Canker Sores

Suck. Ugh, they're the worst. I used to get them all the time when I was younger, and now poor Theo has one on the inside of his lower left lip. He fell at the playground last week, cut his lip, and handled it like a champ. I thought that was the end of it but no . . . a week later and a huge canker sore -- caused by the the fall -- erupts, a cut on his gum appears, and next thing you know we're off to experience Theo's first trip to the dentist under such unfortunate circumstances.

So today we all trooped over to Dentristy for Children -- Jon's dental alma mater! -- and Theo, putting up one hell of a fight, had his mouth checked by a dentist in an effort to find the source of his pain. Theo kept saying his tooth hurt this weekend but I think that's because I was incessantly asking him if his tooth hurt. Anyway, to get inside of Theo's mouth, which I was unable to do on my own this weekend, Jon had to lock Theo between his knees and rest Theo's head in the dentist's lap, a position with which Theo was not thrilled. Even the best efforts of Clare the hygienist, who tried to entice Theo with dinosaur rings and Tigger toothbrushes, items which would have had Theo's full attention on a better day, were of no use. Still, the skilled staff was able to get inside of Theo's mouth to discover that the trauma to his mouth caused by the fall was the culprit, not any issues with his teeth.

Theo's actual cleaning, which we all decided should not be today, is August 31st -- should be a blast.

Two generations of Dentistry for Children: