stories worth telling in long form....

Read from bottom up for chronological order...

6-11-11 
Warning: story might not end with happily ever after...

Once upon a time, there was a mom named Robin. She was a good mom & went to swim meets to cheer on her child. One june day (june 11, 2011 to be exact) Mr. Humidity,her mortal enemy, arrived and though she had overcome him all the times before (barely, but still) with water bottles, battery operated fans, & Popsicles, it seemed that this day, her time of defeating Mr Humidity was coming to an end for he was armed with Mr. Heat. The duo was more than any Popsicle attack could conquer....

It wasn't long into the day before Mom Robin realized she was losing the battle and her fate seemed clear. But then suddenly, miraculously, a tiny drop of water landed on her foot, then her leg. Barely able to raise her head, Mom Robin opened her eyes ever so slightly to see where this tinge of relief was coming from.

Right there above her, stood a groupf of lively swimmers, obviously covered in the sheild of armor (wetness) from their recent swim. Ahhhh, yes! It's coming back to her now! She has a vague recollection of cheering for the very girls giggling around her now.

With little life left, in barely a whisper, she begins to call out, "water! Water!" Soon a twinkle appears i the eyes of those aroud her, and though she would like to believe it was out of the purest desire to save her life from the awful Mr. Humidity and Heat, they begin to shake their hair, squeeze their suits, and eventually poor water from those glorious clear containers holding that liquid clear gold all over her!

Though she was a frightful sight to see, a slither of hope for survival pierced through the devastating attacks from Mr. Humidity and Heat and Mom Robin grew more and more convinced that somehow, someday, she would again survive another brutal day in the life of a swim mom....

(yes, I wrote this in the delirium of the heat... What can I say....)

Almost happily ever after (just 15 more events to survive)

1-16-11 
This shall be titled "A TALE of TWO TOOTHS"  as lived out by Dramatic Flair

Once upon a time in a far away land... (well okay, not that FAR away, unless you don't live in Houston and then yes, it could be a far away land!)... there was a little girl who had a best friend.  He had been her best friend since "they were in their mommy's tummies at the same time".  He lives back home and leaving him was one of the hardest parts of the move for her a year back.  Well that little boy is two months older and has kind of always done everything first... got taller first, grew out of the toddler sizes first (Okay, so she STILL hasn't gotten out of the toddler shoes sizes yet, but who is counting, right?), and started losing teeth first.  So, being the BEST friends that they are, there are things she "thinks" she wants to do because Travis has done it (though all would agree Soccer was not in the cards for her no matter how much he did it first.  Something about kicking the ball while running, AND being expected not to talk all at the same time, just doesn't suit her fancy!  Not to mention, I think part of the problem may be the feet that are still in toddler sizes, but we don't tell her that... don't want her to develop a fear of her small feet! We will stick to dance and swim thank you very much!) Anyway, so there are things she "thinks" she wants to try because Travis has done it... and by golly if you were in the womb at the same time, then you should just share things along the way... right? 

It's really funny actually.  She is so independent and obviously all her own.  She is in no way a follower and in no way has any trouble coming up with her own plans.  Matter of fact I hear her upstairs right now, writing a song to her American Girl Doll that she loves so dearly... and I am quite certain Travis has NEVER done that!  But some things along the way, she just thinks are a great idea and if Travis did it, so can she.  But this weekend, I have to say, I think she may have taken things a little far... check out the picture that follows.

Travis and the hillbilly tooth!

This is an up close of Travis.  Before you get to the teeth... check out those beautiful brown eyes.  I am afraid they might make her swoon someday!  Now look at the tooth.  Travis went days, maybe weeks looking like this.  Crooked, hanging on tooth on one side and loose on the other, setting up the perfect scenario to look more hillbilly than his mom would have ever dreamed.  I got a good kick out of it.... so much so that I wanted this up close to cherish and laugh about.  Little did I know it was setting the stage for one of those... "If Travis did it, I should too," moments.  This pic was from a couple of weeks back, just before his mom and my dear friend Myra, sent the good news that the tooth had FINALLY come out!  He is now a snaggled tooth cutie that looks more first grade rather than hillbilly once again.  But we all know this isn't a blog about his tooth.  This is about my dramatic flair.  So yes... the story continues. 




At the time Dramatic's front teeth were slightly loose.... about enough to wiggle a bit front to back.  I saw the sparkle in her eye and I knew... she is about to go after those teeth with vengeance.  If Travis is loosing his front tooth, she must be ready to!  (Don't forget they WERE in the womb together after all!)  So for the last couple of weeks she has had her hand in her mouth more than out... and we just quit thinking about how many times those hands were not washed first.  Really we quit worrying about that at birth... poor kid... she IS number FIVE you know! 

