Baby Teeth

Wearing Summer Dresses

Just the other day, I was thinking about how benign-sounding the term baby teeth is. It almost sounds adorable. In fact, I find the term to be quite deceiving ...

Our toddler sprouted her first teeth at 6 months of age, but started teething by 3 months old. And as evidenced by her swollen gums and hyper-salivation, our second daughter has already begun the teething process. Unfortunately her symptoms have been accompanied by irritability and difficult feedings.  So much so that I have been tempted, on a few occasions this week, to introduce to her the dreaded pacifier. Up until now, she had been such a calm baby.

 I have offered our baby a number of different teething devices, both chilled and room-temperature, but to no avail. I also offered her a clean finger, which she briefly sucked on. In the end, after fussing and crying (actually wailing is perhaps a better description) for a few minutes, she nurses herself to sleep. This has occurred several times a day, every day, for the last week. As with her sister, this will likely be a long, drawn-out process. Our only reprieve will come when those first teeth make their appearance, and before the next set of teeth (as they do seem to come in pairs).

Coincidentally, our toddler is also currently teething. She too, is hyper-salivating. So much so that I have been changing her saliva-soaked shirts several times a day. She seems to be aware that something is going on with her teeth and she often sticks her fingers in her mouth on opposite sides, as if to massage her swollen gums. Thankfully her primary teeth are almost all in. Because the only thing worse than one irritable child is two!