When Carl first showed me his very wiggly lower central right incisor, I told him the story of the tooth fairy.
"When I was a little girl," I said, "my dad told me that I should put any teeth I lost underneath my pillow. And then, at night, the tooth fairy would come to take them away and leave me a coin in their place."
"That's just a trick," Soren interjected. "The tooth fairy isn't real."
"Well, I think she's real," Carl said.
Carl was smart to believe. When Soren lost his first tooth, he ended up with nothing to show for it but a hole in his mouth. He responded to my tooth fairy story with incredulity and then threw the tooth away. In the trash. So much for my attempt to share a fun, childhood tradition with him.
But with Carl, I got to try again. One morning, he came out of his room, still in his pajamas, and very excited to show me his detached tooth. He wanted to take it to preschool and show all his friends but I persuaded him to leave it safe at home in his treasure chest where he wouldn't loose it. Because, you know, the tooth fairy would want it.
"The tooth fairy is just a trick from your dad!" Soren insisted. (I think that he was beginning to worry about my sanity.)
I asked Scott to bring home a cool dollar coin after work. Then, we waited until both Carl and Soren were sleeping to do the switcheroo. It's kind-of fun to be the tooth fairy. I'm glad Carl would allow it.
The next morning, Carl was very excited to show everyone the golden dollar he found under his pillow.
And Soren was very upset that the subterfuge continued. I guess you can't please everyone.
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