Kicking Off Birthday Season in Braces & #SpreadTheKindness Link Up On the Edge #697
On Wednesday night, I said good night to a 10 year old. Yesterday, I said good morning to an 11 year old. Today, I am wondering how the years fly by so quickly when the days can feel exponentially long.
Last Friday, we took both kids to the orthodontist to begin their respective treatments just in time for birthday season. Archie opted for Invisalign and is doing remarkably well with them. Ralph had some crowding issues that were preventing two adult teeth from coming in so he now has an expander and brackets with no wires. We have to keep expanding his little mouth until mid-April and then he returns to have the wires put on. The transition during this first week has been a bit challenging for him with discomfort and finding foods that he can eat.
Upon Ralph’s request, we ordered sushi for his birthday dinner last night and the seaweed kept getting hung up on his expander, so every bite required a run to the sink to unhook the pesky greenery from his mouth metal. Having never worn braces myself, the struggle is a bit more than I ever expected. But he also is doing great with hygiene and maintenance so maybe this process won’t be all that bad after all.
Sushi dinner was just the beginning of the birthday celebration. Tomorrow, weather permitting, we will be taking the kids and two of their friends for a birthday excursion to WonderWorks where we celebrated Ralph’s 10th birthday last year. We have a winter weather advisory hanging over us for the weekend threatening 7 inches of snow with some rain and sleet in the mix so that may push our birthday activities to Sunday. I am very ready for the snow to stop. But I should know better by now not to get my hopes up about a snow cease fire until at least mid-May. We always have 6 more weeks of winter after the Spring Equinox.
And with that, I will leave you all with a short photo gallery of little baby Radical Ralphie and the goofy 11 year old ‘tween that he has become overnight.
This kid is such a character. He makes me laugh every day with his witty sense of humor and his quirky personality. He also makes me yell a lot more than I prefer. But I am so proud of him for the young man he is becoming. He has been excelling in school despite a challenging start to 5th grade.
He joined the school band this year and plays the baritone. It is his very first experience with music and he was chosen as a member of the bi-county honors band which will be performing a concert two weeks from tomorrow. Only a few students from each of the 16 school districts in our county and the neighboring county were chosen to participate in the Jefferson-Lewis County Music Teacher Association Bi-County Band Festival. I am hoping to finally get some photos and video of this kid playing his instrument. He never lets me capture his musicality on camera and he is so stinking cute when he plays that giant brass horn.
So birthday season has begun here with braces and baritones! Archie turns 13 in 5 1/2 weeks, then 3 1/2 weeks later Jeff turns 43, and 4 days after that, it’s the big 50 for me!
I hope y’all have a most wonderful weekend!
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shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.
20 Comments
Nancy
Happy birthday to Ralph! Sushi dinner is my favourite too! I hope you all have fun celebrating his birthday on the weekend, well keep my fingers crossed for no snow!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Nancy! The snow did come and it is still snowing but I don’t think it will affect our plans. So yay!
xoxo
Shelbee
Amy Johnson
Oh, poor Ralph. Braces can be so tough. It will be worth it all in the end. My son needed braces when he was young, but we couldn’t afford it plus he was adamant against it, and now he regrets not doing it as he has issues today and is considering getting braces now, in his thirties. Thanks so much for featuring my quilt post! I so appreciate it!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Amy! I remember my sister really wanted braces when we were kids but my parents couldn’t afford it. I never had the desire to straighten my teeth because I have a low threshold for mouth pain and such. But I explained the affordability part to Ralph and was able to shift his perspective to understanding that he is blessed that we can afford to pay for his orthodontic work. He very quickly embraced the process after that conversation. Thank goodness! I hope you have a lovely weekend, my friend.
xoxo
Shelbee
Michelle
Birthday season is right! That’s a lot of birthdays in a short span of time. And you’re off to a good start. Happy Birthday, Ralph!
