Look Mom! No Cavities!

Little Winnie has never had her teeth looked at by a dentist. This has caused me (Rabbit-Mommy) a great deal of anxiety. You see, my mom worked for a dentist for years, and I've worked for dentists for years, and I have seen what can happen to a child's teeth when they do not see a dentist regularly. Winnie is now almost 4 years old, and try as I might, every time I took her in with me to see the dentist that Roo and I see, Winnie would steadfastly (in a rather Eeyore-ish way) refuse loudly to get in the chair, or even "ride on mommy's lap". No way! So, after the last time, my wonderful dentist suggested this pediatric dentist in town that is amazing. As it turns out, I have heard of this place because they have advertised where I work. It's called Dentistry For Kids in Wilsonville.

So, after waiting a few weeks, I finally called and made an appointment for Winnie to see Dr. James. When we came in for our appointment we were greeted by a very nice Office manager and a room resembling Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium. I kid you not. This place is the dental version of Disneyland. Check it out here: www.dentistryforkidsonline.com

Of course Winnie LOVED it. Here she is:


Tigger had a blast too and played while, every once in a while going into Winnie's room to check on her:

So there it is! My Winnie is growing up and getting braver by the minute. Next thing you know she'll be riding a scooter all by herself. Oh wait, she did that a couple of weeks ago! That's a whole different post:-)

First Fire of Fall

It's small, it's gas, and it only puts out a little heat, but to me it's one of many "bests" that I love about Fall.

As the clouds rolled in and the temperature began to drop yesterday, I decided to cook up a yummy chicken-vegetable soup. Then, as I considered putting on my slippers, I looked at my long dormant gas fireplace and smiled. It was the perfect day to light 'er up for the first time of the season. The "whoosh" sound that it made when it ignited was loud enough to draw each member of my family into our living room. What a difference a fire makes? Everything feels more cozy, and instead of watching TV, we all decided to....just hang out. How wonderful is that!?

As per our usual "hang out" routine, there was dancing, singing, and tumbling galore. Then, as I worked to slow the pace down before bedtime, I pulled out these wonderful books:

Mrs. Merriwether's Musical Cat by Carol Purdy











and...

Mr. Gumpy's Outing by John Burningham











With Tigger curled up on my left, Winnie on my right, and Eeyore on the chair across from us, I began to read about a cat who keeps time to music with it's tail and a man who let's cows, goats, children and pigs climb onto his boat for ride. It was wonderful and funny.

Then I pulled out The Children's Homer by Padraic Colum. I thought for sure I'd lose Tigger and Winnie right away. However, they both hung in there for the whole first page. Then, one at a time they jaunted off to go take their baths and put on jammies.

Eeyore and I were left alone to enjoy the story of Odysseus and his son Telemachus. I loved reading this book aloud to her. I felt as though we were being transported to another time. Eeyore was also completely enthralled. She wanted to take the book to bed with her to read, but I said no. I want to save it for our read aloud time.


Even though we aren't technically homeschooling this year, at least we can continue to carry on with this tradition that we started last year. Reading aloud as a family. It's a lot of fun. I recommend it to everyone, no matter how old or young your children are.

Blessings!