I thought this week would still be all about surviving a newborn…lack of sleep, those shrill cries of hunger, never ending diapers and so on.
But no…it was more about helping Mabel survive week two since Millie was pretty much handling it fine on her own (she only cries when she wants to eat and sleeps away the rest of the day).
But back to Mabel…
The poor little girl was reaching for a toy in the tub the other night and slipped. I didn’t see how she had landed since it happened so fast and upon asking her if she was okay, she said she was fine. But apparently she wasn’t.
The next day she bit into a shiny red apple and had told my mom (she was visiting to help out due to Millie’s arrival) that her front tooth hurt. After both she and my husband inspected it, the gum around the tooth looked a tad puffy and the tooth was wiggly. I thought maybe she had knocked it loose due to the slip in the tub…so we got her an appointment at the children’s dentist to have everything checked out just in case.
My husband took her since I stayed at home with Millie (I’m still not comfortable with nursing in public so that’s just how it’s gotta be for now). And my husband is the calmer of us two so it was just best for Mabel to not be with me stressing out the entire time.
He texed photos as the appointment went on…
Note that she looked perfectly put together at the start of it…hair was good and she didn’t look like a wild woman. 😉
She handled going back to the chair well…then she headed off to get x-rays…
Still handling everything like a champ…
Then back to the chair for a cleaning.
My mind is still blown…she actually let them clean her teeth!
BUT the bad news was that the x-rays showed that from the fall in the tub, she fractured her front top tooth (hidden above the gum line). Because it’s fractured that means that it’s got to be pulled due to the possibility of it getting infected + there is no way to fix it. Yep…I feel like a horrible mommy.
She’s going to be minus a top tooth for another three years.
As of next week, she’s got another appointment to go back, be sedated and have the tooth taken out. Once again, her father will take her since I’m a total wuss (plus trying to be there for support of Mabel with a newborn screaming to be fed doesn’t sound like the ideal situation…). I just want Mabel to know that her daddy will be there 100% to support her. I’ve just got my fingers crossed that the tooth extraction doesn’t make her hate the dentist for the rest of her life.
Anyway…at the end of her appointment she got a Dora sticker which made her day…and somehow she was back to wild woman status with her hair all over the place and her choice of ideal sticker placement.
Until next week, Mabel will be on a soft food diet as to not hurt her tooth and then afterwards she’ll be sporting a toothless grin for a bit…and I’ll continue to feel guilty. I can’t help but feel like I let her down. Big sad face.
Uhhhh, our son had this happen! But he hit his tooth on the edge of our (metal) kitchen table. 🙁 His tooth didn’t crack (they did x-ray) but it did discolor. He still has it, so maybe it wasn’t quite as severe but I understand how hard this can be on both of you.
Poor baby! What a trauma for you and Mabel. I know she will be fine and also know that you did nothing wrong!
P.S. She looks very similar to my 2 year old daughter! Complete with hair color and style and that exact jacket. 🙂
The best thing i did was learn how to nurse in a FWCC when Rylie was a newborn. Took some practice but after that I was able to do the grocery shopping, go to the OSC functions, etc with Rylie and still nurse without anyone realizing I was nursing.
As for Mabel, try not to let it get to you. Rylie had her top side tooth pulled due to a crack/chip and, yes she did cry, but she did a good job and baby teeth are incredibly easily to pull for dentists. Once it was pulled and she was back in hubby’s arms, she was perfectly fine.
Hugs to you, hope everything goes well for Mabel next week!
Hayden has to been next week for the same thing. I am almost positive it will need to be pulled since falling it hurts when he eats. I wasn’t home so now dad is blaming his self. Like I told him things happen as much as we want them not to we can’t protect them from everything. Don’t let it get to you . She won’t even notice it after it’s over and healed. (hugs)
Pingback: Tomorrow Is The Day... - Modern Mommyhood
Pingback: Operation Preschool = Success - Modern Mommyhood
Pingback: Taming the Tangles - Modern Mommyhood
I know this is old but I’m just seeing it. I totally get your guilt. In August, 2 days before my son’s 2nd birthday, we were playing on the front porch. He was sitting backwards in a chair. He stood up and placed his hands on the back of the chair to turn around. He pushed on the chair a little and flipped it back. He landed on the edge of the brick window seal. I was right beside him but couldn’t catch him in time. When I yanked him up there was blood everywhere. He split his head open directly between his eyes all the way to the bone and cracked the bone. An ambulance ride, ER visit and 12 stitches later, he was his normal self. He was a champ. Me on the other hand, I still look at that scar and feel so guilty 🙁