It Makes Me Hurt!

McKaylie's teeth have always been a problem. We were told in Virginia that she had soft, brittle teeth that were very prone to cavities. She's been to the dentist more times than Myshel and Vance put together. It's also very obvious that there just isn't enough room in her mouth for all her permanent teeth. We knew an orthodontist was in her future.
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She had her initial evaluation a few weeks ago and they started her file. They decided that they might be able to "buy her time" by pulling her top canine teeth. (Is that really what they call them???) That would give her two teeth that are on either side of her front teeth room to come in. They did this in Virginia for her bottom teeth. They'll have to periodically pull teeth that aren't loose yet, to make room for teeth that are trying to come in, until her mouth gets big enough for all her teeth, or they have to pull permanent teeth to make room. By doing this, her permanent teeth will come in straight and the need for braces will be less likely. That's the theory anyway! Did we really need an orthodontist to tell us this? I don't know? But I guess it's good to have him on board through the process.
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The two teeth that they're trying to make room for right now were already starting to come in. There isn't room for them, so they are coming in behind the other teeth. The dentist had to squeeze in an appointment for her this last Tuesday. Chad took her since I was at speech with Noah. He said that they had a hard time getting her numb and she had to get several shots. He said you could tell that they hurt, but she did really great and never cried. They pulled her two canine teeth, packed her with gauze and sent her home. I was here when she got home and she looked so wiped out, but was very proud to show me her teeth.
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One of her teeth was getting a little loose, the other wasn't loose at all. Here's a picture of her teeth. Can you guess which one was loose and which wasn't. I can't believe that root! I was teasing her that it must have been attached to her brain! We have a book about having a loose tooth and it says that the roots of your teeth dissolve and that's why your teeth get loose. My kids used to ask me if that was really true. I think this answers that question with a resounding, YES!!! It makes me hurt just looking at that root and knowing what she had to go through. She's such a tough cookie and she really doesn't complain much about it. She got the gorilla later that day for being so brave. She named it Mindy! McKaylie and Mindy fell asleep that night waiting for the tooth fairy! I checked her gums the next morning and they looked really good! And, her permanent teeth were already moving forward to where the baby teeth had been pulled! I think that's amazing! Before we know it, McKaylie will have 4 permanent teeth on top and you won't even be able to tell she had teeth pulled...........until, maybe, the next ones have to be pulled!