Biscuit had his first trip to the dentist today. Any time spent worrying about how he was going to do was wasted. He did fine, and it should never have occurred to me that he wouldn't.
He loves going to his regular doctor. He always chats with the nurses and the doctor, and he talks about his visit for the rest of the day.And the dentist was no different. He chatted up everybody, did exactly what they asked him to do, and talked about it for the rest of the day.
Jeff and I needed a new dentist, so I made appointments for all three of us at the same place at the same time. Jeff was at 8:30. Biscuit was at 9:10. And I was at 10. I was a little worried about the spacing of the appointments, but with paperwork, insurance and a toddler to deal with, the time passed quickly.
Jeff went first, so Biscuit and I hung out in the waiting room. There was a big box of toys in the corner, and lo and behold, Biscuit found a firetruck in there. After the firetruck, he went for a big brightly colored mailbox.
An older man in the waiting room was smiling and watching Biscuit as he played.
"Is there any mail in there for me?" the man asked Biscuit.
"Yes. You have some mail in here," Biscuit said. Then he hauled the mailbox over to the chair beside the man. "Here you go," Biscuit said as he handed the man a plastic block from the mailbox. "This is fire mail. That's when a firefighter brings a letter just for you."
"Fire mail? Well that's my favorite kind of mail," the man said as Biscuit flashed him a big smile. That's when I made the assumption (correctly so, I found out later) that the man is a grandfather. He brought his kids to that office. And now his grandkids see the dentists there, too. He, his wife and his mother all still go there as well. Hearing that, as well as hearing good recommendations from a couple of friends, made me feel pretty comfortable about taking myself and my boys there.
They called Biscuit back, and I had to gather our jackets, a police car, two firefighter action figures, a sippy cup of milk, two clipboards, a pen, one of Biscuit's books and my pocketbook. Biscuit followed the hygienist down the hall. And as we walked into the room, I had to smile as he walked straight to the chair and climbed in. He looked so tiny and so grown up all at the same time.
I asked the hygienist if she would mind me taking a couple of pictures. And she said, "I definitely don't mind. As a matter of fact, when parents bring kids in for the first time and don't bring their cameras, I always think, 'This is your child's first dentist appointment. Where the heck is your camera?'"
The hygienist put the paper-towel-on-a-chain around Biscuit's neck and clipped it into place. Biscuit looked at me and whispered, "Mom, this is a bib. I don't need a bib."
I laughed and told him that everybody who goes to the dentist has to wear one of those. "Even Dad is wearing one in that room over there," I said to Biscuit.
The one and only time Biscuit seemed nervous was when the hygienist started reclining the chair. He shifted in his seat and turned to look at me. I reached out and grabbed his hand.
"You won't fall, baby," I told him. "I've got your hand. Nothing is going to happen."
Biscuit opened his mouth really wide before the hygienist was even ready. She checked out his teeth, then used the polisher on him. He sat really still through the whole thing.
The dentist came in and introduced herself to Biscuit. She was really nice, but she talked baby talk to Biscuit. I didn't talk baby talk to Biscuit when he was a baby! I wondered if Biscuit would notice, and he did. He looked at me with the Belushi/Christmas lights face. I just smiled at him and patted his arm.
I'm sad to report that Biscuit has a cavity in one of his molars, so he has to have it filled. I asked the dentist if she could do the filling there at their office, but she said she'd rather refer us to a pediatric dentist. She said she wanted to make sure that Biscuit's first dental procedure was a good experience for him. Or as good as a dental procedure can be.
Apparently, the two main culprits in toddler cavities are genetics and the fact that baby teeth are more porous than permanent teeth, which allows them to be penetrated more easily. So after I digested everything the dentist was telling me, I started to wonder, "Is there anything I could've done to prevent Biscuit's cavity?" We brush his teeth every day. We make sure he drinks water and not just juice. He doesn't like a lot of sweets.
But thankfully, the dentist only found one thing we're doing wrong. Biscuit is more of a sipper than a drinker. He drinks at meals, but he always seems to have a cup of watered-down juice floating around somewhere. The dentist said to change his sipping cup to water and only give him juice or milk with his meals. That's definitely something we can do.
We can't do anything about how our genetics affect Biscuit, but we can certainly make sure we're taking good care of his teeth. And his first visit to the dentist was a good way to start.
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