Little kindergartener walks into my clinic today cradling a treasure in her hands. The secretary asks her, "Oh, did you lose a tooth?!?!" She nods yes. So I, all excited for her, grab a sticker (which I always have done last) and put it on her shirt for her. Get a tooth container & tell her to drop her treasure inside. I notice how nice & white her tooth was. Just as I was about to compliment her on how nicely she cares for her teeth, it hit me. I dumped her treasure into the palm of my hand. A small, quartz-like stone! My initial thought was to take that sticker back, tell her she's nuts & send her back to class. But I didn't want the little cherub to cry. I said, "This isn't a tooth." She nodded her head yes. I said, "Where did this come from?" "Back here (pointing to her rear molar)." For a second I was concerned that maybe a tooth broke or a filling came out...but no. I said, "This was in your mouth?" "Yes." At this point, I'm in such shock that this little angel lied to me that I just put her stone in the tooth container & sent her back to class. Later I asked her teacher if she was sneaky like that & she said not really. I guess there's a first time for everything. I told her I don't want her to have to give up the sticker or get in trouble or anything like that, let's just use this as a lesson in telling the truth. I got played by a kindergartner. We all had a good laugh at that one as I wondered if I really had to document that visit. Rookie mistake.
i'll be honest - i don't usually check - i just say ok and tell them where the little boxes are and where the cups are if they want to rinse. Kids here could be running the same scam all the time and i'd be clueless.
i'll be honest - i don't usually check - i just say ok and tell them where the little boxes are and where the cups are if they want to rinse. Kids here could be running the same scam all the time and i'd be clueless.
Must be a high street value on those little boxes!
I usually joke around with them.
Kid: I lost a tooth.
Me: Awesome! Can I have it????
Kid: Uh, ok *(awkwardly and reluctantly offers tooth)*
Me: *(Pulls away in disgust)* Ew, gross! That was in your mouth! I don't want it! There's toothboxes over there. Pick your favorite.
I usually add that the studies show that the tooth fairy prefers teeth in tooth boxes and wink. Or I tell them that accepting the tooth box means they are legally bound to split 1/2 the tooth fairy money with me.
If the tooth keeps getting lost under the pillow, here's an alternate idea.
Put the tooth in a glass, then put in the center of the kitchen table. Put a trail of soft breadcrumbs leading up to the glass on both sides. The tooth fairy (elf?) will eat the crumbs and have a sip of water and find the tooth. She can leave the money in the drained dry glass.
Our neighbor across the street, who was a practicing dentist until he was ninety, devised the idea when his own kids were that age.
We used to put the tooth in a cup of water on the windowsill and when we woke up in the morning there was a coin in the cup.
I remember one year when I was a camp firstaider, we had a kid lose a tooth and they were quite upset about the toothfairy not being able to find them. I ended up telling them I'd keep the tooth safe for them and when they came in the next morning for their meds, I told them the toothfairy had been and left a voucher to spend in the camp store. The camp was cash free so this was the best I could do.
Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.
I was such a bad tooth fairy that my sisters out of state started mailing my son cash & gift cards. (My mom told them) son was indifferent. Tooth fairy apparently lives in southern CA and likes target.
Oh the tooth boxes are a hot commodity - i've had kids lose teeth at home and come in to get a treasure chest box from me.
My daughter got a loft bed and a few weeks later lost another baby tooth. We quickly realized that this would spell trouble for the tooth fairy, as we can barely find her in there, so how were we going to climb up and find a tiny tooth and not wake her? - so what was the plan going to be? Stand on the desk? That would sure be graceful when trying to quietly slip a golden dollar under her pillow. We came up with a shotglass for her teeth placed just so on the desk and explained that the tooth fairy couldn't fly that close to the ceiling or she's hurt her wings.
Oh the tooth boxes are a hot commodity - i've had kids lose teeth at home and come in to get a treasure chest box from me.
My daughter got a loft bed and a few weeks later lost another baby tooth. We quickly realized that this would spell trouble for the tooth fairy, as we can barely find her in there, so how were we going to climb up and find a tiny tooth and not wake her? - so what was the plan going to be? Stand on the desk? That would sure be graceful when trying to quietly slip a golden dollar under her pillow. We came up with a shotglass for her teeth placed just so on the desk and explained that the tooth fairy couldn't fly that close to the ceiling or she's hurt her wings.
Our mom also used the tooth in the glass of water plan (a Cheese Whiz jar, from back in the day when you could use em as juice glasses). We got a whole dime and the tooth fairy was always faithful.
Next generation, my poor daughters. We did the water in a juice glass presentation and they got a quarter. Alas their mother was occasionally a bit forgetful… so much so, that the youngest daughter took it upon herself to leave a reminder notes by the coffee maker!
My children have built multiple traps trying to catch the tooth fairy. Mostly involving old shoe boxes and lots of yarn and tape. So far the fairy has been wise to their tricks.
Okay, not about the tooth fairy, but the rock. Sometimes a rock in the mouth from a kindergartner is, well, a rock in the mouth. When I worked elementary for a brief stint, I had a 6th grader present with tooth pain. I took a look in and found a small rock wedged in a molar. I was able to get it out with some dental floss.
Turns out kid was challenged to eat gravel on the playground. And did it. Oddly, no stomach upset, just rock in the mouth.
With one tooth I lost, the tooth fairy didn't turn a light on, and in the morning I was thrilled to find she had left me a $20 bill!
That night my dad had been the tooth fairy's apprentice and had pulled the wrong bill out of his wallet.
When I had my wisdom teeth removed while I was in college, he returned them -- each one in its own little tooth fairy box! I put them under my pillow and she left me a one hundred dollar bill since three had been impacted and had been removed under general anesthesia in the hospital.
Flare, ASN, BSN
4,431 Posts
i'll be honest - i don't usually check - i just say ok and tell them where the little boxes are and where the cups are if they want to rinse. Kids here could be running the same scam all the time and i'd be clueless.