xoxo
Michelle
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Michelle! I have always appreciated that our birthdays are clustered within an 11 week season. It makes my life easier!
xoxo
Shelbee
Di
Happy birthday to Ralphie, and an early happy birthday to the rest of your family! Ralphie looks so adorable in his baby pictures. We have a birthday season too, in October when most of my family has their special day, except for me. I feel your boy’s braces ordeals, I had a mouth full of metal for four years when I was a kid. Hope you have a good weekend and thanks for the link up!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Di! The baby pictures really pull at my heartstrings! I like that all of our birthdays fall within an 11 week season. And it is far enough away from Christmas so as not to overwhelm me! Four years is a long time for braces! I don’t think I could tolerate it. Probably why I never got my teeth straightened. Ha. I hope your weekend is fabulous, my friend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Joanne
Oh I feel for Ralph! Alec had an expander and braces and all that too and it was real tough in the beginning when we were twisting the key each day. He did get used to dealing with food stuck in there and keeping it clean though. We have a snow advisory this weekend too and I also am not at all happy about it and yet not really surprised either.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Joanne! Jeff has been twisting the key because I really hate mouth stuff! They are both adapting to the process pretty well. Everything here is bright white outside, glowing in the dim light of sunrise. It is a beautiful view…in December!
xoxo
Shelbee
Laura Bambrick
Happy Birthday to your son! My oldest got her braces off a few months ago (at least the first set)! What a relief! It will be over before he knows it!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Laura! He is doing way better a week into it than he did the first few days. One of his friends at school got his braces a few weeks before Ralph did so that also has helped him to have a friend to commiserate with. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Marsha Banks
Happy birthday to Ralph! It is amazing how fast the time flies. My youngest just turned 40 (yes, 40), and my oldest is now 44. I just can’t believe my kids are adults as in have been adults for a long time now!
My oldest granddaughter had Invasalign and really liked them. My youngest granddaughter and grandson both had braces. She has hers off with him getting his off soon. Ah, I think I bought a car with orthodontia! All three kids and I were in braces at the same time. if I knew then what I know now, I probably would have bypassed them for myself. Having braces as an adult can damage your roots quite a bit. Mine are sheared off and look like blocks where there should be those pointy roots. As a result, some of my teeth are a bit loose. I can’t feel them, but the dentist says they are. Ah, teeth…so much pain for a nice smile, right?
Thanks for the link up, my gorgeous friend!
https://marshainthemiddle.com/
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Marsha! I can’t believe that you have children who are nearly my age! You are very young at heart, my friend. My dentist tried to pitch teeth straightening options to me and was like, “No, thanks!” I hate mouth stuff and I have embraced my crooked teeth, so I’m good! Have a most wonderful weekend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Gail
Big birthday season for you Shelbee! I seem to have a lot of family birthdays between July-September and then October and November. No big ones this year.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Gail! We have two big birthdays this year so lots of celebrating needs to happen, for sure! I kind of like that all of our birthdays are clustered together in 11 weeks and then we are finished until Christmas. I hope you have a lovely weekend!
xoxo
Shelbee
Debra | Gma’sPhoto
Hi, Shelbee. I have not had braces. Something that I am sure will take some time to get adjusted too. But being 11, how awesome, pre-teener! Fun pictures of Ralph, enjoyed looking at them.
I linked up with #44 and 45. Thanks for hosting!
Take care and best wishes.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Debra! The preteen hormones are something to be reckoned with! LOL I hope you have a wonderful week ahead, my friend.
xoxo
Shelbee
Patrick Weseman
Happy Birthday to him. Hope that Ortho work goes well for both, It can be a struggle. Thanks for hosting and I hope that have a wonderful week.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Patrick! Ralph had a wonderful birthday weekend! And he seems to be adapting really well to the orthodontics now so I am much more at ease with it all. I hope you have a fantastic week ahead, my friend!
xoxo
Shelbee