Tooth Fairy Failure!

What happens to a mama and daddy when they fail at the very simple job of being a tooth fairy!?!? Todd and I found out very early this morning...

Traeton lost his third tooth yesterday afternoon. We had a crazy, busy evening with Growing Kids God's Way, rushed bath time and several other little things. I admit I completely FORGOT about the tooth! It is quite amazing that I did forget because most of his classmates have lost 6-8 teeth and this was only his third - quite a momentous occasion - especially since the last time he lost a tooth was almost two years ago. Loosing teeth is not something that happens here very often!

Anyway... It is about 5:30 a.m. I am just getting Elias his morning coffee (hot cocoa) and getting ready to put him in front of Sesame Street for 30 minutes so I can find a moment alone with the Lord before our day gets rolling too fast for me to catch it.

Traeton's skinny little bod slinks around the corner in a very down-trodden way. This is NOT my boy, I know immediately that something is not right. The fact that he entered the room silently was alone enough to alert me that something was amiss. Traeton is the loudest moving child ever to exist, we call him 'Thumper' because he runs, jumps and thumps everywhere he goes. Every single morning I know he is awake not because I can see him but because I can hear him.

Even after this odd entrance I am still completely oblivious to the fact that I forgot the tooth! Then he opens his little hand and his itty-bitty tooth is sitting in his palm and the tears begin to roll. 'She forgot me.' He says. The pit arrives in my stomach. He was so, so excited for this.

My mind races, 'how can I fix this??' I grab my phone, I will text Todd who is still upstairs getting ready. He can rush in and put something under the pillow while I distract Traeton. I have half the text written when Traeton sobbingly says, 'I am going to tell Daddy that the tooth fairy forgot me.' Crumb, what do I do now...

As soon as Todd and I have moment alone we begin scheming - after we admit we are the most rotten parents ever - about how to fix the situation. Todd has the grand idea of pulling out a 'bigger' gift from the gift cabinet and put it into his backpack with a note saying, "Sorry Traeton, this was waaaaay too big to fit under your pillow, I hope you don't mind that I left it in your backpack instead." So into the backpack goes the gift with the note.

Traeton eventually discovers it all and doesn't believe, even for a second! He was totally on to us. Todd, being the very black and white kind of man he is couldn't pull off the lie and admitted the whole thing, guilty. So now Traeton knows the tooth fairy does not exist and he knows that we totally forgot him and his tooth last night.

Parenting is so hard. Can I get an 'Amen'?