Seeking Advise About Losing Baby Teeth

E.,
Loosing teeth is big business in our family! There are so many wonderful ideas that you can use with your son. In our house, my children get to keep their teeth - because they want to. Although it is a real disappointment to the toothfairy, the kids love to keep their teeth in a special box. However, they must write to her to ask permission (by now, the tf knows that these kids want to keep them). My rule is (because my son is now 12) - that if you don't believe in the toothfairy, she stops coming to visit you (and hence, stops bringing you money!) My daughter is totally into the whole idea...there are some wonderful books out there, that you can check out of the library. Anyway, the kids have to write a letter to her; it can be filled with questions or comments about what is going on in their world...I have gotten the best questions (do you have any brothers or sisters/what is your favorite color/what do your parents do for a living/how do you get to all of the children all over the world - every night/how do you 'type' your letters back to me while you are in my house/). I also make them ask for permission to keep their teeth. THe tootfairy uses the teeth to build her castle and when a child asks to keep the tooth, it leaves a "hole" in the castle wall - so it's a big deal to keep the tooth. She also gets to get a word in about taking good care of the teeth and how important it is to floss and brush (I always talk about her dentist and, if one of her friends has recently lost a tooth, I mention the friends name, as well). I use a font that is not known to the kids - sign her name in handwriting (something I rarely use- so it's different)and sometimes I put fairy dust in the envelope (glitter). She has kept every letter written to her (so have I, in the computer). It's a very special relationship and one I hope will continue for a few more years.
Enjoy this time with your son.
J.

With my older son, we made it into a big thing with the tooth fairy coming and leaving him money. He was really into it and loved looking under his pillow in the morning. Luckily he was a heavy sleeper so that worked. I also have a 3 year old that is a very light sleeper so we're going to use the box idea with him. Just make it into a fun adventure and he should be fine.

$1 per tooth seems to be the going rate, based on conversations with my friends.....good luck!

My family tradition is to put the tooth in a glass of water and put it on a shelf/bookcase/side table next to the bed. The Toothfairy visit's drinks the water, takes the tooth and leaves coins in the glass (generally $1 worth). My husbands tradition is to put the tooth in a little cloth baggy and place under the pillow. The Toothfairy trades the tooth for coins ($1 worth). The pillow idea is a tad tricky if your kid moves around and ends up rolling onto the tooth. Hope these idea's help and good luck with your MBA.
S.

When my son started losing teeth and getting visits from the tooth fairy, I realized how difficult it was to "do the trade" without him knowing, if the tooth was in his room or under his pillow. So we designated a special tiny tooth box that sits in the kitchen window. When my son wakes up, the tooth is gone and money has appeared. I usually give $1 per tooth. If I have anything really special like a gold dollar, I'll use that too. One time my son accidentally dropped his tooth down the drain and was devastated. We had to write a "special circumstances" letter to the tooth fairy that night. Low and behold, she accepted the letter in lieu of the tooth and still left money!