Chloe's Disappointing First Dental Visit

This morning the kids and I headed to the Small Smiles dental clinic for Chloe's first ever dental visit. We had read some dentist-type books and almost every mom I talked to (or that commented on FB) reassured me of what would happen on the first visit. According to them, the first visit would be a simple tooth-counting and comfort-building chair sitting experience for Chloe. And of course a brand new toothbrush to culminate the event. Sounded pretty non-threatening and even sort of fun!

This morning at breakfast, I was giving Chloe the expectation run-down again so she'd know exactly what would happen. Chloe is a sweetie but she is a girl that doesn't roll with the unexpected well. She needs time to feel comfortable and letting her know exactly what will happen seems to ease her fears.

Anyways, Chloe was excited about the dentist visit and said animatedly, "I sure hope I get a new princess toothbrush at the dentist!" She even dressed up her favorite teddy bear in baby clothes and brought him along for the occasion.

As soon as we walked into the clinic door, I had a foreboding feeling. The lobby was VERY crowded and felt more like a daycare center than the comforting low-key lobby experience I had envisioned. Nonetheless, the kiddos settled in to play while I filled out the paperwork. And then we waited. And waited. And waited some more! It was 45 minutes before Chloe's name was called.

After a brief introduction, the dental hygienist took us back and instead of asking us anything curtly stated she would start by taking x-rays of Chloe's mouth. Sphincter say what?!? I tried not to let my hyper-mommy-alarm bells go crazy and decided instead to go with the flow and see how Chloe did. My girl was all smiles until the hygienist shoved the x-ray slide into her mouth. And then Chloe lost it -- with good reason too. The hygienist did NOT prepare Chloe for what was happening and I tried my best to comfort her from out in the hallway. Needless to say, the x-ray photography session did not happen. Chloe kept crying and was obviously scared.

The WORST part was the hygienist's impatience and obvious frustration with Chloe's meltdown. She just kept telling Chloe to stop crying and to be a good girl or she wouldn't get a toy. Hello?!? What 4 year old is going to stop crying on a dime for a stranger who is doing foreign things and is telling her she's not being good? I was starting to get seriously ticked off. I asked the hygienist to stop and that we'd have to do the x-rays on our next visit.

Moving on, the hygienist brought us to a huge room with about 8 dental chairs all filled with kiddos having various procedures done. Again, the mommy-alarm-bells started ringing like crazy. Talk about a distracting, loud and scary place! Chloe, unnerved and whimpering by this point, was not trusting this hygienist chic. It didn't help that the lady lowered Chloe in the dentist chair without warning. Chloe's tears started again (and so did my tears - I hated seeing my baby girl fall apart) and I quickly saw that wisest course of action was to split. I told the hygienist we were going home and we'd reschedule.

UGH. What a yucky experience! I truly think the worst part of it was the hygienist's use of bribery and her scolding impatient manner. I spent the entire ride home reassuring Chloe that I was not mad at her and she was not "bad" for being scared. I think it was perfectly natural and reasonable for Chloe to be frightened given the circumstances.

We will NOT be going back to that crazy clinic again. We're taking my little girl's teeth elsewhere!

What have your kids' dental experiences been like?

Chloe and Clive hit the lanes

Thanks to a friend's awesomely fun birthday party today, Chloe and Clive experienced bowling for the first time ever!

Both the kiddos enjoyed it but Chloe more-so since she's older. Once she got the hang of it, she happily bounced out by herself (she insisted on doing it herself) and threw the ball. Loudly. And her tongue came out with the exertion necessary for each throw.

I think we've found a fun family activity for the cold winter months! :)

It's an absolutely gorgeous day here in northeast Ohio. After supper we're hitting a favorite park to enjoy the remaining lovely mild weather of fall.

How did you spend your Saturday?

Chloe's first ballet lesson

Today as I sat on the sidelines and watched Chloe plie, point her toes, and attempt an arabesque in her first ballet lesson, I was slapped in the face with how quickly her little life is progressing. Something about observing her out there by herself, functioning independently, and thriving in the midst of the class made me see her in a new light.

How could the baby that I held in my arms so recently now be this darling girl prancing around in pink ballet slippers?

I am unspeakably proud of her. I was radiating joy as I watched, a perpetual smile spread on my happy face.

Aside from my inherent mommy bias, Chloe truly did a fabulous job. She listened well and followed the teacher's instructions carefully. The other moms even asked me if Chloe had been in dance class before. Nope! She's just an obedient and respectful little girl (most of the time). And we've worked (and continue working) VERY hard at cultivating those traits in her.



