Kids are expensive!

Aren't they? Sheesh!

I took Braden to my dentist about a month ago because I was concerned about some spots on his front teeth. Those turned out to be just plaque, and the hygienist scraped them away, but the dentist discovered two cavities on his molars. My dentist didn't want to try to fill them because of Braden's age, and referred us to a pediatric dentist.

On Friday, I took Braden to Dr. Badger. He took x-rays, examined his teeth, and discovered three cavities. He also suggested Braden's molars be filled with sealant to help alleviate future problems. Before I knew it, they were asking me to sign an estimate of $511 (but I got a 5% discount for paying in full...whoopee) for that day's treatment (half of his mouth). We'll have to go back in a few weeks to do the other half (the estimate is over $300).

Braden was awesome throughout the entire visit, other than the fact that he refused to answer any questions from the dentist or the hygienist. He pretty much just ignored them, but he did open his mouth when they asked. He had nitrous oxide during the cavity filling, and watched one of his favorite Nickelodeon shows on a TV mounted in the ceiling.

Afterwards, we went to Burger King and he had a chocolate shake. He kept rubbing his gums on the side of his mouth that was numb, as if he couldn't quite figure out what was wrong.

Dr. Badger gave him a stuffed badger and a balloon and he was very proud to take them to daycare to show off to his friends. They were a little over-excited about the balloon, though, so Braden asked me to take it with me back to the car.

In sum, I'm a bad mom because I let Braden have milk in a bottle at night until he was two, and now I'm paying almost a thousand dollars in dental bills to fix his teeth! Good thing I took Garrett off the bottle before he was one! And, we are going to be vigilant about brushing teeth from now on!