This smile needs improving, he suggested.
The dentist that we saw yesterday at a routine exam said he could, "fix that chip, fill it up, even it out. It's cosmetic," he said, "Not necessary. But it will improve his smile."
I'm a weak, unassertive, nonconfrontational thing when with certain personalities and especially in public. My poor husband probably thought that was what he was marrying. Surprise! So, yeah, I signed the procedure papers and scheduled the appointment - a filling of the chip and a numbing shot - for today.
After we left, I thought to ask our little guy his opinion. "So," I said casually, "You know that chipped tooth from when your cousin kicked you in the face?" (an accident, yes) "The dentist says he can fill it in. Do you want him to do that, or do you like it like it is?"
"Oh," he says, "I like it like this. Cuz then I can put my tongue in there und veel eet." ("...and feel it," I think he said.)
Our little guy is 8. His teeth are already wonky: some are falling out, some are coming in, some are crookedly making their ways to the right spots.....it's all rather silly-looking, but that's part of what makes an 8 year old so very cute.
Really, I thought to myself, why would I put this kid into the trembles over a drill and a shot just for pure vanity's sake? What kind of message does that send him and his siblings?
Our little guy likes his smile like it is, so that's the way it will stay. I like his smile, too, but even more I love his innocence. Life will eventually introduce him to our overly-vain, this-is-what-we-think-looks-perfect, we-must-look-perfect mentality.
For now, let him be 8.
(..umm....except that hair! A mama does get to say when hair is too scraggly. It needs cutting, and that's that.)
