I've shared before that the girls both attend a Magnet School for the performing and visual arts. At the end of every school year, the school hosts an open house whereas kids artwork can be displayed as well as see various performances throughout the campus. Today was our school's open house.
Rachel's class learned and performed the Virginia Reel. They then taught three other classes how to do the dance as well. Rachel ended up being one of the lead couples! She is the one in the blue gingham dress and pigtails.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Rachel's "Special Tooth"
Rachel had this tooth that was in the cleft of her alveolar ridge (the clefting in the gum). It was high up in her gum, and you really couldn't see it unless you lifted her lip. We've always called it her "special tooth".
This tooth has been a constant headache for years. It's hard to brush and hard to keep clean.
When Rachel had a dental appointment in March, this tooth had developed some decay on the backside of the tooth. Since her bone grafting surgery in November, the tooth had adjusted a little bit and was more exposed.
After consulting with Rachel's plastic surgeon, he gave his okay to have the tooth filled or extracted. She was far enough post op that either was fine.
We opted for the extraction.
So this afternoon, Rachel had her special tooth pulled. While this picture is blurry, this gives you an idea of how Rachel's upper teeth looked, prior to the extraction. You can see a tooth that is a little darker on the top, growing in sideways, that is her 'special tooth'. Or shall I say "was". It's now in a little treasure box waiting to be placed under her pillow.
It was a little sad watching this tooth we've referred to as her "special tooth' be pulled. It's just another step in this journey.
Our Pediatric dentist is awesome! Her prescription for pain relief...a free yogurt at Golden Spoon!!! Which is totally awesome because that's always where we stop on our way home from dental appointments. Here Rachel is holding her Rx, mouth full of gauze, and red marks on her nose from where the nitrous gas mask made indentations.
Rachel did awesome with the extraction. Our dentist is the best and makes sure there's no pain and the experience is overall a pleasant one, which in Rachel's case, with as much work as she's had done on her mouth and will have in the future is a huge bonus!
This tooth has been a constant headache for years. It's hard to brush and hard to keep clean.
When Rachel had a dental appointment in March, this tooth had developed some decay on the backside of the tooth. Since her bone grafting surgery in November, the tooth had adjusted a little bit and was more exposed.
After consulting with Rachel's plastic surgeon, he gave his okay to have the tooth filled or extracted. She was far enough post op that either was fine.
We opted for the extraction.
So this afternoon, Rachel had her special tooth pulled. While this picture is blurry, this gives you an idea of how Rachel's upper teeth looked, prior to the extraction. You can see a tooth that is a little darker on the top, growing in sideways, that is her 'special tooth'. Or shall I say "was". It's now in a little treasure box waiting to be placed under her pillow.
It was a little sad watching this tooth we've referred to as her "special tooth' be pulled. It's just another step in this journey. Our Pediatric dentist is awesome! Her prescription for pain relief...a free yogurt at Golden Spoon!!! Which is totally awesome because that's always where we stop on our way home from dental appointments. Here Rachel is holding her Rx, mouth full of gauze, and red marks on her nose from where the nitrous gas mask made indentations.
Rachel did awesome with the extraction. Our dentist is the best and makes sure there's no pain and the experience is overall a pleasant one, which in Rachel's case, with as much work as she's had done on her mouth and will have in the future is a huge bonus!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Playing Catch Up
It's been almost two months since I've blogged on any of my three blogs. It seems life has just been busy, or I've been too busy, which is probably the better thing to say.
The last few months have had a few events worthy of sharing...
In Mid April, Rachel's 1st grade class, along with another class, walked about a mile to the local Stater Bros for a tour. Thankfully it was a nice overcast morning and the walk was actually quite nice. Having known someone who's worked for the company for 40+ years (my Dad!), he worked his magic of knowing the right people and we had an amazing tour! Just as good as the one Rachel had when she was in preschool. Although on this trip, the kids each received little nylon Stater Bros backpacks! Which was really cool!
Two weekends ago, Rachel participated in her very first Tae Kwon Do Tournament! She was so very excited for the event and did awesome! She got 2nd place for her Purple Belt Form, and she came in 4th for sparring! She was very pleased with herself and her trophy, so much so that she took the trophy to school the very next day to share!
Last week marked the one year anniversary of Rachel receiving speech. She's come a long way over the last year and I think we're finally on the homestretch of nearing the end of weekly therapy. Rachel loves to talk, and sometimes talks nonstop. Over the weekend she mastered two new words with the "R" sound we've been working on - 'Dork' and 'Nerd'. It's nice to be paying out the bucks for speech therapy so that you can understand when you're child calls you names. LOL.
