Open Wide!

I had intended to get Connor in to the dentist when he turned 3. However, being 8 months pregnant at that time, it just didn't happen. I finally managed to remember to schedule an appointment for him about 6 weeks ago. In preparation for his first visit, we read a couple of books to help him understand what to expect. Thanks to Spongebob Squarepants and The Berenstein Bears, it actually went pretty well . . . for the most part. A new pediatric dentist office opened in the town center close to our home, so that's where we went. I'll admit my expectations of the office were a bit different. Being a pediatric dentist, I assumed it would be geared towards kids. The office itself was very modern and not at all what I consider kid friendly. The chairs for the cleaning were regular adult size, so Connor had to use his legs to keep his head propped up where it needed to be. However, I will say the staff was great. Connor was fairly impressed from the start when he settled into the chair and realized there was a TV in the ceiling for him to watch. Not only that, but it was playing one of his favorite movies, Ella Enchanted. That provided a great distraction for him for the first part of the cleaning, while the hygenist was poking and prodding around in his mouth. When it came time to the actual cleaning, however, he was done. He was out of his chair and through the door before I caught up to him. Apparently he didn't like the noise or the vibration in his mouth. We weren't able to convince him to hop back in the chair until the dentist came in. He introduced himself as Dr. Patrick. Connor asked, "You mean like Spongebob's friend?" He was immediately in Connor's good graces. Dr. Patrick finished the checkup by using a manual toothbrush with no further incidents.

When it was time to leave, Connor was allowed to pick out a prize from a treasure chest. Dr. Patrick also suggested that we check out their fish tank. I was pleasantly surprised. It's the one thing in their office that is actually kid friendly. It was a Finding Nemo themed tank. They had every fish you can think of from the movie - Nemo, Marlin, Dory, Flo, Gil, etc. Connor was pretty impressed. He was mesmerized by watching them swim around, which is a good thing. I may have to use it as a bribe to get him to go back.