The Disneyland of Dentistry

No kidding. This place was AWESOME! We entered this magical tooth-fairy land of purple and green yesterday for Ruby's first-ever dentist appointment. The entrance is actually so pretty with it's butterflies and flowers painted all over the walls, that I wish I could scrap the whole play room we have and start over with a similar design! (The pics here do not do the place justice. You can't see the sparkly purple floors or lobby paintings, etc. They have added so much since these shots). The waiting room has a big video game station in one corner and a few small games for the littlest patients. There is also a big house for climbing and discovering and books and toys. Upon entering the patient areas, it is equally adorable.

The Doc and her girls are INCREDIBLY sweet and loved Ruby. (No, I did not make them pose - this is from their website). She was sooo comfortable there and happily hopped up in the chair. I wasn't expecting too much in the way of protest cause the kid LOVES her oral hygiene, but the staff there made the whole process a fun and painless experience for her.

First they gave her the choice of four animals - each having a full set of magnificent teeth. She chose the alligator. The hygienist let her feel the tooth cleaning brush on her hand first, then try it out HERSELF on the alligator. Ruby loved this, of course, as she got to be in control! Then it was her turn to have her teeth cleaned. She sat back like an angel. They have this very cool monitor where the doc checks out her teeth with this scope/light thing and Ruby could see them up on the screen in front of her. She thought this was just fantastic and was all smiles!

Rubes got a clean bill of health and has no cavities or issues. Hooray! AND the dentist did not see a problem with me giving her gummy vitamins and the occasional fruit snack which makes me very happy. (Whew! Thought I was gonna lose my secret weapons!)  She said as long as she brushes shortly thereafter and keeps up with the good brushing/flossing habits she'll be fine. They gave her this fabulous power toothbrush with Elmo on it (she got to choose one of 4 designs) and I had to fight her to give it back tonight. LOL, don't think keeping up with good brushing will be a problem! If all that wasn't wonderful enough, they then had her hop down and pick not one but THREE gifts from the goodie bin!  She also got stickers, flossers, and a balloon. Mommy got that adorable pic above as a keepsake. The kid was grinning from ear to ear the whole time and I must say, so was I!

All of this made me think back to my first dental experiences. Oh, how I hated the dentist! I had a lot of cavities and eventually braces and I can still remember those early appts like they were yesterday! Mean old Dr. Cackovic with his cigarette smelling fingers shoved in my mouth (gotta love the 70's)...picking away with his little silver torture device...always ready to shove that awful 3 inch needle of novocaine in there. Yet as much as I hated that shot, I always needed more and he insisted I did not...so I could feel him drilling as he gave me a filling. Boy, how dentistry has changed, huh? So glad Ruby has such a warm and fuzzy place to go to! I am making a fuss about the place cause it is in such stark contrast to what I experienced and well, cause it's really so great for her, but I also have to say I was SO proud of Ruby today. She just amazes me all the time the way she handles things. Each day is like an adventure for her and she greets the new things and people she meets with curiosity and fearlessness. I am in awe of you, Ruby! Always be the sweet, inquisitive little darling you are! And let's keep that beautiful smile just the way it is so ALL your dentist appointments go this well!