Braces Complete!

It was Gabby's initial wish to have her braces on before she turned 14, so she could have them off before she turned 16. She followed all the rules (except for water pik flossing) and wore her bands almost too well . . . and yet the braces remained. As it turns out, she has some slooooow-growing molars. Her 12-year molars are just now coming through on the bottom! X-rays show that her bottom wisdom teeth are tipping these way-back dentals just a bit forward. 

I requested a visit with the orthodontist (this is a challenge given parents weren't allowed in the building until a couple of weeks ago due to covid concerns) to find out where we were in the process (it had been six months since I'd seen the orthodontist in person). She explained they were just working on straightening those far back bottom molars; everything else was done. Wait, what? We don't care if her back, bottom, 12-year molars are straight . . . no we do not! Her top teeth and bite were our only concerns in the first place. The orthodontist said it could be spring of next year before the molars were fully in place and corrected--that would mean three full years with braces! 

With Buck's agreement, Gabby and I decided now was the time to free her teeth from their mandibular metal (okay, technically that would be the jaw bone, and there's no metal there, but it worked alliteration-wise, so I'm keeping it :) Gabby's braces removal appointment just happened to fall on the same day we were all getting our teeth cleaned (that process was another chaotic, complicated system of phone calls, locked doors, temperature scans, hand cleaning, hygienists that looked like a hazmat team, etc.). Scheduling was more than a bit tricky that day! But, we made it happen :) Gabby actually got her teeth cleaned of all the extra cement, etc. before she went back to pick up her retainer that afternoon.

Hooray for straight, healthy teeth! (and yes, she found the same outfit she was wearing so the comparison pictures of before and after would be spot on :) That day, she happily ate popcorn, caramel, and is having corn on the cob tonight. Oh, and she's a week out already, so doesn't have to wear her retainer 21/7 (she got three hours off per day), only at night. It's nice to see the results of all those months of broken brackets, pokey wires, sore gums, achy jaws, and inconvenient eating finally pay off! Taaadaaaa!!