Wednesday, October 22, 2008

I feel like a kid again.

And its not because of the 80's clothes that are back. Teenagers can wear leggings and long, belted shirts, but I won't be joining any time soon. My flashbacks have more to do with pain, humiliation and long suffering than trying to figure out how many pairs of colored socks I can wear at once.
I now have a retainer. Actually a night guard to keep me from grinding my teeth, prevent waking up with headaches and hopefully stop my teeth from seeking out their original positions in my jaw. As I put it on last night, those memories of my early teenage years came flooding back.
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Thank the heavens above I didn't have to go back this far in time. Braces are bad enough, but a headgear? That was like taping a huge sign on my head saying, "Please mock and torment me." Thank you, mom, for not making me wear it to school more than once. Occasionally I still have dreams that I am trying to force my headgear on after forgetting to wear it all week.
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Shortly after the glorious day when the headgear was banished, the braces were taken off, and I could finally run my tongue over my shiny, straight, strangely smooth teeth, I was given the retainer. Mine was rainbow striped with a red heart in the middle. I never lost my retainer, unlike my friend Mindee, who seemed to get a new one (and get to choose cool new color combinations) every other week.
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Since I had been so careful with my retainer as a kid, I was horrified last night when I couldn't find my brand new night guard, which is a very boring clear color. I couldn't even remember bringing it into the house after my appointment. I had taken my kids with me to the dentist, and worried that I had left my brain at the office along with the new dental appliance. But luckily, I found it in the car. My brain and my retainer.
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I sheepishly put the night guard on and climbed into bed, ready for an uncomfortable night. I rolled over and smiled at my dh. He grinned back with a mouth full of metal and rubber bands.
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We are quite the pair.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

ROFL!! Hope the night guard helps. I need to look into getting one as I've been grinding my teeth againg lately. I had braces, rubber bands and headgear, I was the sight.

Elozia Marie said...

Oh, I am so glad they don't do headgear anymore!

I am ROFL with your last 4 sentences!

beckylou said...

I love it! I bet your Christmas pictures will be purdy! ;)

Blondentropy said...

LOL! I'm glad you found your night guard and your mind. I'm with Becky- I bet your Christmas pictures will be all sorts of sparkly!

Heidi said...

I have two retainers and I can hardly wait to take them off in the morning. I really feel your pain. lol

Jess said...

LOL! That was great. you two are a pair indeed.

Ambrosia said...

Grin ;) You are fabulous, woman.

Michal said...

love it! you guys can pretend you are a couple of teenagers in love!

mindyluwho said...

I thank my lucky stars I never had to go through the pain of braces and retainers.

Maxmomma said...

Oh this is wonderful! I have been lamenting that I miss home where people know who I am and how I think... after reading your blog I feel home again. There is something disarming about hearing people's thoughts in writing. Thanks for this, it cured some home sickness!

You are a good writer. I particularly enjoyed your "Tagged" entry. I'll tell you what, I miss our 'Come over and play games' friends too, so how about we happily fill that void in both our lives simultaneously? We really enjoy you and dh.

I'll keep checking up here on the blog- this has been fun!

sheena said...

i love this....too funny!! just don't get tangled up when you two kiss.....can that really happen?? or is that just young teenage folklore??

thank you so much for stopping by my blog!

careyttops or katelyn's kid kitchen said...

you have such a way with words! loved reading this post and i truly felt heart ache for you having to ever wear head gear!!!
i didn't know your dh had braces??? too fun!

Anonymous said...

I am CRACKING UP at the imagery. You guys are super hot. :)

big8smiley said...

I didn't know you could wear a night guard for teeth grinding! My 4-year-old son is horrible with that. I think the yucky headgear really paid off for you. I've always thought you had gorgeous teeth.

I've been reading through your blog and it's so fun to catch up with you! Your kids are so cute. :) I didn't know you live in CA, but I sure am jealous of your weather!

It makes me happy to see that you are doing well!