So while on a field trip Monday, Peter lost another tooth. Here’s his most recent “look”:

"All I want for Christmas is my FOUR front teeth..."
And if you think he is vain or otherwise embarrassed by this new development, let me assure you that he is NOT. In fact, his exact words were “Now I’m the only one in my class missing ALL THEIR FRONT TEETH!”
Obviously he has not yet reached the age where we endure much pain and suffering at the dentist’s office in order to KEEP our teeth. [I would also like to insert here that I am restraining myself from making a trailer park joke. Just want to throw that out there.]
So Monday night, as I was tucking him into bed, I asked if he remembered to put his tooth under his pillow. He said yes, then said “Mommy, is the Tooth Fairy real?”. (For those you keeping track, we went through this conversation at Christmas but he has obviously not made all the connections yet.)
I told him that the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus were the same person. He gave me that same sad smile he gave me at Christmas and nodded that he understood.
Oh how I hate to see that childhood innocence lost.
But then I look into his face and see this MAMMOTH front tooth beginning to poke through (seriously, it’s HUGE) and I realize that some of the innocence must be lost in order to make room for the growth. Growth that is, inevitably, away from the protection of my arms and out into that big, wide world.
Oh, I know. That’s way too deep for this early in the morning. I think I’ll go have more coffee. Y’all have a great day!