Do her eyes look red? Maybe a little puffy? There had been lots of tears. It was past 10 pm and she was tired. So was I. And her dad. We were all tired. That stubborn little bottom tooth was driving all of us crazy. It had twisted sideways and leaned forward like the leaning Tower of Pisa. She looked a little like a bulldog with a bad underbite. It had to come out. It hurt her to eat and the top tooth above it kept hitting it and causing pain. She wouldn't let me pull or push it beyond a certain amount (even though it may have finally popped loose if she had let me). She wouldn't let her dad mess with it much either, and Jordan was just itch'n to have a crack at it. Even her older cousins (whom she saw earlier in the day) regaled her with tales of how one pulled the other's tooth by tying it to a door handle and yanking the door shut. Rylan was terrified.
But in the end, that's (almost) exactly what we did. Dean made a slip knot with dental floss. After a serious amount of coaxing, Rylan finally let him slip it over the tooth and pull it snug. She was trembling like a leaf. Dean gave her the end of the floss string and told her she was in charge. She would be the one to pull when she was ready. I have to hand it to her - she is a brave, brave girl. I don't think I could have done it. After a couple of attempts, she handed the end to her daddy and told him to do it - as long as he promised that it would be fast and that it wouldn't hurt. So, he pulled the string slightly upwards until it was taut, and then gave a yank...and then a harder one. Pop!
The tooth, a tiny white speck in the corner of my eye, flew over Dean's shoulder and ricocheted inside the shower stall after it slipped free from the knotted floss. Rylan's look of relief, mixed with surprise was comical. She laughed. I took a picture. Then we looked for the tooth. And looked. And looked.
We went to bed. In the morning I put on grubby clothes and gave our bathroom the most thorough cleaning it has had in over a year. But alas, no tooth. The most likely culprit was the shower drain, for that is the only possible explanation. I combed through cat litter, inspected the shower door track (not recommended for those afraid of mold), the floor vents (not recommended for those afraid of spiders), and scrubbed behind the toilet (Yuck. I hate cleaning toilets).
Needless to say, Rylan was not happy about her tooth going missing. She was certain that the Tooth Fairy would not leave her anything when she came to visit. I suggested that she write a letter of explanation. So she did...
"Dear Tooth Fairy, I am sorry I lost my second tooth. It is down the drain probably. From Rylan"
The Tooth Fairy did indeed pay a visit, and she left behind four shiny gold dollar coins. Rylan was impressed that the Tooth Fairy was able to fit down the drain and find her tooth. I am too. I wonder what else she found down there?
(For the record, the other top tooth that was loose at Thanksgiving is STILL there, although it is now sitting at a beautifully awkward 30 degree angle...and no looser than the day we discovered it. I did predict Valentine's Day, didn't I??? Somehow I don't think it will be coming out in three days time...)
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