Did it again

Remember when I freaked out about all the cavities I could see in Robert's teeth and how that story actually ended?

Well, Alice started complaining about her molar hurting when she would eat. I, um, freaked out again. Internally, of course, because if Alice detects the slightest hint of unease in any particular authority figure, her spine stiffens and her limbs turn to jell-o and she's a volatile mess of anxiety. Gotta work on that.

Anyway, I looked at her tooth myself and poked around and saw something that looked like a cavity. For real, this time. I was pretty sure that this exact arrangement of sharp edges and scooping must be a hole starting. It was even a little black. Her checkup was 3 months ago, but I couldn't remember if they had taken x-rays, and I didn't know how fast cavities could start, and if she's hurting it must be serious, right? And blah, blah, blah later, I made an appointment with the dentist.

Alice was kind of excited to be taken out of school, but then she cried at the thought of the drilling and numbing shots and swallowing with your mouth open (How do I do that, Mom?!).

Ten seconds into the examination, Alice was her giggly self again. No cavity. No sign of anything awry. Absolutely nothing wrong with those strong teeth. The hygienist tapped and pressed and scraped and poked, then the dentist tapped and pressed and scraped and poked. Nothing.

Sometimes kids can bruise a tooth with some sort of trauma. Or maybe one of her 6-year molars is coming in and unsettling the baby one in front of it. Or something else? It's not a cavity. Again. Bobby said, "It's a good thing you're not a dentist." ;)