The trite saying is true. These babies really do grow up too fast.

It's not easy being gold

As a belated birthday gift, Matt bought Chloe her first goldfish. Her first four goldfish to be exact. They went to Wal-Mart to rescue said goldfish from the sad looking store aquariums (seriously, do they ever clean those tanks?!?). And Matt spent a whopping 28 cents on each new swimmy addition to our family. Could that be foreshadowing of things to come?

This fish thing is a daddy and Chloe project so daily they feed them and change the water. They also collected rocks for the bottom of our old-school-glass-fishbowl and spruced the fish's home with plastic seaweed.

The cutest thing was seeing Chloe watch her goldfish on their first day. She perched on the piano bench to watch them swim and soon I noticed her dipping her finger in the water. I quickly stopped her and asked what she was doing. Chloe's response? "I want to pet my fish, mommy!" Awwww.

I'm sure you all see where this is headed. Despite Matt and Chloe's efforts only one goldfish is still alive and swimming. The good thing is that Chloe doesn't seem too saddened by it. And at 28 cents a pop I think we can afford to get some new fishies.

I'm assuming this whole goldfish experience is a token one for young families. Have you ever gone through a goldfish phase?

Too early for phonics?

I'm poised to dive into teaching Chloe phonics and I'm kind of nervous.

Chloe can identify all her uppercase letters (and most lowercase), her numbers and she's even picked up writing a few letters on her own. I think it's time to move ahead so we can keep challenging her.

She's always been super interested in books and reading so this might be the right time to start. I want to be careful though to keep things fun and light so we can maintain her enthusiasm and love for learning.

I'm nervous for a few reasons. 1) I didn't learn to read through phonics! I simply memorized words and then built up my sight word vocabulary. I figured out phonics much later on in life. 2) I don't yet have a phonics curriculum or strategy. So far we've used the Leap Frog dvd Letter Factory which has been terrific! The animated characters travel to different rooms which contain each letter of the alphabet. Each letter then makes its sound and does something visually to depict the sound. For example, the A letters get scared by a monster and they scream, "AAH!" in their fright. The other cool thing about the dvd is that it uses the same song throughout that we sing now all the time. Chloe catches on like wildfire when music is involved! 3) Phonics seems like the first big learning concept in life. I'm nervous I'll teach something incorrectly or not using the best method. Yikes!

Now I need to tap into my blogger resources . . . At which age did you teach your children phonics? Is it true that girls generally start learning phonics earlier than boys do? What curriculum would you recommend? (I've heard good things about Phonics Pathways).

Another first for Chloe: a UTI

Chloe is currently suffering from a urinary tract infection. Poor girl!

My grandma arrived for a weekend visit on Thursday night and Chloe's troubles started on Friday. We spent Friday at home since the snowy sidewalks and chilly weather made a walk to the gym impossible. In a period of 3 hours Chloe had FOUR potty accidents. FOUR! That's unheard of for her. My first thought was that Chloe was regressing since Nana was here and getting my attention.

After more and more and MORE accidents Saturday through Monday, the thought finally struck Matt that Chloe might have a UTI. Neither of us have ever had one so we weren't sure what to look for. The diagnosis seemed to make sense and when I called my trusty mommy friend, Dr. Melinda (she's not a pediatrician but she should be since she's had so much experience with her six munchkins), and she said UTI right away.

A quick urine test (it was an interesting experience getting a urine sample from Chloe) at the doctor's office confirmed the UTI and now Chloe is on antibiotics and lots of cranberry juice. I feel AWFUL that we didn't see the signs until four days after the symptoms started! I suppose that's all par for the parenting course.

Today I indulged Chloe a bit (a way to ease my mommy guilt) and let her wear her pjs all day long. She also got to watch Piglet's Big Movie (her recent favorite), eat pizza for lunch, play with some new play-doh, and read lots of books with me.

I'm fairly certain Chloe acquired the UTI because of bad wiping practices after going potty. Toilet paper just doesn't do the trick so I'm switching to wipes or a washcloth. The most surprising thing I've learned through this experience is in regards to bubble bath. I mean, hello, all toddlers like playing in bubble bath. Who knew it would be a leading cause of UTI's?

Have your kiddos ever had a UTI? How long did it take to go away?

