First dental exam....featuring Mickey Mouse

I finally took Will to the dentist for the first time a couple of Fridays ago. He was an early tooth getter--first two teeth popped in at four months, he had six teeth by six months and a full set of teeth by one year. We brush his teeth (while we do it daily, we are bad about doing it multiple times a day) and he's always had a good set of chompers, but I noticed he had a brownish film on his front teeth about a month ago (eww, I know), so I set the appointment--something I'd been meaning to do anyway.

I HIGHLY recommend taking your child to a pediatric dentist vs. your usual dentist. I took him to a place right by our house called Hill Country Pediatric Dentistry and it was AWESOME. I'm talking bright, toy-filled waiting room w/ flat screen TVs playing the Disney Channel, toys/Lego tables in the exam rooms, flat screen TVs above the exam table so when your kid is lying flat, there's a TV right above them playing cartoons, goodie bags galore and prizes at the end. It's a veritable carnival complete with a tooth cleaning (not to mention the dentists are all specially trained in dealing with children and they do a fantastic job of putting the little ones at ease).

Since it was Will's first trip, they just did a basic cleaning (no x-rays). The dentist started cleaning his teeth with just a regular toothbrush (which they let him pick out) and once she determined he was comfortable with that, she moved on to using the real-deal tooth cleaner (the electric rotating one). Once she determined he was cool with that (and he was--the kid was a champ the entire time), she tried the water pick and suction thingy. He did great with both. The dentist finished up with some floss and told us we were doing a great job w/ his dental hygiene (apparently the brown film came right off--just needed some toothpaste with a little grit).

Here are some pics of the big day:

Playing with Legos before the dentist arrived

The dentist starting out with the toothbrush while Will watches Handy Manny

Graduating to the electric tooth cleaner....while continuing to watch Handy Manny...