I don’t know if we’ve spent more money on obstetrics or orthodontics over the course of our married life. My guess is it’s probably a pretty darn close tie. I can’t believe that out of 6 kids, not one got my teeth. I was blessed with perfectly straight teeth. Not one of our offspring will go without braces. And all the issues are different: crossbites, underbites, overbites, missing teeth, and freakish alien monster-like teeth. I don’t know how to describe that one. Our second son (in the background of this picture) had adorable little white baby teeth. When his permanent teeth came in, he got these giant man-sized teeth that came in in all directions and shooting out of any and every part of his mouth that might be attached to the gums. It was really something….can’t say I’ve ever seen anything like that before. And, I had never heard of missing permanent teeth before my kids. I didn’t sign up for kids with missing permanent teeth. Every other child in our family has had at least one missing tooth or a dwarf tooth or two. Odd. We began our orthodontic journey back in 2001 in Greeley, CO. Since then, we have had anywhere from one child to four children simultaneously and continuously in braces; and yet, my youngest son, with his SpongeBob teeth, has yet to be seen by an orthodontist. I suppose that happens when you are the 5th born child. It also happens when your big brothers, ages 20, 18 and 17 are STILL in braces. It seems that even though all their initial teeth problems are varied, the one thing they do have in common is that their teeth like to move…a lot. So, we contacted our orthodontist, and he put them back in braces, free of charge, because he guarantees his work after the initial 2 phases. This would be all fine and dandy…if we still lived in Greeley. We have lived in five different houses, in five different towns since we originally began this quest for straight teeth. Now we even live in a different state….it might has well be 2 states away because we get to drive all the way across Kansas and then all the way across Colorado just to get to an orthodontist appointment. But, FREE, right? My husband loves a “deal”, and “frugal” is my middle name. So anyway we originally thought we’d just make the trips to Colorado fun adventures, especially since we LOVE Colorado. The reality though….there have been no fun adventures. There have been nearly a year and half of suicide trips to Colorado and back. But today…..today was a big red letter day for my oldest. He got his braces OFF…again…for the 4th time, yes, the 4th time! I wasn’t there, but I don’t think the occasion was met with as much celebration and fanfare as the first time. The first time there were balloons and candy bags and congratulations and high fives and photo sessions….quite the celebration. Each time, there has been less fanfare. They are probably secretly hoping we never come back. I think they’ve lost money on our family. But….we will be back. Jay’s younger two brothers did not fare as well today, and they each have at least one more suicide run to the orthodontist in their futures. As for Jay, it’s not over yet. Next stop….oral surgery….he was the first of the unlucky ones to be born without a permanent tooth.
[…] My kids have had every kind of need for teeth correction known to mankind. I wrote about it [HERE]. Clearly, genetics has to be a factor, especially regarding the missing teeth saga. Even […]