crowding too.

None of these things came as a surprise to me - have you seen my oral history? and i am sure that Cash and I will be spending a lot of time in dentist's and orthodontist's offices over the years. but i promise him that i'll make it as painless as possible. He got a little stuffed animal as a parting gift and on the way home in the car he was showing the bear how to floss his teeth!