guilt: it does a mother good

I've been feeling a lot of guilt about some certain cavities in a very young daughter's mouth. It blew me away that she got them and left me crying on the phone to my mom on the way home from the dentist. I still feel plenty of healthy motherly guilt over the whole thing, but Elise-isms sure do lighten the mood.

Elise: Can I have some kix?

Mom: No. Your mouth is still a little funny (trying to help her understand numb) from the dentist. Let's wait.

Elise: My mouth is not funny. I went to the dentist. They fixed it. My teeth are pretty now!

Fast forward to the next morning. I had to wake her up and put her in the car for piano, just like I had to do for her dentist appointment. She immediately told me that she wasn't going to the dentist because they already fixed her teeth! She was pretty relieved to learn that we were just going to Ms. Jill's. Ways we are preventing more of these dang cavities: I bought a door lock for the pantry and I am randomly brushing her teeth throughout the day. (Don't worry...not too obsessively.) She is our forager and although she wasn't eating a lot of junk food, she was eating often. There was that time that I couldn't find my brand new container of strawberries from Costco. After looking everywhere, I thought to ask Elise where it was. She simply told me "Behind the couch." And there it was, half full. See? Major forager.