The Tooth Fairy has a difficult decision to make

Artist’s impression of the tooth fairy. (Wikipedia)

It all started with the nighttime prayers when my five-year-old prayed that her bothersome loose tooth would come out soon. It was only a little bit loose, mind you.

Then, at tooth brush time, for the first time in days, she didn’t say, “Be careful of my loose tooth.” She had been saying this at every teeth brushing for the past several days. At the previous brushing, I finally told her, “I know. You don’t have to tell me every time,” with just the slightest bit of irritation.

As you’ve probably already guessed, because she didn’t say it, I forgot about the loose tooth and managed to clock it with the princess electric toothbrush she got from the dentist. Ah, the irony.

It started bleeding and was now very loose. I grabbed a square of toilet paper to wrap around it, and, naturally, the tooth fell out between my fingers. She  mewed a bit when I showed it to her. “See how quickly God answered your prayer?!” She actually perked at that.

Invisible high-five for me.

Tucked snuggly in her bed, tooth safely stowed under her pillow, the bleeding having stopped, my daughter said, “I wonder how many quarters I’ll get for this tooth. Maybe just one because it’s so tiny. Or maybe a lot because it’s so cute!”

There aren’t enough quarters in the world to match the cuteness of my little girl.