Every now and then, something sneaks up on me with a reminder that I’m somebody’s Mother. Obviously, I’m here taking care of my three kids every single day, it’s not as though I forget. But I think it’s the milestone moments, especially the ones that I actually remember from my own childhood, that provide the extra jolt to my awareness. I can picture myself as the kid in that situation, I can picture my own mom, that image I have of what a MOM is. And now, here I am. The mom, not the kid.
Daniel has his first loose tooth. Two of them, in fact. The bottom middle pair are both wiggling, not surprising since those were the two that came in within a week of each other when he turned six months old. I have no idea how long it will take them to come out all the way, but either way, we have now entered the world of losing teeth. When did my kids get old enough for this? When did I?
Existential crisis aside, please talk to me about what you do about the tooth fairy in your house. I don’t intend to make a HUGE deal out of it, but I think it’s a fun tradition. And no, I will not be forking out more than a dollar per tooth. And no, I will not be KEEPING the teeth. Eew.
But tell me, friends, is there anything I should know before I ready my fairy wings?
We have a tooth fairy pillow they hang ON THEIR DOORKNOB.
Critical. No waking up sleeping children who put the pillow in their beds.
Also $5 for the first tooth then $1 for each tooth.
We’ve lost a total of two teeth, both Alex in our house. Dentist said Nate’s aren’t coming out for another 6 months, at least!!
It’s really, really hard to get in there, get the tooth, place the money, and get back out.
Crazy hard.
I second what Laura has suggested. Or at the very least get a tooth fairy pillow for under the pillow so you’re not in there fishing around for a tooth. Because they are REALLY small!
I like the $5, $1 rule. Although, to cover myself in the case of crazy expectations (or lack of cash on hand) I explained this: The tooth fairy has ONE pot of money to distribute each night. So sometimes someone may get a little less or someone may get a little more, depending on how many other children around the world have also lost teeth on that particular night.
We’ve lost a total of 18 teeth between the girls at this point. I second Laura’s suggestion of the pillow on the doorknob. Also, set yourself an ALARM or something to remind you to go put the money in the pillow. That last two times I have forgotten which means lots and lots of tears. They buy the story that the tooth fairy must have been busy, but it’s costing me an extra dollar.
My only piece of advice is DON’T FORGET! And we do $1 per tooth.
Laura’s idea is GENIUS! I was about to warn you that the loss of the first tooth is a super-exciting thing, at least based on the one tooth that has been lost thus far at my house. My child had trouble sleeping because of the excitement that came with waiting for the tooth fairy. I was exhausted the next day, because I had to stay up so very late to make sure that I didn’t wake Little Ms Excitable and Sleeping Lightly as a Result on making the tooth-money trade.
Julie lost her first tooth a few weeks ago. I tend to go big on traditions like this since my parents never did. I bought a dish off Etsy for the tooth to go in. Like the others I did not want to be searching for a tooth under a pillow. I also got a little (magical!) dollhouse door that we stick to the bedroom wall on tooth fairy night so she can get in. Then we sprinkled glitter in front of it to show she left her fairy dust behind. None of it really takes much effort but the kids are fascinated. We did a dollar for the tooth. I should probably be banned from Pinterest….
Hi Liz! It’s been way to long since I commented or said hello, but I love to check in with you via your blog and wish I had the will to do one myself – this is such a great memory for you and your family and I feel like I am updated on your life even if the reverse is unfortunately not happening! In any case, I agree with many other commenters that the tooth fairy pillow is the best part of the tradition and something totally in your wheelhouse. My grandmother made one for me when I was a girl and now I use it for my kids, and I love having something like that to use and pass down (though with 3 kids not sure who will get it for the next generation…).
We got keepsake pockets that were featured on Cool Mom Picks a while ago. We convinced Ben that the tooth fairy was scared of the mess in his room, so he leaves his teeth in the pocket on the kitchen table. We did $5 for the first tooth, and a dollar per after the first one. He got a lovely note from the tooth fairy and he has enjoyed the whole thing. Hoping his sister doesn’t decide to knock out a tooth to get in on this
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We do $1 gold coins which James LOVES getting. So much more fun than just a plain old dollar. I bought two rolls of them. I keep two in my purse side pocket just in case it happens out of town (like the first one did).
I love our little bags for their teeth. He does put it under his pillow, but waking hasn’t been a problem. Andrew is a lighter sleeper, so we may hang it from a doorknob later. I had my friend (Umbrella Girl) print a tooth chart onto muslin and sew on a little drawstring bag. It says “James Teeth” in the middle and has lines to document when he lost them. Kind of like this, but I made it myself in PowerPoint. http://www.etsy.com/listing/70534577/tooth-fairy-pillow-with-chart-1-pillow
We have been putting the teeth in a little jewelry bow that goes under Michael’s pillow. I almost got busted last Saturday night trying to get the stupid thing out from under the pillow. I highly recommend not doing it that way.
Teeth in our neighborhood are $2.00 because L lost 2 teeth on the same day and his parents only had a 5 dollar bill on them. It set the rate for all of us. The best is when Michael tells me the tooth fairy left him $3 and I can’t call him on it.
The time from becoming loose to falling out can range from minutes or weeks. J looses them out of no where. Michael’s like to linger forever.
We have a little fairy doll with a pocket for the tooth.
I have a bunch of millennium gold dollars (not really gold) that make the coin seem special.
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Since I have boy/ girl twins as well I thought it would be cool to leave a $2 bill. My daughter proudly has that bill displayed on her shelf.
I seem to be in the minority here…but I find this to be one of the most difficult tasks! I consider myself to fairly organized about most things…but I can not tell you how many times the toothfairy hasn’t arrived the same night the tooth was lost. My daughter now knows that the toothfairy makes her rounds in the order that children lost their teeth that day…and sometimes the list is long so she won’t make it until the following night. I hope you are better at this than I am…but it can’t hurt to prep your children ahead of time in case the toothfairy every gets delayed on her way to your house
When the Kraken lost his first tooth, it was on a ride at Sesame Place. He went on the ride with a loose tooth and came off the ride without it. We gave him a gold Sacajawea coin – a little more substantial than a paper dollar bill and more relatable to pirate treasure.
Hey Liz, a friend of mine sent me this fun idea – the gold $1 coins are fun and even more fun if you… wait for it… spray them with glittery hairspray! because you are just looking for ways to make this more complicated, right? Have fun with the wiggly teeth! Daniel is so big!!