Our trusty computer is having issues-- so sad. The DVD drive fails to cooperate more often than it works and more importantly, the hard drive is starting to flounder. The computer is four years old but we think it is worth fixing rather than just replacing (because before this round of troubles it was meeting our needs perfectly well) so Rob is about to embark on a repair mission. I consider myself technologically literate but I am not really a hardware/IT person so such things fall to Robert in our house. Also, he is a natural tinkerer so I suspect he derives a measure of enjoyment and satisfaction from such a pursuit. In this case, this will involve removing the glass from the front of our iMac (!!!) to get to the hard drive. I am now working on that Google Chrome laptop that Robert got sent (did I ever mention that here? such a surprise...) which works well for what I do, with the exception of photo editing and organization. No photos for me for however long this process lasts. And I guess no music either, since now that I think about it we don't have any way to play music outside of our computer. Here's hoping it all goes quickly and smoothly...
Something else that I am hoping will go smoothly is all the fillings that my daughters apparently need. Ugh ugh ugh. I took them both to check-ups last week and they BOTH have cavities. Grace had a couple from last time that the dentist thought looked questionable but decided to wait on since she hadn't ever had a filling before. On the last go-round, Grace had one filling done with nitrous and she did super well so this time he is going to do all 3 areas that look iffy. I feel pretty confident that this will go smoothly; everyone at our pediatric dentist's office is really great and I think she will handle it well, especially considering that last time everything was easy peasy and she isn't afraid at all of the dentist. Violet is another story. The dentist couldn't even really get a thorough look inside her mouth and she wouldn't sit still for X-rays. She definitely will need to be sedated, which is what they do at this age for dental work. The cavities he could see were between her two front teeth but there could be more obviously (they'll be able to find everything and fix it all when she is sedated). Oh my goodness, I hate this idea, though; I don't want my sweet little two-year-old to be sedated and have an IV and all that! I think the best option for us is doing the sedation and procedures in the dental office; it will be a CRNA who will do the sedation there. I have a bit of anxiety about this because ideally I want, you know, a crack team of highly-trained experts in a top facility (i.e. pediatric anesthesiologists in a children's hospital or something) taking care of her while they are sedating her but they do this a lot and as long as no one is terrible at their job it should be fine. I have always been impressed with everyone at our pediatric dentist, so I think I trust them. I think.
And then the question of WHY WHY WHY? We don't ever have juice or hard candy, although we do occasionally have dried fruit and we certainly do not outlaw sugar. I nursed both of them at bedtime for a long time but the research is anything but conclusive that that is bad. We brush their teeth twice a day although we have not been regular flossing types. (But who flosses their toddler's teeth?! Actually, thanks to Facebook I now know that a number of my friends floss their toddler's teeth so... oops?) This is all so foreign to me because I had one cavity my entire life, when I was in high school sometime, I think. I almost never flossed as a child and I was nursed well past my 1st birthday and we had sugar around the house. In contrast Rob had a lot of cavities as a small child and Violet's teeth especially look a lot like his-- really tight and close together. I don't know; I'm sure I could obsess and think of a million reasons why this is our fault and then a million reasons why it isn't. The truth is probably some combination of the two, and perseverating on why is not a useful pastime. Instead, we shall face the unpleasant task of adjusting some of our routines (flossing, and maybe giving up the gummy vitamins?) and taking my small children to have their cavities filled.
I did another unpleasant task last week. Our adoption agency emailed and told us that all our paperwork and background checks had finally gone through and we were now an approved prospective adoptive family. Normally this would be the point where they would start showing our profile to prospective birthmothers. We went ahead and told them that we wanted to have our file on hold and we would get back to them next year or so about where we want to go from here. The agency was really supportive about it all and I so appreciate the way they've dealt with us through this. (I'm sure this isn't the first time this has happened for them.) I do feel sad about it because this was us really saying "no, we're not doing this now" for the first time. And can you believe the timing of all this? If we did go forward with the adoption right now, the average time to have a baby placed with us would be 3 to 6 months. Yeah... my due date is now just under 4 months away. I can't get over it-- so crazy!
Those things are all rather unpleasant, but my life has been rich in friendship/relationship stuff lately, for which I am so grateful. I am still thinking about Easter and how our church celebrated it this year. It was pretty much unlike anything I have experienced before and the joy and reality of resurrection was real in a new way to me. Our friend Becky (who has a lovely SLC food blog) had a post about it here with pictures and whatnot. And then the next weekend I hosted a bridal shower for a friend here who moved to Salt Lake about the same time we did. It was so fun to celebrate her and this transition of hers, so fun in fact that I only took this one picture before everyone showed up. And I think I have taken three (or was it four?) meals to friends who have just had new babies in the past few weeks. Lots of babies! But more importantly, I think, a richness of relationship and connections with people here who are a part of the new life we're building. It can be so hard to find that, and I am so, so thankful for this beautiful place and the people in it and our intertwining links here.
6 comments:
I'm so sorry to hear about the cavities. Did I ever tell you William had cavities too and had to be sedated? We went to an outpatient surgery center and I think the entire procedure was harder on me than the patient. But, I'm so glad we got the teeth fixed and I am finally - FINALLY - over the guilt. I would burst out in tears just thinking about how it was all my fault, why did this happen to my kid when other kids eat fruit loops and candy and he is eating chickpeas and cherry tomatoes, isn't it evolutionary suicide for breastmilk to cause cavities, etc? I think you should trust the dental office and go ahead with the procedure.
We are really just trying to stay away from bread, crackers, cookies, cereals, etc. as the children's back molars seem to have much deeper grooves and the food stays in there. I really just have to keep all of these foods away, even though it is really hard and I just returned from Trader Joe's with all of those things. We also swish water after eating anything and I carry around little xylitol wipes called Spiffies to use when we cannot brush.
It's doubtless not scientific, but I blame Robert's babyteeth cavities on the soy-based formula that he drank instead of milk for his first 5 years; after the milk-allergy seemed to resolve itself and we quit that and the early cavities were filled, the benefit of a healthy (albeit crowded) set of teeth genes on the maternal side kicked in and he had few problems after that (except a need for braces). Plain 'ol white milk is good for teeth and bones, they say!
So sorry to hear about the cavities. I worked in a pediatric dental office my first 2.5 years out of school. We did IV sedation weekly and I worked on the kids quite a bit. The anesthesiologist we had was superb and we always had good outcomes! Gummy vites can be a big culprit but it's usually the gummy snacks that so many kids walk around with all day every day. Tight teeth are also problematic and I fill many a tooth in those little mouths. Dino flossers are about the best for trying to get back in those little mouths and it keeps you from getting bit!
I would suspect genetic proclivities myself. Wouldn't you think? I'd try bone broth and some raw milk. SO sorry you're dealing with this. I would freak out too.
Your photo from that baby shower is gorgeous and makes me want to be there.
Oh man, I had no idea those even existed!... it makes sense, teeth are teeth, but now I have one more thing to worry about.
I hope the procedure goes well for Violet, she probably won't mind it much.
Welll, that's rotten (no pun intended, ha). But it will be OK! I think it's probably just genetic too. I had lots of cavities, and have always been an avid brusher/flosser/dentist go-er. My husband never went to the dentist, never flossed, and never had cavities. Go figure.
funny word ver: sessesse
Post a Comment