Chloe's first ear infection

This morning while Chloe practically choked on her phlegm, we made an appointment to see her doctor. This cold was just hanging on too long and looking severe.

After a very quick perusal by Dr. Kline (the world's fastest pediatrician), he informed us that Chloe had fluid behind her left ear. Antibiotics were prescribed and now Chloe is a happy camper again! I'm AMAZED at how quickly those buggers work! What a miracle drug!

Now the only issue is my health. I've been coughing hard, sneezing, and blowing my nose constantly today. I feel lousy. I'll be forced to call my doc tomorrow if things get worse (I'm anti-doctors for things like this but with the pregnancy I want to be sure all is ok for baby #2).

I think Matt must have felt left out because he came down with the beginnings of sinus infection yesterday. So, we made an appointment for him and he's on some strong meds to get him well again. He's feeling better already - yay!

A trio of sickies we are. Now we're all praying we can refrain from infecting Matt's visiting folks!

Painting toenails and eating popcorn

On a whim I asked Chloe the other day if she'd like her toenails painted. She agreed so we got out my bin of nail polish. Don't ask me why I have 23 bottles of nail polish when I only paint my toes once every 4 months or so (don't quote me on that 23, just an estimate).

Chloe was delighted to be able to choose a polish color and she selected a silvery shiny blue. The wiggle worm of a girl sat unbelievably still as I painted her toes and kept saying "I see it! I see it!" in her primitive toddler-talking way.

Of course this is just one of many Chloe and mommy activities, but this was a special one to me. It reminds me that my little girl is growing up into a big girl too quickly for my liking. And that I need to grab on to these fun moments and enjoy them to the fullest.

Another blossoming tradition Chloe and I share is eating popcorn while watching a movie together (more like part of a movie - I don't like her to watch more than 30 minutes at a time). We only do this rarely, maybe once every two months, so it's become a special ritual for us. Chloe takes her designated popcorn bowl and we both cuddle up together on the chair. Tonight we viewed the beginning of Curious George (way cute flick!) and we laughed together at Georgie's antics. When I turned it off, Chloe kept saying "sit, sit" and she climbed up on my lap to snuggle even though no movie was playing. It was a a precious mommy moment.

What special activities do you share with just you and our little ones?

So far, so good

The transition from crib to big-girl bed was a smashing success! Thanks to all of you for your advice and support. We decided not to do away with the pacifier just yet. After all of your wonderful experiential comments, we thought forcing two transitions at once would be too difficult for Chloe to handle.

All day long yesterday we talked up the big-girl bed and its sheets, pillows, rails, etc. When the time came for bed, Chloe practically jumped in! Then I did all of her familiar bed-time rituals (story, lullaby, prayer, kisses) and tucked her in.

I thought it wise NOT to warn her about getting out of bed. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it; I'm not giving her any ideas. Instead I advised her when she woke up to call for mommy and I'd get her out of bed. It worked like a charm!

This transition was a piece of cake! Next month we'll deal with the passy and start riding the potty train. I have a feeling those transitions will be a big rougher. Get ready with more advice for me on those topics, moms out there!

Chloe's jumping talent

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Our first finger-painting session was a success!

In the past few months I've gotten excited again about reading child development books. Recently I've read in at least two places (What to expect from your toddler: the second year and Slow and steady get me ready) that finger-painting is an ideal activity for 17 mos. old toddlers as far as creative development goes.

I found a finger-paint recipe on the web, mixed up some colors and prepped the painting area this afternoon while Chloe napped. I guess I over prepared for the session because Chloe didn't make a mess at all! Maybe she's just naturally neat or maybe she didn't feel much freedom to go wild since this was her first painting experience ever. (Experienced moms will probably agree with the latter).

We both had a grand time with the painting session and will certainly be doing it again soon as I have LOTS of leftover paint (I was a dummy and made the entire paint recipe). Here's a photo journal of our experience, enjoy!


















The artist's palette.

















First things first, how does this stuff taste? (Bland!)

















Ah, the possibilities are endless, mommy! (Like Chloe's painting outfit? We both wore headbands and inside-out-t-shirts. She especially liked wearing a headband like mommy!)

















The first tentative pink strokes.

















Chloe had to point to all the colors and have me say each one. Guess this will be a good way to help her learn colors!
















I took a piece of printer paper and pressed it on Chloe's painting. Voila! Her first masterpiece.

















I was surprised at how quickly Chloe was tired of finger-painting! After two "paintings" she wanted to be done. It certainly was fun while it lasted!