This week, the front left (just opposite of  the one Travis lost) was getting pretty loose.  Her daddy got all excited and began to talk about pulling it.  He is the official tooth puller of all of our children.  It's tradition.  It's expected.  Until.... SCREEEEEECCCCHHHHHH.... Dramatic put on the brakes.  You see, with our other children, there was no Mrs. Z. in their lives.  Mrs. Z. apparently has a tooth pulling fetish that needs to be addressed, but hasn't been, and so she has informed her classes for years now, that SHE has been to TOOTH FAIRY CAMP!  Oh GASP of joy!  TOOTH FAIRY CAMP!  Who else has those credentials?  So as Todd was getting pumped up for the soon to be pull, Dramatic asked the dreaded question... "Daddy, have YOU been to TOOTH FAIRY CAMP?"  We all know where it went from there, only it is worse than you might imagine... he resorted to threats of "whoever pulls it is where you have to stay and the tooth fairy doesn't bring as much at someone else's house as he does at your own."  Sadly, it didn't phase Dramatic in the least.  She was fully confident in the Tooth Fairy's fairness!  She marched right into school on Friday proudly proclaiming her tooth was WAY ready!  Todd was confident because he knew it had a few more days.  After the school day came to a close, I have to admit even I began to wonder if there was some truth to this whole tooth fairy camp thing Mrs. Z. speaks of, because that tooth was hanging on by only one stubborn root.  Apparently every break in the day Dramatic bee-lined it to Mrs. Z. the tooth fairy camp champion, and they worked that sucker looser and looser and looser. 

The final root was a doozie though and Dramatic started getting scared.  She wanted that tooth out so bad, but just couldn't face the fear of that final snap.  Even let another teacher wiggle on it a little, but it just wasn't happening.  Mrs. Z. teased her about letting me do the old "elbow to the teeth" trick and just knock that sucker right out.  I kept reminding her to get to work on the other one... we want a full gap in this family... its just so cute when they are both gone... and we headed home.  She was invited to a friends house and was super excited, so when we got home she headed up the stairs in a hurry to decide what treasures would win the vote for travel this time.  I was in the kitchen when I heard thump, thump thump (Feet on stairs), BANG (Feet NOT on stairs) and BLOOD CURDLING SCREAM (the point when she face planted her front two teeth into the stair ahead of her.  I rushed around the corner to a crying baby, a busted lip, and a bloody mouth.  I was fully expecting THE tooth to be gone, but it was hanging on... just like TRAVIS'S tooth!  AND, the other was now very loose.... but throbbing.  I thought to myself, "I know she wants that tooth out, but Holy Smokes... that is a little extreme don't you think?"

The fateful face plant fall damage display

We doctored her up and here is what she looked like shortly after the bleeding stopped...








She cried a while and we did the ice treatment to help with the throbbing.  Pretty soon, we headed out the door to her friends, sore teeth and all. The originally loose tooth looked sort of in place, but by the next day, she had crossed over... into hillbilly world.  Check it out!

The Lone Tooth- hillbilly style

We did all we could to talk her into letting her daddy pull it, and finally last night, she agreed.  He is really good at doing it fast and when they aren't ready, so he got her all set up and did the ol' trick-a-roo... only instead of a tooth, just another blood curdling scream.  His eyes were as big as hers as he hugged her and he whispered... that root is hanging on TIGHT!   I'm not sure who was more traumatized from the event, him or her!  I wasn't as much affected because I walk away and plug my ears.  Unlike Todd and Mrs. Z. tooth pulling is NOT for me!  Brycelynn quickly formed the opinion that for sure, without a doubt her daddy had NOT Been to TOOTH FAIRY CAMP... EVER!

The night went on, the complaints of the tooth continued, and finally this morning before church, I could take it no more.  It was AWFUL looking and driving her crazy.  She couldn't keep it in her mouth.  It stayed pushed out on that lip.  She would wiggle, complain, wiggle, complain.  Finally, I gave an ultimatum.  Either let her Daddy pull the darn thing out, or not a word could be spoken of it until it fell out on its on.  A mom can only take so much drama on one subject and we were on DAY THREE people!  She cautiously.... and with a few tears... made the choice to trust her Daddy for one more shot at the tooth (though she was EXTREMELY disappointed to not get to go to the school nurse for one of those cool tooth holders!).  He told her he was counting to five and of course the yank came at four.  Seth was in the room (Yes, I had retreated and plugged my ears) and came running out saying "Oh my goodness... I HEARD it snap! That root SNAPPED!"  I came around the corner to a few tears... I think maybe in both of their eyes... and one fine looking gap in the front!  No blood, so she could instantly see her new smile (if blood was present we would have had to wait or she would FREAK and think she was surely going to DIE from it) and all was well in the tooth world.... at least for a few more days until front tooth number two that was knocked loose on the stairs is ready to come out!   But for now, she is eagerly awaiting the tooth fairy, whom Mrs. Z. so sweetly informed her that if she could lose it and put it under her pillow on Monday she would get DOUBLE pay because the Tooth Fairy pays double on holidays and Monday is MLK day, of course.  (Yes, Mrs. Z. and Dramatic are kindred spirits... and I think out to get us!)  So she will NOT be getting money tonight because she is holding out for the holiday pay!  GREAT!

Here is the princess .........

 turned REDNECK.... in one small tug of the tooth!

And THAT is the end of the story... for now... of a Tale of Two Tooths (Now you see why I say it like I did!)

All lived happily ever after... except the tooth fairy who is now going to go BROKE on holiday pay rates!