The Jackson 5 Family: Getting braces~Zane, Shelby & I (momma)!

I thought I'd let you know that we have had many dental appointments over the past weeks/month...Yes, me too...I know am old, but I decided that it was the perfect time to do a little throwback to the teen years and get braces too. (I keep telling myself it makes me look younger- not dorkier) ha ;) I have always hated my smile, although it didn't keep me from smiling :) So on Monday, Jan. 30 we all went in and got braces! Eeeek! We were all excited...but I was very scared & nervous. Everyone did great!! We were a little sore, but all in all, it wasn't so bad! I know we will have sessions where we will have very sore mouths, but in the end it will be worth it! Zane and I will have ours on for about 16-18 months and Shelby will have hers a little longer - 2 yrs!! She had a extra tooth...I know, crazy uh!! She had to have that tooth pulled, so now she has a gap that will need to be closed...which the braces will do that! We have WAY

more respect for all those kids sporting these things...smiling is awkward, eating is messy/painful/gross, flossing is nearly impossible and (though I’ve gotten over this part) it has been the first time in my life I have woken up in my own pile of drool (yeah- super sexy… I know ;)) And last but not least, the inside of my mouth closely resembles tenderized meat at any given time. BUT- all that said… in 16 to 24 months we will have STRAIGHT teeth! We are going to the best Orthodontist, Dr. Larrabee and his staff are so awesome! They really make you feel very comfortable and happy! The office is very nice too! They do this fun thing where you can earn Larrabee Loots~which are coins you can earn and trade in for toys/gift cards to places likeTarget, Starbucks & iTunes, all kinds of fun stuff! The way you can earn Loots are by arriving to your appointments on time, no broken brackets or wires, good brushing, grades of at least A's or B's, community service work and/or wearing your Dr. Larrabee t-shirt to your appointments!! They start you out with this fun bank with 2 Loots!! They also gave us a gift sack full of goodies: water bottle, T-shirt & a teeth care package (tooth brush, wax, floss, tooth paste, mirror, tiny brush to get under your wire & mouth wash)