Dentist

It's been 6 months since Carter went to the dentist for the first time in Knoxville. So today we went to a new dentist here in Franklin. Since both boys are covered under our insurance, I went ahead and made an appointment for Rylan as well. It seems crazy to me to take a 15 month old to the dentist but since he's covered, why not?

The philosophy at this office was a little different than our last one. At the Knoxville office they didn't want to scare kids AT ALL. The slightest indication of uncomfortableness and they stopped whatever they were doing. At this new office, they didn't push it but they kept going even when Carter started whimpering and Rylan started fussing. I don't think it was too much, it was just different.

Carter watched Toy Story ...


The hygienist used the polisher to clean Carter's teeth. He did well but started getting a little antsy on the last few teeth.


The hygienist also flossed Carter's teeth. I've never tried to do this before. She said that because there's not much space in his mouth and his teeth are close together, we really need to floss to prevent cavities. We figured both our boys are going to have tiny mouths because both Brian and I had to have permanent molars pulled to make more room in our mouths.

The staining on Carter's teeth has gotten a million times better in the last 6 months since we've been using a Spinbrush, but there was still a little there. The dentist decided to use an ultrasonic pick that sprays water to clean it off. Carter wasn't a big fan of that. He did great though and only whimpered a little. He did tell me later that it hurt. Hopefully he's not scared of the dentist now.

Rylan, as usual, didn't really want to open his mouth. The hygienist tried to use a toothbrush to brush his teeth. She was able to get a few looks in his mouth and we discovered he's starting to get the same staining as Carter.


The dentist tried to get in Rylan's mouth too but after about 30 seconds, Rylan starting having real tears so he gave up.


Neither boy has any cavities. They both got a fluoride treatment "painted" on their teeth.

When they were done, the boys got to pick a toy out of the toy chest. It took a while for Carter to decide, but he finally chose a notepad with construction vehicles on the front. He colored in it while Rylan got his exam. Then he tried to put it back in the chest and pick out a new toy.

Carter even got a new shirt (i.e., free advertising) ...


I didn't absolutely love this office, but it wasn't bad. The dentist was friendly enough with the kids but he also didn't try to bond with them first and gain their trust before working on them. I haven't decided yet if we'll continue going there or find another office.