It's not even three years after I spotted that first microscopically barely visible cavity, and by now we sport what must be the poorliest baby teeth in town.
Tara is on best terms with the Tooth Fairy - the Spanish one, that is; The English one would not yet know of her existence as it only collects teeth that have come out naturally and in perfect condition, I understand. The Spanish one, being a mouse and not quite so picky, has kindly taken long journeys upon its little self to reward Tara for general bravery at the (by now private) dentist, in particular for treatment-without-trouble.
Oh, has Tara gotten good at treatment-without-trouble! Onto that special chair in a flash, pop the special glasses on and open mouth wiiiide. No problem, any of it. Drilling? Fiiiiiine. Tooth extraction? No problem at all.
Although, of course, this tooth extraction is a First, and we've been trying our best to stop it from happening. One course of anti-biotics (placebos would have worked better), a strict regime of all the good things the health shop suggested (which seemed to improve things but not enough), another course of alternative anti-biotics (gummi bears would have worked better)... six weeks of trying to calm down a nasty yellow leaking abscess on top of a little molar, with no success, so out. it. comes. (and my heart bleeds a considerable bit).
if you're on the NHS, they send you half way across the county to a special childrens' sedation clinic where they extract under full anesthetics. (One of the reasons we went private last year.) Our dentist is very good and so much more child and parent friendly: Extraction by story (and anesthetics that Tara never noticed she had).
Tara loved it. It goes roughly like this (after the gums have been rubbed with bubble gum flavoured numbing stuff): Close your eyes so you can imagine the story better. You're on Broadstairs beach on a lovely day and you're getting in a hot air balloon. You have your chicken korma with you and you're going up up up, feeling all light (in goes one injection). The seagulls try to steal your korma but you're not letting go of your treat. There are lots of tiny people under you as you float over the beach (in goes the second injection)... and now you're coming back down.
Tara adored it. "I imagined how my body got full of air like a balloon, Mummy," she says later, "and I could feel myself flying through the air!"
Leo is extremely sceptical of the whole thing. He perches on the chair in the corner, looks after Baby Sofia for Tara and you can just tell he's glad it's not his turn on the chair yet. Although, just like Tara he's come a long way, and he's totally cool compared to the younger baby who'd cry when spotting a white coated dentist. As long as it's "Tara goin 'a dentist? Not 'eo? Is Tara's turn? Not 'eo's?"
Today we have a deal with the Tooth Fairy. We've put a special request in (by message to Spain), due to the severity of the treatment: One Barbie DVD please. Also, of course, we knew that there would be a lengthy period of rest after the extraction, so I've given Tara a new DVD, and she gets to watch The Moomins, Season one in one go. Some four or five hours non stop. Sucking lolli-pops to keep the new wound nice and washed up in saliva. Known fact that after an extraction, there should not be too much chewing going on, so as a reward (and a bribe) we've got an easy chew for dinner, a take-away chicken korma and other tasties that Tara lives and dies for. Certainly has a tooth extracted for.
And another one, if that's what it takes: "I wish I could have another tooth out tomorrow!"
That's the family dentist politics gone a little wrong. For the next visit, we'll tell the Tooth Fairy to take a holiday.
At the pace we're going though, I have near-to-no doubts that there's another extraction waiting us in not too much time.
In the meantime, we're taking hints and tips for the miraculous reversal of Tara's dental decay; Elmex gelee is being imported, Schuessler salts No. 12 are being taken, it has been understood that brown rice and cherries are good for bones and teeth.
Of all the explanations offered for her poor dental health, my favourite is that it's a developmental thing and the result of her having been so small at birth. Weighing it up against the potential causes for lack of growth Scan Man suggested six years ago, this is the First Place in the race for a healthy child (or maybe second).
We'll plant a cherry tree and hope for the best for the next set of teeth.
Dead baby tooth *sniff*
Recovering from the first tooth extraction among friends*
* I know, two lolli pops. Counter-productive in general, but today I'm more concerned with gentle non-chewing methods of saliva generation.
"We fist it? Bob de builder fist it," suggests local child Leo, 2, who has been left bewildered by the attack on the palyarea, and unable to comprehend that we cannot fix it, nor access the remainder of the park until the damaged ship has been removed.
"The police! I know the police are investigating this and they will find the baddies who did this. And kill them." Tara, 5, feel very strongly about vandalism of any kind, but is particularly unforgiving of attacks directed against children and their playthings.
