My daughter is losing her first tooth. What's the going rate for the tooth fairy? What other traditions do you incorporate with the tooth fairy's visit? It'll be interesting to see whether the amount of money left is different in different areas of the country.
Thank you for your responses! The fairy dust is a new addition since my day! I like the idea of gold coins, $2 bills and other unusual currency. No $100,000 bills, though! I also like the note left to the fairy. Thanks again.
keep it cheap! $1, a gold $1, etc.
sometimes on really tough teeth, we'd give a special gift with a note explaining that the tooth fairy knew how hard the event was. In this case, it was always simple.....a Hot Wheels, etc
My friend has an etsy shop she sells the most DARLING tooth fairy pillows you hang from the handle on the door the kids can put their teeth in. So, I take their tooth then add a dollar in quarters to the pillow and sprinkle glitter around the door.
My husband left our son $5 for his first tooth. I thought it was crazy and way too much! For his others we have left a gold dollar coin, a toy, a $2 bill. We try to make it fun :) I also put on the reddest lipstick I have a leave a kiss on his cheek (he is a VERY sound sleeper, my youngest probably won't get the kisses b/c he is a very light sleeper!) and he wakes up with a kiss from the tooth fairy.
I asked my son what he thinks the tooth fairy does with his teeth and he says she uses them to build her house :D
ETA: My son hasn't been disappointed in anything he has received even though it's been less than what he got for his first tooth. The tooth fairy left a note with a cute poem about how special it is when you lose your first tooth. He is happy with whatever he gets.
I'm a single mother, so I relied on my mother for overnights sometimes so I could work. This was almost a disaster the first time the tooth fairy had to come for a tooth. My mother (without telling me) and I both gave my daughter money. I think she scored $5 from each of us, and of course she believed that this would happen with every tooth. So I sat her down and explained to her that the tooth fairy is very very old. After all she's been collecting children's teeth since my grandma was a little girl. I told her that sometimes she get's confused and forgets where she's been or if she's been there at all. My daughter never knew what was gonna happen when she lost a tooth. Sometimes she would get $ at one place or the other, sometimes the tooth fairy would forget the tooth and come back for it, sometimes she would take the tooth and bring the $ days later. Once she came on Christmas and had cookies and milk and left a letter telling my daughter how great it was to see her good friend Santa. She even let her keep that tooth as a special Christmas present. The $ amounts always varied. She was 12 when she finally confessed that she didn't believe anymore. It was tough for both of us to say goodbye to "our" tooth fairy because she was so unpredictable and fun.
A silver coin.
A dollar.
Whatever you have.
I also read a tooth fairy book to my daughter.
Sprinkle glitter on her pillow. Oh the fairy was here!
Even in a same classroom, kids get different amounts of money.
In my daughter's class... some kids even got $20! Geez, I don't do that.
I just tell my daughter she has her own fairy and the amount of money is not important.
And with each tooth, the amount of money is different too.
It depends on how much money, a Tooth Fairy had at the time... and they always try their best. (wink). The Tooth Fairy has MANY children, to attend to.
Oh and for us, we let our daughter keep her tooth. Which she says to the Fairy "please let me keep my tooth...." And we got her a cute little Tooth box to put it in. All her teeth to this day.
I gave $1, for first, last, and all in between. I did not want to set any precedent I couldn't continue. Some people give more for the first or last, but (at least regarding the first) I think it just sets the kid up for disappointment. I did give the golden $1 coins a few times and the kids thought that was pretty cool. What my daughter enjoys most about the tooth fairy is writing her a note full of all kinds of questions and the tooth fairy always writes back answering the questions. She loves communicating with a "real" fairy and finding out all about fairy life. It is fun for me too!
One dollar. I usually manage to knock the damn tooth behind the bed and have to retrieve it after the child leaves the room. :(
Whatever is reasonable. You sure can't buy much with a dollar. Sometimes if you have a Canadian dollar or a dollar from another country, it's neat to tell the kids that she must have flown all night from Canada etc. And had neglected to change currency. I always had the children write a nice thank you note to the tooth fairy for caring about their teeth. The young ones, mom has to write the note. Then the tooth fairy would leave a thank you card and always left a brand new package of a little toothbrush, travel size toothpaste, and floss. Wish I had thought of the fairy dust. What a neat idea. I always told my children that the toothfairy was tiny. And that she used magic. I didn't want my girls to be frightened of an adult in their room. Oh the joys of childhood.
$1.00.. our tooth fairy gave 4 quarters because our daughter loved quarters.
Since her first two teeth ended up being pulled (10 days apart) cause they hadn't loosened enough and caused the permanent ones to come in way out of place, she got $5 and a note the first time and $1 gold coin the second time. Haven't decided amounts for the next ones - looks like it'll be a while anyway!
With my SD we used gold coins. Get a bunch in advance, though, and hide them well because if you run out, you get some very accusing looks!
Oh the TF has left various amounts...usually a gold dollar. $2 for each top front teeth.
Once she left a used DS game. DH's idea. :/
She usually leaves a note though-and that is a huge hit!
Have fun!
For my sons FIRST tooth, he got a $5 bill and a gold dollar. After that he got $2. I probably would have continued with the gold dollar thing, but we were out of town and I wasn't able to get one!
I did mention after his first one though that the tooth fairy usually does something special for the first tooth, so he wouldn't be disappointed for future teeth.
We did a gold dollar for the first tooth. Every tooth after this will be .25 cents. Like Monica, we'll also do more for the first molar.
Generally about $2 a tooth. But one of my daughter's front teeth was hanging by a thread for DAYS while we were on vacation a couple of weeks ago. She said it was uncomfortable but wasn't going to let us help her pull it but it was this big to do for days. It was so bad that I was teasingly calling her Nanny McPhee, lol! Finally, she allowed my husband to pull it and it was out in an instant. For that one tooth, she got $10 because it was such a pain -- and it was the smallest bill we had at the time being on vacation and all. But normally, $2. She has a little stuffed owl with a tooth fairy pocket and tiny envelope that you put the tooth in; got it on Etsy.com. Very cute.
Well, the FIRST is always more --- maybe a dollar, maybe $5. all depending. After that, .25 cents! Plus a letter from the tooth fairly (usually more appreciated!:) And they have to write a letter too. And I give more for the first molar too -- a dollar usually :)
We do $1 no matter what tooth it is.
For the first visit, my daughter had had her 2 baby teeth pulled due to crowding. She got 5 gold coins (one dollar coins). Every tooth afterward has gotten one $1 coin. We also leave a note from the Tooth Fairy and fairy dust :)
Gawd its been years sence my kids lost teeth, but with the cost of living the way it is now days I would leave them a dollar..Better than 25 cents I use to get....
