Calling the Tooth Fairy

We went to the dental clinic very early this morning to follow up on our emergency room visit for the Moose's recent encounter with our stairs. It took a while, but eventually he was worked into the pediatric dental schedule.

The very kind talkative dentist removed the Moose's two front teeth. He said the stairs simply sped things along by a few weeks. The Moose appears to have a wad of chew in his right cheek thanks to his chin, mouth, and front teeth bearing the brunt of the fall. Everything is sore and red, but there are no major concerns beyond a few more days of healing.

He's plotting a Lego purchase with his tooth fairy money. He asked me, "Do you think the Tooth Fairy will leave me a dollar for each tooth?" I didn't tell him that even with two dollars, he won't be able to buy any Legos, but I'm thinking the Tooth Fairy might bring him a Lego mini figure pack, after she consults with the Easter Bunny.

Poor guy, he looks pretty beat up! He did opt for the McDonald fries afterward, but not the burger. He wasn't interested in eating that with such a sore mouth. His only complaint is that he can't make good machine gun sounds now, partly because of the cheek injury. I understood his concern, he is exceptionally good at machine gun sounds, but I'm sure it will come back.


While we waited the long wait in the dental clinic, I worked on a sashiko stitching I brought with me. Another mother asked me, "Where did you get that?" I told her about Swany in Kamakura. She told me she rarely leaves the base but maybe someday she would go there. She had been to see the Big Buddha in Kamakura on a tour, once. I told her I lived there, that I have lived there for five years, and that really there is nothing to fear. "It's more a leap of faith, you take a blind step and someone sees you flailing, they'll help you." I'm not sure I convinced her, but she did look longingly at the stitching. I changed tactics and suggested that she look along the shops on Blue Street in Yokosuka, "Just keep saying sashiko, they'll get the idea." I didn't really believe there were people who don't leave the base.

Sashiko is a type of running stitching used to reinforce worn pieces of fabric being recycled such as from a coat to a futon cover. There are traditional sashiko patterns which I have most often seen on indigo dyed cotton. I thought I would find more of it during my time in Japan, but I have seen little of it, and when I do, it is expensive. My kit has the pattern marked on it, making it fairly simple for a novice like myself to do it as you only need to follow the dotted line. When you are finished you gently wash the cloth in water and voilà, all that is left is your stitches.

After my restless trip up north, I was a happy to find a portable craft. Try a kit near you.

The Moose after chomping our stairs and seeing the dentist

We went to the dental clinic very early this morning to follow up on our emergency room visit for the Moose's recent encounter with our stairs. It took a while, but eventually he was worked into the pediatric dental schedule.

The very kind talkative dentist removed the Moose's two front teeth. He said the stairs simply sped things along by a few weeks. The Moose appears to have a wad of chew in his right cheek thanks to his chin, mouth, and front teeth bearing the brunt of the fall. Everything is sore and red, but there are no major concerns beyond a few more days of healing.

He's plotting a Lego purchase with his tooth fairy money. He asked me, "Do you think the Tooth Fairy will leave me a dollar for each tooth?" I didn't tell him that even with two dollars, he won't be able to buy any Legos, but I'm thinking the Tooth Fairy might bring him a Lego mini figure pack, after she consults with the Easter Bunny.

Poor guy, he looks pretty beat up! He did opt for the McDonald fries afterward, but not the burger. He wasn't interested in eating that with such a sore mouth. His only complaint is that he can't make good machine gun sounds now, partly because of the cheek injury. I understood his concern, he is exceptionally good at machine gun sounds, but I'm sure it will come back.


While we waited the long wait in the dental clinic, I worked on a sashiko stitching I brought with me. Another mother asked me, "Where did you get that?" I told her about Swany in Kamakura. She told me she rarely leaves the base but maybe someday she would go there. She had been to see the Big Buddha in Kamakura on a tour, once. I told her I lived there, that I have lived there for five years, and that really there is nothing to fear. "It's more a leap of faith, you take a blind step and someone sees you flailing, they'll help you." I'm not sure I convinced her, but she did look longingly at the stitching. I changed tactics and suggested that she look along the shops on Blue Street in Yokosuka, "Just keep saying sashiko, they'll get the idea." I didn't really believe there were people who don't leave the base.

Sashiko is a type of running stitching used to reinforce worn pieces of fabric being recycled such as from a coat to a futon cover. There are traditional sashiko patterns which I have most often seen on indigo dyed cotton. I thought I would find more of it during my time in Japan, but I have seen little of it, and when I do, it is expensive. My kit has the pattern marked on it, making it fairly simple for a novice like myself to do it as you only need to follow the dotted line. When you are finished you gently wash the cloth in water and voilà, all that is left is your stitches.

After my restless trip up north, I was a happy to find a portable craft. Try a kit near you.

The Moose after chomping our stairs and seeing the dentist