tales from a far-land

In June, after a year of orthodontia treatment, Madilyn's braces were removed.  She was so excited until she found out that she would have to wear a retainer every day, all day for ten weeks.  Luckily, after the allotted time, she graduated to wearing the retainer at night only.  It is crazy to think that the entire process took just over a year: July 24, 2020 -- Palette Expander Inserted November 13, 2020 -- Braces On June 11, 2021 -- Braces Off August 20, 2021 -- Retainer Approved for Night Wear Only She was such a trooper through the whole process and very rarely complained about pain or annoyance.  And her reward -- a beautiful smile!  Now, we wait until she looses the rest of her primary teeth to examine if she will need any further orthodontia work.   Measuring her mouth for her retainer First day of braces versus no more braces

This summer, Madilyn started her mouth makeover.  In July, she was fitted for and received a palette expander.  This was the initial phase before her braces could be installed.  Throughout the entire expander phase, Madilyn was a rock star.  Each time she had the expander turned with the key, she was so brave and tolerant of the pain.  I was super impressed. By November, her mouth and teeth were in the correct position for the orthodontist to install her braces.  Again, Madilyn's pain tolerance was incredible and only minimally complained after they were put in.  She was so excited to pick out her rubber band colors -- pink and silver.  They actually looked really cute on her.   Now we just wait until her next orthodontic phase. Preparing for her expander She had to wear rubber bands in her teeth to create space for the expander. While at a sleepover, Madi lost one of her rubber bands.  Sean fixed it for her. Installing the expander...