Rachel has less than four weeks left of the 1st grade and is doing extremely well! When the end of the school year approaches and it's been a great school year, with an awesome teacher, I tend to get sad. And that is exactly how I feel in regards to Rachel's teacher. She's absolutely amazing and I am so glad I've been able to be a part of her class every Monday morning and be available to help her in various other ways throughout the school year. Teacher requests have already been made for next school year and hopefully Rachel will have the same teacher Hannah had for 2nd grade and it'll be a good school year once again.
In two weeks Rachel sees her dentist and will more than likely have what we refer to as her "Special Tooth" extracted. This tooth is where her cleft was in her gum and always been quite a challenge to keep clean. Now that the back is exposed more, thanks to the bone grafting surgery in November, the back is decaying and it either needs to be filled, or extracted. After consulting with our plastic surgeon, he said since it's been at least 3 months since bone grafting, then either route is fine. Since it is a baby tooth we'll probably go the extraction route. We'll wait and see what our dentist wants to do the day of the appointment.
It's almost been 6 months since Rachel's surgery. It's hard to believe it's been that long, and yet, hard to believe it's only been that short of time. We have a follow up appointment the first week of June with her plastic surgeon and it'll be nice to hear what he says and thinks 6 months post op. That appointment also falls after Rachel's dental appointment, so he'll be able to see how that went as well. The cartilage in Rachel's nose is finally starting to loosen. Her nose has been so hard since surgery, and now, just as Dr. Martin had predicted, it's all softening. I've been following the story of a 9 year old boy who had his bone graft surgery this week, and all I can say is, I'm so thankful to have that part of the journey behind us...
The last few months have had a few events worthy of sharing...
In Mid April, Rachel's 1st grade class, along with another class, walked about a mile to the local Stater Bros for a tour. Thankfully it was a nice overcast morning and the walk was actually quite nice. Having known someone who's worked for the company for 40+ years (my Dad!), he worked his magic of knowing the right people and we had an amazing tour! Just as good as the one Rachel had when she was in preschool. Although on this trip, the kids each received little nylon Stater Bros backpacks! Which was really cool!
Two weekends ago, Rachel participated in her very first Tae Kwon Do Tournament! She was so very excited for the event and did awesome! She got 2nd place for her Purple Belt Form, and she came in 4th for sparring! She was very pleased with herself and her trophy, so much so that she took the trophy to school the very next day to share!
Last week marked the one year anniversary of Rachel receiving speech. She's come a long way over the last year and I think we're finally on the homestretch of nearing the end of weekly therapy. Rachel loves to talk, and sometimes talks nonstop. Over the weekend she mastered two new words with the "R" sound we've been working on - 'Dork' and 'Nerd'. It's nice to be paying out the bucks for speech therapy so that you can understand when you're child calls you names. LOL. Rachel has less than four weeks left of the 1st grade and is doing extremely well! When the end of the school year approaches and it's been a great school year, with an awesome teacher, I tend to get sad. And that is exactly how I feel in regards to Rachel's teacher. She's absolutely amazing and I am so glad I've been able to be a part of her class every Monday morning and be available to help her in various other ways throughout the school year. Teacher requests have already been made for next school year and hopefully Rachel will have the same teacher Hannah had for 2nd grade and it'll be a good school year once again.
In two weeks Rachel sees her dentist and will more than likely have what we refer to as her "Special Tooth" extracted. This tooth is where her cleft was in her gum and always been quite a challenge to keep clean. Now that the back is exposed more, thanks to the bone grafting surgery in November, the back is decaying and it either needs to be filled, or extracted. After consulting with our plastic surgeon, he said since it's been at least 3 months since bone grafting, then either route is fine. Since it is a baby tooth we'll probably go the extraction route. We'll wait and see what our dentist wants to do the day of the appointment.
It's almost been 6 months since Rachel's surgery. It's hard to believe it's been that long, and yet, hard to believe it's only been that short of time. We have a follow up appointment the first week of June with her plastic surgeon and it'll be nice to hear what he says and thinks 6 months post op. That appointment also falls after Rachel's dental appointment, so he'll be able to see how that went as well. The cartilage in Rachel's nose is finally starting to loosen. Her nose has been so hard since surgery, and now, just as Dr. Martin had predicted, it's all softening. I've been following the story of a 9 year old boy who had his bone graft surgery this week, and all I can say is, I'm so thankful to have that part of the journey behind us...
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