The Deed Is Done

Well, my daughter had her palette expander installed today. She took it pretty well. The staff at the orthodontist's office raved about how good she was.

Yep, she's a trooper.

I am not.

This morning I called her babysitter and pleaded with her to take my child to the orthodontist for me, and I would watch the children for her. She turned me down. So I took her myself and sat inpatiently in the waiting room, all the while envisioning that the evil monsters on the other side of the door were inflicting unspeakable harm upon my innocent baby. It took everything in me to not jump up, run through that door, and rescue her from the grasp of her torturers.

Now you see why I have to sleep with the television on, right? I can't be trusted with my own imagination.

Anyway, my daughter came and got me after about a half an hour. Hmmm. She looked okay. There was no apparent distress. I was skeptical as she led me back to the room of horrors. Once inside, I asked her if she was in pain. "A little," she replied. Then the doctor came in and directed me to wash my hands. I complied without asking why. (The force is strong in that one.) He then proceeded to show me the appliance in my child's mouth and "activate" the device by turning the key right in front of me. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, the man handed me the key and directed me to do what he just did.

Let me just say that I'm a strong person. I am not your typical feature film female (100 points for alliteration!). I've got a high threshold for pain, I don't scream when I'm startled, and I've never fainted in my life. But when that man asked me to crank that device, my knees got a little weak. I was happy to be already sitting down.

Dr. Tingling was great. He was patient with me and guided me through it. My child was not as patient. She wanted me to hurry so she could get back to school. She's a strong kid.

So, all is well for now. She says her mouth hurt earlier but feels much better now. She's drooling a lot. Dr. Tingling says this will get better as she gets used to having the appliance in her mouth. And she hasn't quite figured out how to chew with that thing yet, but I'm hoping that will get better too...or she'll have to live on oatmeal and apple sauce for the next three months.

Anyway, I want to thank everyone who helped me through this drama. I've got wonderful friends. I especially need to thank Shoney and Tammy, whose words of wisdom gave me great strength. Thanks y'all. I love ya!

-e