Please tell me I’m not the only mother that cried when her children went in to get their braces put on their teeth… I felt so silly! Still, how are they possibly old enough for braces? I’m not ready for them to grow up yet!
Of course, I took pictures before, during, and after their appointment to share with you all. Speaking of which, Twinkle Toes asked me which color rubber bands I had on my braces, when I first got them… I couldn’t remember and she commented that, “It’s too bad your mom didn’t have a blog when you were little, so you could go and check!” So, for the record, Twinkle Toes opted for “Screaming Pink” and Captain choose “Midnight Blue.” 🙂
Before:
During:
After:
Smoothies from the Orthodontist!
Curious Siblings…
Special Treats
During their appointment, while I was at the store stocking up on Ibuprofen and Mouth Wash, I decided to surprise Captain with a few new lego minifigures. Twinkle Toes’s surprise should be delivered by the UPS man any minute! 🙂
(I love it when I pre-order new books. This one will also be arriving tomorrow! I would have had it by now, but I ordered it so long ago I had to update my credit card information…)
Bud wasn’t sure what to think…
… but he always has a smile for his mama!
Time for me to go mop the floors… They just somehow looked clean in that video from the other day! We’ve decided to cut back on the cleaning lady to (partially) help with all the extra dental expenses… (I’m sure I looked like Snuggles when we added up all the charges!) I am sure going to miss having her help, even if she was only coming six hours a month! Still, it will all be worth it, and it’s such a blessing to be able to do this for our children. God is good!
My oldest daughter just had me order those books yesterday with a gift card she got her for birthday. My middle daughter spent a good while perusing the catalog we got from American Girl musing about how nice it would be to get Caroline for Christmas.
They both look great with their braces. I'm glad I'm not the only one who takes pictures in doctors' offices. I usually snap a few pics of the kids getting their fluoride treatments at the dentist. They HATE when I do it.
I didn't cry with the braces, but I did with the expansion appliance! It was so hard to hear my daughter with her speech impared while she figured out how to talk with it in. Your kids look adorable with the braces. :-). And smoothies, how cool is that?
your sweet bud reminds me of mine =) OUR bud is 5 months old and I'm the one who also gets the best smiles ever! I LOVE taking care of him, when I cradle hold him his thumb goes right in his mouth – so sweet!
Great pictures!
The cost is why I cry when my kids need braces—-and 2 phases each really adds up with so many kids! Meg had some work done to help create more space for her teeth, but the top ones weren't moving, and he said, "Oh, I can just put 4 little brackets on there!" to which I replied "Sure!" and then they presented me with the $3000 bill for it! Okay, maybe not $3000, maybe only $1800, but he made it sound so easy that it wouldn't be an additional charge. 🙂 So far, ONE out of the six hasn't needed braces. But I'm thankful for that every day. 🙂
For many families, orthodontics isn't even blinked at, but for many, likes yours, like ours, it is. It's a blessing for you to do it for your children. My husband needed braces and didn't get them until we had our own children, which was a hardship, but necessary in his profession.
Oh, I definitely cried at the cost too… We are going to have to be extra creative with our budgeting, and all thoughts of trying to get a vehicle that fits our whole family are going to have to wait indefinitely.
Captain has the full set of braces now, but Twinkle Toes will be having 2 phases, with retainers in between. My own experience with braces was so traumatic – 5 years, including moving out of state, getting a new orthodontist, having a total of 6 teeth pulled (plus wisdom teeth later) and pretty much starting over half way through treatment, etc. I just pray that it goes a little more smoothly for our kids.
And it's funny that you mentioned that just one of your six hasn't needed braces, Sara. For my parents, it was just two of twelve! 🙂 I still can't believe they found a way to put TEN of us through braces!
And it was the same for my own dad, Barbara. I remember him having braces when we were all little.
Your sacrifices for your kids will be well worth it! I often think that opportunities like these are a good way to teach our kids about suffering!
Thanks for being such a positive reminder to offer up the sacrifices that we make – especially those for our kids!
Blessings on your school week!
LOL at the elastics comment. When I had my braces, there was only one color! Braces have gone mainstream, it seems. My dd usually chooses 2 or 3 colors and coordinates with the season. Makes me laugh every time.