First dentist appointment

It wasn't two-thirty, but Alex had his first dentist visit this afternoon. He was very good, as usual -- if you allow as "good" the running around the office and playing with one of the foot pedals that made a satisfying "whoosh!" noise when stepped upon.

My check-up was first, so he sat on my lap for quite a while watching the hygienist work. Of particular interest was the little suction nozzle, which I was asked to hold during the polishing segment. Alex was on my lap at that point, and the hygienist expected him to be startled and afraid, since most kids are skittish about the noise and the mysterious little device. Instead, he was very curious, and after he saw me use it the first time, he took it from me and was putting it in his mouth and trying to figure out how to close his lips around it. The hygienist and I were cracking up! I'm sorry I didn't have my camera.

Needless to say, Alex seemed to love every minute of his own exam: the moving chair, the "tooth tickler" (polisher), the suction gizmo, the tiny mirror, the funny glasses the hygienist and dentist wore, and the orange toothbrush and sticker at the end of the visit. Maybe he'll make a better flosser out of me.

Comments

Anonymous said…

I read it! What a surprise, after his early skittishness about things that make noise. Now it's on to brushing every night!

8:33 PM

Masterful Manipulations: Short Story Homeschool Co-op Class

I taught a class on iconic short stories this spring at our homeschool co-op. I don't know how many of my former English teachers may have passed since, but any that have are rolling in their graves at this news. I find teaching especially stressful but this class exceeded my expectations in basically every way and that might have made it worthwhile. We read 20 short stories, which I was free to choose primarily on the basis of how much I liked them. I organized them based on loose associations. Table of Contents (We never officially read this, but it was so short, I included it in case I needed to read it aloud during that first class.) One Summer Night , by Ambrose Bierce Short Story Elements To Build a Fire , by Jack London Irony The Necklace , by Guy de Maupassant The Gift of the Magi , by O. Henry The Ransom of Red Chief , by O. Henry Irony - American The Veldt , by Ray Bradbury The Lottery , by Shirley Jackson Setting - Irony - Foreign The Sniper , by Liam O'Flah...

Another month passes me by

To quickly recap: We enjoyed a late-October weekend in St. Louis, accidentally arriving during the 8th inning of the Cardinals' World Series Winning Game. At the Ballpark Hilton. One block from the stadium. It was a night -- and very early morning -- to remember. We visited the zoo, Union Station, the Arch, the Botanical Gardens (to see the Chihuly exhibit), and I don't remember where else. Great city, good times. The furnace installation was completed on November 4th, and we've been toasty warm ever since. On November 15th, I hosted (with the immense help of three friends) 20 at the Ladies' Gourmet dinner. "Cranberries" were the theme ingredient. Everything was delicious. I was exhausted. The afternoon before leaving for St. Louis, I taped three half-hour shows for the Health Department, which I then had to scramble to assemble and deliver by November 17th. Of course, nothing ever goes smoothly over at the studio, so it took three times as long as planned ...

You know it's been a long, cold winter when...

... you dress your toddler in a short-sleeve shirt (with the intention of layering a sweatshirt over it) and he tugs persistently at the above-the-elbow sleeves as though the sleeves were simply rolled up. We explained that it was just a short-sleeve shirt, but Alex was distressed and asked for long sleeves. Paul had to take his flannel shirt off to show that he was wearing short-sleeves, too, and that Alex was going to wear another shirt on top, just like Dada. Alex had a serious case of The Daddies today, insisting that Paul come to the store with us and generally not wanting to be out of his sight for a moment. Originally, Alex asked for Paul to read him stories, but I hear footsteps on the stairs that would indicate he's changed his mind.

Indiana Idylls

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