The Tooth Fairy Came!

We had our first visit from Madame Tooth Fairy last night.   Over the past few months Katherine has become keenly aware of the fact that she is missing one of her front teeth.  She first mentioned it while brushing her teeth one night..."I'm missing a tooth!"  My guess is that it was brought to her attention by one of the kids at school since even the oldest ones in her class are still a year or two away from loosing their first tooth.  We explained to her what happened when she was two  (proof that the experience, while being traumatic for Ted and I, had no lasting impact on her).  I also told her that the dentist had given us the tooth and I would show it to her when she wanted.  At first, a simple explanation of what happened satisfied her.  We assured her that when she got a bit older a new tooth would grow in that place and she would no longer have a missing tooth.  One day she got curious and asked to see the tooth.  Honestly, I hadn't looked at the thing myself, they handed it to us in a little tiny pink case and I had no interest in opening it because it has been a rough day and well...ewwwwww.  Miss K didn't think there was anything gross about it, she spent a good while marveling at the chipped tooth in it's little case.  Since that first glance, she's asked to see it quite a few times.  Each time I've mentioned to her that, when she's ready, we would leave the tooth underneath her pillow for the Tooth Fairy.  Up until this past weekend she had no interest.  This time around though, she was intrigued.  Who was this person and (more importantly) what was in it for her?

Luckily we had a book (two actually) to educate her on this.  She received them right after the big tooth incident and we've read them off and on since then.  On Friday night she was interested but not quite ready, especially when I told her that the Tooth Fairy would take the tooth away for good and leave something behind.  So she stuck the tooth in her nightstand drawer and I assured her that the Tooth Fairy would not come unless she left the tooth under her pillow.  On Saturday morning she brought it up again and this time put the tooth under her pillow.  She was all ready to wait for the Tooth Fairy to arrive until I informed her that she had to be asleep for her to come, much like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny (funny how all these things seem to occur at night, no?).  The tooth stayed under her pillow all day.  At bedtime, we read the Tooth Fairy books again and I asked her if she still wanted to leave it there.  She did.  We had a brief crisis when the tooth fell out of it's little case during one of her many peaks and we had to locate its whereabouts but she went off into dreamland with the tooth safe and sound under her pillow.

I missed wake up this morning due to my nighttime schedule with Teddy but I heard the exclamation when she found the dollar under her pillow.  The tooth fairy had come!!!!  She came running into our room to wake me up and let me know.  I wish I had a camera, her little face was beaming..."Mommy, the tooth fairy came! She left me money!"  Then quick as that she was off to start her day.

Her dollar is tucked safe and sound in her jewelry box, awaiting a trip to the dollar bin at Target.  At some point we have to break it to her that it will be a couple more years before she looses another tooth and gets a visit from the tooth fairy.