Where is the Tooth Fairy?

We just moved a few houses up the street -- a more difficult undertaking than moving out of state.  We finally got everything into the new place in the middle of last week.  Then, last Saturday Yaya lost her seventh baby tooth.  I was busy unpacking and organizing things, but we were all excited when she showed us the tooth and hoped that there would be something special to go with tooth number 7.  She had no doubt that the Tooth Fairy would find her in our new home because earlier in the summer the Tooth Fairy visited her when she lost a tooth in Louisiana.

Alas, the Tooth Fairy is not as good as one might hope.  At about 6:20 on Sunday morning, I heard a cracking voice say, "Mom, the Tooth Fairy didn't come!" I was still groggy, but in the instant realization that I had forgotten to sneak in her room with a dollar, I said, "Oh, shoot!  She must have gotten mixed up because of the move.  Maybe she'll come during the day or tonight.  She's probably still looking for us."  I felt so dreadful to be the cause of such disappointment, but although Yaya was still tearful, she was willing to wait and see before loosing all hope.

We got dressed and headed to church, where she related her tale of woe to everyone she encountered. At the end of liturgy when everyone else went next door to coffee hour, I snuck out, ran to the toy store for a "so sorry" gift, and ran home to slip it and a dollar under her pillow.  I returned to coffee hour to find I wasn't missed at all, and when we all returned home later, Yaya was ecstatic that the Tooth Fairy had not only shown up and left a dollar, she had also left a locket charm that we had been eying for some weeks now.

And so all was well... until she arrived for the first day of school yesterday and a friend told her that "The Tooth Fairy is just your mom and dad."  Yaya vehemently refuted that statement, and all I could do when she looked to me was smile.  I wonder if she's going to be mad at me when she accepts the truth.

The Tooth Fairy

Julia lost her first tooth today... FINALLY!  It has been over six months since she first imagined she had a loose tooth.  Now she really does have four and the first one fell out while we were eating breakfast this morning.  She took a bite of her toast and then said, "Ugh," and pulled out a tooth.  I gave her a high five and said, "I guess the tooth fairy will finally be able to come. You should put your tooth under the pillow now, so you don't lose it."

While anticipating the loss of a tooth, she has been "researching" and speculating about the tooth fairy. Some time ago she read an Arthur book in which D.W. tricks the tooth fairy (or so she thinks).  Julia tried to copy her, but we told her very clearly that the tooth fairy is smarter than that.  She didn't believe us. As her teeth got looser, she hoped she might be able to keep her tooth and get a present from the tooth fairy.  There was another book in which a boy wrote a note asking to keep his tooth, and he did. But just last week she found another book at school about the tooth fairy.  This one she told me says that the tooth fairy needs first teeth for fairy dust (I don't know what she does with the dust, though.), so now Julia was willing to give up the tooth.  I found this a little disappointing because this kid has traditionally been a very light sleeper, and I have been freaking out about how to get in, get the tooth, and a leave a golden dollar.

This afternoon when she came home from school, she said, "I wonder if the tooth fairy came yet!"  What?!  I thought she was expecting a nighttime visit so I very deliberately did not take the easy way out although Daddy and I both thought about it this morning.  Then, just before bedtime, she showed her "toothless grin" to Daddy while filling him in on her speculations about the tooth fairy, and just before retiring to bed, she told him, "You better not be the tooth fairy."

Oh great, now I would have to get in and out without being caught for sure.  It took me a couple tries.  I went in and started to feel around under her pillow, but she moved!  I ran out of her room wondering aloud, "How do parents do this?!" Back in for try number two... hand back under the pillow... ooh! it's grimy, and what's this? wrappers... she has candy wrappers!  I left again to throw away two mini peanut butter cup wrappers. Attempt number three... tooth, tooth, tooth, dollar... SUCCESS!

Now, I'll have to tell her in the morning that the tooth fairy found candy wrappers and told me she was disappointed.  Or maybe I'll try to sneak a note under the pillow from her.  I'm feeling pretty brave now!