This week we got an unexpected surprise. J discovered a wiggly tooth, and a couple short hours later lost his first tooth! Needless to say we were not prepared for this at all. We thought we had another year before we reached this milestone, but the universe had different plans.
I had this idea of how this day would go. I would have already acquired an adorable tooth pillow in which he could place his tooth, and the Tooth Fairy could leave a little surprise. I would have had time to pow-wow with the Tooth Fairy to put cool little trinkets and items on the wish list for our kiddo. And, the supply for these items would, ideally, not be hindered by the COVID-19 restrictions.
But, you know what they say about best laid plans…
So, we embraced the milestone. We celebrated! And we spent a lot of time simply explaining the process of the Tooth Fairy, because we really hadn’t talked about it aside from when the neighbor kids mentioned losing their teeth. Logistics are very important to J, so we spent time talking about magic and entry and exit from our home; not to mention the skill it takes to remove the tooth from under the pillow and replace it with a gift.
Life comes at us fast, for all of us parents. When we are kids things seem to move slow. That’s the gift for us as parents. Their seemingly slow moving time gives us the opportunity to really cherish every milestone, even when we aren’t ready for how fast it actually approaches. We just have to do the best we can with what we have, and make their memories great! Remember, they don’t know what happens in our heads unless we tell them. And they really don’t know the efforts we put in as parents, but we do.
Monday morning J was so excited to find two dollars to add to his savings. He had just gotten a new (hand-me-down) wallet from his Papa, so he immediately placed his special Tooth Fairy money in it. And he told everyone…and I mean everyone! He wanted the world to know he lost his tooth and the Tooth Fairy came! It was fantastic watching him make memories. And due to our gas leak debacle (see my Mombie Hack Monday post from this week) both my husband and I got to enjoy watching his excitement in this new experience.
Even though we weren’t prepared, at all, we still did the best we could. And we succeeded! And, less than five days later, we still aren’t prepared. This morning J came in to my office and told me his other bottom front tooth is wiggly and sure enough, it’ll likely fall out tonight or tomorrow. Hopefully it won’t fall out while he’s sleeping…but if he does, the Tooth Fairy still offers a reward even when the tooth is swallowed or lost.
Remember, as parents, we are often caught off guard. This isn’t just me, and it isn’t just you. All of us have moments we aren’t prepared for, and we just have to roll with it the best we can. You are doing great! You aren’t alone if you feel like you’ve dropped the ball. Your children will have fond memories, no matter how prepared (or unprepared) you are, as long as you embrace it and do the best you can.
The Parenting Roller Coaster 