That Smile

Her first tooth came out on Christmas Day, 2007.

Over time, her smile has grown into what it is today…gap-toothed, imperfect, obviously belonging to a pacifier-lover, and so her.

And it is soon about to change.

Two days ago, that little smile got into a head-on collision with a wall. When it happened, she told me about it, pointing to her top tooth. I checked it and it still seemed solid. It was only that night when brushing her teeth I realized her two front bottom teeth were loose.

Ben & I were so upset, to say the least.

Aurelia at the dentist yesterday.

We went to the dentist the next morning, who confirmed that, in fact, three teeth are loose. Although one seems solid enough, the two bottom ones will likely fall out. After an X-ray to check for any fracture, the dentist reassured us that Aurelia's adult teeth were already on their way anyhow, so it’s very possible these two teeth weren’t very solid before the accident anyway.

But still.

It is yet another sign she is growing up, something I openly admit, I have a hard time accepting. I will so miss that baby-toothed smile. For now, I will enjoy it as long as it’s here.

Holidays...right.

Ahh, the holidays are over. It strikes me as particularly odd how the most hectic, crazy, sometimes stressful time of year can be referred to as the "holidays". Our holidays over here began on December 24th with a family supper that Ben and I prepared at my mom's for her side of the family,and ended the night of New Year's Eve at around 2am January 1st. All in all, it was a wonderful time, but I did lose my cool a few times with a few projects. Just ask Ben.

The most special part of this Christmas was celebrating with Aurelia, and being grateful for all the good things that have happened for us over the past year. I will write more about what I am grateful for another time, but suffice to say, it was such a wonderful moment to show this healthy little bundle off to our closest friends and family. She hardly slept the entire time, was completely off any sort of schedule, and yet she never made a peep. I suppose this is what she has been making up for over the last two days.

A significant milestone was also reached on Christmas night. After an impromptu fondue supper and Ben's brother's with their parents, we came home and I prepared Aurelia for bed. At one point she was nawing on my finger, and suddenly her gums felt sharper than usual. As Ben was walking into the house, I called him over, desperately trying to get a good look at what I had felt. Lo and behold, there was a little tooth making its appearance in the front of her lower gums. Of course, I cried. That beautiful gummy smile is beginning to disappear. Bittersweet moment.

Unfortunately, a little bit of dread also set in during this time of year. On Christmas morning, I had an instant of cramping pain that I immediately identified as stemming from my kidneys. It didn't significantly rear its ugly head again until January first, when I woke up with a definite aching in my flank. Took it easy that day and since, but am very anxious for the appointment I have with the urologist next week. I just hope I can get these stones out before the agony sets in.

I started taking down our Christmas decorations yesterday. All that is left is the Christmas tree, and I have decided to save that task for either tomorrow or Sunday, since the trash will only be going by Monday morning to pick up the tree. Another task I almost completed yesterday was the sorting of the huge stack of photos I had developed. Looking forward to having that job completed so I can get some creating done with that.

Off to watch a bit of Baby Einstein.