I have recently discovered a bizarre and fabulous insentive to get my kids to brush their teeth. Okay, G is only 1.5, and he really doesn’t need much insentive because he loooooves brushing his teeth… he loves most things that his mama, daddy or big brother do. He wants to do it too! I will admit however, that we haven’t always been the most consistent with brushing E’s teeth. I mean, when a kid closes their mouth or bites the tooth brush, you can kind of lose your motivation… and when the doctor asks “So, how often do you brush his teeth? Once, twice a day?” To which you reply… maybe once… while mentally adding, “a week.”
At this very moment you might be a little suprised, or even grossed out? I don’t know. I mean, I was. I myself am and always have been a cronic teeth brusher. I brush 3-4 times a day. Maybe more, I don’t know. And while I didn’t bring my tooth brush to school, like Marina in 5th grade, I did develop a thing for tooth brushing after my sisters told me all my teeth would rot and fall out when I was 7. I think this was also around the time they gave me the nickname “Lisa Garbage Can” told me my dad was Peter Pan, and that he had also braved a brief stint as a sumo wrestler. Ok, so I was a bit gullible, but I like to think of it as blind trust.
So, where am I going with all this? Well, last week I did something that I should have done, I don’t know… years ago? I bought Elijah an electric Diego tooth brush (because it was 50%off and his cousin has one, which E couldn’t stop talking about upon their last visit) And some Toms tooth paste.
I can not explain how AWESOME of a decision this was. Not only does E have the cleanest teeth he has ever had, he LOVES brushing his teeth. They will spend 15 minutes quietly standing at the sink, brushing away. Bonding. I can say things like… E, if you are a super good boy when________ you can brush your teeth. “Okay mommy! Great!” Who knew brushing teeth was sooooo great? Well, I sure didn’t, but let me tell you. It. Is. That little Diego tooth brush was worth every penny! To which I say, “Gracias por Ayudarme!” 😉