The Tooth Fairy Dukes It Out With The Puke Fairy

Ah........The Tooth Fairy. One of those childhood rights of passage. In our house, she's a geologist who brings slices of Agate and carved Onyx animals along with gold dollar coins. In my childhood, she brought 2 dimes and a nickle (since 3 coins seemed like so much more than one quarter). At least she stopped short of loading me up with 25 pennies! When I got older, she brought doll house miniatures.

Sagezilla has been dying to loose her baby teeth since her brother started 3 years ago. In fact, she was so distraught when he began receiving "magical creature visits" that she fashioned a fake tooth from clay and got a "sympathy quarter" and a few geology goodies of her own over the years.

Du-Jay lost one tooth on New Year's Eve, which is also his Gramps' birthday. He was concerned the Tooth Fairy wouldn't be able to find us in Ohio, but she did. That was a big night. Then there was the week of double Tooth Fairy visits during Lollapalooza music festival. Dugan was thrilled to lose his first big front tooth on the first day of the fest (after months of wiggling) and proudly showed everyone his new grin.

One day later, at Lollapalooza, he caught a giant ball from the audience and was rolling around and jumping on it with Zilla. They popped up from opposite sides and accidentally crashed at the top.

















I heard an anguished wail, and Du had a mouth full of blood, and another front tooth in his hand!




















Not everyone can say they got a front tooth head butted out at Lollapalooza, in a crowd of 75,000!
This past December, Sagezilla finally lost her very first tooth. That night The Puke Fairy also graced us with her presence and a not so nice gift for Du-Jay. The kids share a twin over full bunk and often choose to share the big bottom bed. So Zilla and her tooth loot had to be evacuated to the top bunk in the wee hours of the morning. Of course she woke up. So we spent 4am cleaning bedding, comforting the sick boy, and admiring Sage's sparkly fairy packet of geologic treasures and coinage.

When I posted about the ordeal, in an online hip parenting group, I was amazed how common this experience is. One friend remarked that the Tooth Fairy and The Puke Fairy are mortal enemies. Yet, at least 4 families said the two arrived at their house on the same night, sometimes gracing the tooth looser, and sometimes a sibling, with a lovely case of stomach flu. Ms. Puke Fairy is one mythical creature we've seen quite enough of.

When Zilla's 2nd baby tooth began to be a tiny bit wiggly, my husband had a nightmare that she determinedly yoinked it out months before it was ready. She's that type of kid. She excitedly showed us the tiny movement and declared it would come out on Du's birthday (a few weeks away).

I explained that Du wiggled his for nearly half a year before it was ready and then waited till it literally fell out on his lip, when he opened his mouth to see it better in the mirror. I told her it wouldn't be ready to fall out till it was horizontal in her mouth and that a more realistic out date would be late summer or fall.

Then that dratted Puke Fairy showed up and Zilla got sent home from school the day before Du-Jay's birthday with a stomach virus. She made good use of her unexpected vacation day to wiggle that little puppy mercilessly. At one point she popped up from her sick bed spitting blood and I almost freaked out and rushed her to the doctor, thinking it was something internal. She swished and spit, got a tissue and happily exclaimed that her tooth was now horizontal like I'd said and ready to come out. One swift twist and pull by Miss Sagezilla, and she had a beautiful new checkerboard smile, just in time for big bro's birthday.

That night, Du-Jay got a gold dollar coin from the Tooth Fairy, too, in honor of his birthday. And the Puke Fairy, and head-butting little sisters, stayed away.