Elliott has done very well taking care of his braces. He has avoided eating sticky candy and crunchy foods like apples and carrots. In fact, only one bracket ever came off and it wasn't needed anymore anyway. Flossing was pretty hard and food kept getting stuck all around his brackets. Aunt Marsha came to the rescue by giving us a water pik. Elliott could squirt the water all around his braces and get the chunks out. It was a lifesaver!
Today was the exciting day that he could get his braces off! Trevor and I picked him up at school right before lunch. It is reading month and since reading is Marvel-ous, the school was decorated. Trevor was posing for pictures for me while we waited for Elliott and he snuck up behind Trevor. These are 2 super kids for sure!
I just had to take one last picture with braces.
Summit Dental has a promotion going on now that patients who start orthodontic treatment get a free season pass to Lagoon and they decorated the office with a balloon ferris wheel.
Elliott posed by the giraffe, of course.
There was also a balloon roller coaster.
Elliott is such a good sport!
I wish I was videotaping as they removed his expander. Taking off the brackets was quick and easy, but the expander took a bit more work. Once the tech took it out of his mouth, Elliott began squealing and motioning that he needed to spit. He ran to the sink to rinse out his mouth. He has had the expander on for ten months and had forgotten what the roof of his mouth felt like. When they took out the expander, he thought the slimy texture was leftover glue and it freaked him out. He had everyone laughing at how strongly he reacted. It was pretty hilarious.
Then he got to hold these awesome things so the tech could take pictures of his lovely, straight teeth.
You can't truly appreciate the amazing chompers with a regular smile, but I do think Elliott has a terrific smile.
Trevor mostly played with the tablets in the toy room while Elliott was in the hot seat. But he managed to stand with Elliott for a smile at the end. The dentist gave Elliott a Milky Way and can of orange pop to celebrate.
I tried to get a close-up of Elliott's teeth, but when Elliott tried to open his mouth wide enough and still smile, he scrunched up his face.
And here is his attempt to smile wide, but still keep his eyes open wide too.
I had some gummy worms and peach rings in the car for Elliott to savor and enjoy. We also took Elliott out to Wendy's for a quick lunch before dropping him off at school. Elliott is not totally off the hook for his teeth yet. He has a clear retainer he needs to wear 24/7 for the next two months and then hopefully he will only have to wear it at night. But he can take the retainer out to eat so he can enjoy food and especially candy now!
