Losing teeth is a complete right of passage for children and I think there’s nothing cuter than your seven year olds toothless grin as they wait for those big teeth to grow in.
Tales of tooth mice and fairies
In our home losing a tooth is steeped deep in the tradition of glittered tooth fairy foot prints and saving those baby teeth to put under a pillow or in a shoe for the tooth fairy to collect.
In fact, I used to tell my older children that when they went to sleep at night, I became a tooth fairy’s helper and flew to other children’s houses to collect teeth and leave some coins. ( I’m sure that started when I was caught in the act of leaving a coin by a child who was pretending to be asleep)
If they believed me or simply indulged my stories I’m not sure.
However
In my version all the teeth were collected to deliver to King Neptune under the ocean, so that mermaids could build their homes. Rotten or sub standard teeth were collected by the tooth mice and ground up to feed to fish.( this was why we flushed them down the toilet)
In the 90’s you could still pay R5 a tooth but inflation had hit in the 2000’s and the tooth fairy was by then delivering R20 a tooth.
Wiggle wiggle
Hamish’s teeth started wiggling in December. First one was lose and then another and another.
We anticipated that we would soon see a cute toothless grin and I started looking online for all the cute, keepsake items that could make this occasion memorable.
You know tooth fairy doors and letters, boxes to store teeth and tooth fairy coins. I couldn’t wait to bring the tooth fairy magic to life once more.
Until I realised Hamish has his own, very strong, imaginative belief in the toothfairy and how she conducts her business.
The toothfairy gets an upgrade
My simple stories were not going to surface. He would not be fooled like his brothers and sisters into believing that his mother was magical enough to work for the tooth fairy.
Oh no!
The tooth fairy of 2024 has under gone a ginormous upgrade.
Today, she comes to collect your teeth and takes them to a factory. Here they are polished and taken to be used to build fairy houses ( Dont fairies traditionally live under mushrooms I wondered or have they moved into urban enamel complexes?)
You are paid on a pay scale of R50 to R200 a tooth.
WHAT!!!!!!
Perfect teeth
Hamish has perfect teeth and at this rate, if all three teeth popped out at once, I’d be paying over R600
Now, I love my child but my Gen x mind is still in the habit of delivering small coins from the tooth fairy and I certainly was not about to pay my child R600 to be able to throw his teeth in the toilet whilst he slept.
Hell No!
Especially not as his first tooth was taking months to come lose enough to wiggle out and then hung on by a thread for several weeks, until it magically pulled out just after Easter shopping was done, a few days before pay day and when this now totally unprepared mamma had the grand total of R8 in cash in her wallet.
Toothfairy gets creative
Hamish gently wrapped that first tooth up in cotton wool, proudly showed off his missing tooth and went to bed early waiting on the toothfairy.
I forgot about the tooth until 4am, when with my heart in my throat, I raced around to drop the coins and find this tiny tooth in the dark, hoping he wouldn’t wake up.
The next morning, he woke with the excitement of Christmas morning, discovered his coins and proudly showed anyone and everyone who listened about his first tooth fairy experience.
But
Then the interrogation began. How come the tooth fairy gave the same amount of money as in my wallet? How did she carry the tooth? How did she not get squished going under his pillow while he slept on it? Was I infact the tooth fairy?
In a panic, realizing his small window of belief in the tooth fairy was slowly diminishing, I got creative and explained that the tooth fairy could only carry coins …..had he ever seen a picture of a tooth fairy holding anything but coins? She was magic and her little wand lifted his head and got the tooth out from under the pillow.
With a look of skepticism, he accepted my story.
A special gift
Then the next tooth fell out, mere days after the first and I was happily settled in my broke Era,and needed to think quickly as this tooth fairy mamma was waiting for pay day!
So, that night the tooth fairy left a note promising a special suprise as she knew he has three teeth that needed to come out.
But
The suprise was heavy and so she would only be able to leave it later that week, when the tooth mice could help her bring it.
By the weekend my bank account and the tooth fairy could add that little touch tooth magic and the mouse courier service brought a special delivery left for him, whilst he was at Zipzap circus school.
I had ordered a box of toothy items and wrapped it all up in brown paper ready for him to open.
In the box was:
- A new toothbrush
- Toothpaste
- Mouthwash for kids
- A body wash ( because he ran out and it matched his mouthwash so looked good in the box)
- A kinderjoy egg
- Some blowing bubbles
Excitement
The joy on his face as he rushed in to find his toothy gift on the counter was worth every inch of the effort.
He was so excited for his new tooth products. The kinderjoy egg was just the right amount of sweet treat, whilst the bubbles would keep him busy long after the novelty of mouthwash wore off.
This was really just a box of the toiletries I needed to buy for the month but presented this way. It became a full box of treasure.
I’m almost sorry I never did this with my other kids as it far out weighs the traditional glitter coins and money. It leaves a lasting memory and helps children to further understand the importance of oral hygiene as their big teeth start growing.
Most children by the age of 7 should be brushing their teeth unaided and using a mouth wash without worry that they will swallow it. By this age they have often also outgrown first toothpastes and baby soft toothbrushes, so gifting these signifies that just as their teeth are falling out to grow new, bigger ones, so, they as children are growing bigger.
Another tooth bites the dust
And then, not even three days after the tooth fairy delivered her box of goodies, his third tooth came out.
Of course it did!
Late at night. When I don’t have coins in the house.
Last month I promised myself that I would keep some coins in the cupboard, but truthfully, who uses cash any more? I promised myself I’d buy a stash of kinderjoy eggs to leave with the coins and naturally I hadn’t gotten to that either.
Nope!
This mamma was once again caught unprepared.
And so the tooth fairy left a message reminding Hamish to look out for his box of spoils from her!
I somehow think these teeth are going to cost me a fortune. At least that toothless grin is cute.
