One Down, Nineteen to Go

The time had come for Char to lose her first tooth. One of her lower, front teeth had become so loose we were afraid that she might swallow it while she slept.

Neither Daphne nor I could get a grip on the tiny tooth, and we couldn't convince Char to pull the tooth out by herself. So, I had to get out my toolbox. I have a couple of hemostat clamps that I use to grip small items. 

I felt like a doctor on a Civil War battlefield while I cleaned the clamp with rubbing alcohol. I thought Oh Man if this doesn't go well, every loose tooth is going to be nothing but drama...

Daphne held Charlotte in her lap while they sat on the floor. Char tearfully opened her mouth, and I squeezed the clamp around her tooth. Daphne tightened her grip, I held my breath, and Char squealed, but she kept her mouth open. Her tooth popped out after one sharp tug! I was so relieved to hear it tear free. Charlotte was still crying, however.

She couldn't tell us why she was crying because she had a tissue in her mouth to stop the bleeding. I asked her if the tears were good tears or sad tears? She squealed again, gave us the thumbs up, and started jumping around.

They were good tears.

Later Char told me, "Dad, Kim says she's the queen of pulling loose teeth, so that makes you the king!" That's not exactly a crown I want to wear, but what can you do?

This is Charlotte's Tooth Fairly pillow. Daphne bought it at a craft show last fall.

The big question was how much money is the Tooth Fairy going to leave Charlotte? I checked online, and the going rate in the US is anywhere between $1 and $5. Both Daphne and I remember getting quarters from the Tooth Fairy, so I ran some numbers through the Inflation Calculator.

The quarter I received when I was five would be worth $1.20 today.

Daphne's quarter would be worth 61 cents.

Average those amounts and one dollar seems reasonable.

At breakfast the next morning, Charlotte said she was disappointed because she didn't get more money. I reached across the table and said, "Well, if you don't like that dollar, then give it to me. I can use it to buy candy for myself." Char ran upstairs and put the dollar in her bank.

I guess one dollar is good enough.