Goodbye Tooth Fairy
My youngest daughter came home from school the other day with what she considered very exciting news. For the first time, one of her teeth is loose! For the first time as a mom, that news made me sad.
I know it's a very natural progression. My "baby" is growing up and every "first" with her, is my "last". I felt the same twinge of sadness after taking her out of her crib for the last time, giving away the last of her baby clothes and sending her off as the last of my three children to go to kindergarten.
When my oldest lost her first tooth, I remember eagerly anticipating the tooth fairy's first visit. What time would she arrive? How much would she leave? How excited would my daughter be the next morning? Since then, the tooth fairy has made many visits to our house, compliments of my two oldest girls. Some for teeth that naturally fell out and a couple of times for teeth that got knocked out. (She left extra money for those teeth.) After all these years, she only "missed" a visit one time. As she explained in the apologetic note she left the next night, she wasn't able to visit because of the terrible rain storm. (Yes it had rained that night, thank goodness.)
We've moved on in our house. These days I'm paying for braces to straighten permanent teeth in two sets of mouths. Only one more mouth of baby teeth to go! As I write this, my "baby" is taking her last school picture with a full set of teeth. The very "wiggly" tooth will be coming out any day now. The tooth fairy's next visit to our house is just nights away. I am very excited for my little girl, but I am very sad for me. Maybe it's because I know I'll soon be paying for braces in a third mouth, but mostly it's because my youngest daughter is growing up. I'll miss you tooth fairy!
