Tooth Fairy

Nicholas has lost his first little tooth on Friday. I didn't expect it to happen until he was at least 6 years old so at 5 and 1/4 years old it came as quite a surprise. A couple of weeks ago I noticed that his bottom two little teeth looked a bit skew and that there was a gap between them. Upon closer investigation it was evident that they were in actual fact loose. He just couldn't resist wiggling his wobbly teeth so played a part in helping it along. When I fetched him from his playdate I was shocked to see the tooth barely grounded in his mouth. As soon as we got home I got the camera out because I had to take a photo of his lovely smile while he still had all his baby teeth. This is the only shot I got!


Next minute he was holding his tooth in his hand. It happened so fast. I will tell you that beneath my excitement and all my whooping and cheering I was feeling a little sad. It's very hard for me to face the fact that my first baby is already losing his little teeth. It feels like just the other day we were waiting for them to pop out. I took a hundred photos then so I had to take a hundred photos now too. You've got to admit it is kind of cute!

I suddenly panicked because I wasn't sure what the UK traditions are. In SA we have a tooth mouse not a tooth fairy and we leave the tooth in our shoe not under our pillow and I had no idea what the going rate for a tooth these days. So I did a google search, let me tell you, there is a huge tooth fairy industry out there. We decided to use a bit of a mixture so we put the tooth in his slipper next to his bed where the tooth fairy could easily find it. While he was asleep we swapped the tooth for 2 pound coins. Months ago I bought a Phillips Sonicare electric toothbrush for him that was on sale and decided that it would be the perfect present to give him when he lost his first tooth. I am a sucker for these kinds of things so I also wrote a letter to him from the Tooth Fairy explaining it all and giving him a lot of deserved praise. Secretly when I was writing the letter I cried, just a little bit, another one of his first times is gone!


I couldn't resist digging out some old photos that were taken when Nick's two bottom teeth made their appearance. They were all taken between 6 and 8 months old. It's incredibly hard to believe how much he has changed in 5 years. So, people out there with little ones, enjoy each stage of your kids' development because before you know it they will be big!