writingwahm

Ever wonder why so many children under five have cavities? It’s not just the overabundance of sweet treats; it’s also a lack of good dental hygiene, according to the British Dental Health Foundation. Once our children are old enough to hold a brush and seem to know what to do, it’s tempting to let them get on with it, but that’s a mistake, and we need to keep tabs on their brushing technique till they are at least six years old.

I know for myself that sometimes you can use teeth brushing time to get on with one of the millions of other little jobs that working mothers have to do, but I’ve recently gone back to more supervision of this crucial activity. The reason? Because I noticed that my little one wasn’t quite managing to reach everywhere and brush with the required thoroughness. With new teeth expected in the next year, it seemed a good time for a refresher in dental hygiene.

When my daughter was born, I remember people saying that the time would pass quickly. At the time, every day brought something new to marvel at, yet when I look back over the last five years, it seems that they passed in a flash. I can still remember being able to hold my baby almost in my cupped hands. This long legged creature who bounces all over me is a far cry from those first helpless moments.

For the first couple of years, I kept brief notes of things I wanted to remember, but I stopped that after she turned two. The time between then and now has been punctuated with a few milestones - talking, going to school, reading fluently - but it still seems to have zipped by. I wonder if I’ll be saying the same thing in five years’ time when I have a ten year old on my hands.