Back in June 2016, Nate got spacers put in between a few of his top teeth. This was step one in a 3 step process to make room in his very small & overcrowded mouth. Next, in August, came the metal appliance. Then, in November, he got braces up top.
So, for 10 LONG months Nate couldn't chew gum or eat popcorn & gummy-type candies. (Basically a kids' worst nightmare. Ha!) But finally on Wednesday he got his braces off. Can you tell he was excited?!?!?
Last picture with braces!
Nate has been a trooper through all of this and hardly complained at all about the pain & discomfort. He dutifully took his "tooth kit" to school every day and has been cleaning & flossing his teeth so well. The orthodontist called him a dream patient :) He got rewarded with these goodies from Dr. Cowan after the braces came off:
So excited for his gum & popcorn!
Now, the story does not end here because we still have a long road ahead of us to get his mouth in tip-top shape! He currently has a permanent retainer attached to the back of his top 4 teeth, and he has to wear a second retainer (that covers all of his top teeth) at night. He will definitely have to have braces again in the future, and it will be a whole set this time. We are hopeful that won't happen for another 2-3 years though, to give Nate a little break :)
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| Before & After |
When we got home, I had a bucket of goodies waiting for him....all the foods he's been wanting to eat but couldn't. He was so surprised!!
I let him try a little bit of everything....Swedish Fish, gum, skittles, mike & ikes, and yes - SLIM JIMS. He loves those things (gross, I know!) and was so happy to eat one again!!!
So proud of my big boy and happy to see that handsome smile again :)
