Surgery Scheduled

On Monday, May 21, Joshua had his routine dentist check-up with Dr. Aaron Miller. While we had taken him to Elizabethtown previously for insurance purposes, he was scared to go there (let alone the driving!) and he actually enjoys going to the Millers. They make dental visits fun with all the toys, stickers, prizes and their exuberant personalities. I find the way they talk to be overwhelming, but I think that's the idea - get the kids thinking about how strange they are so they're not concentrating on the fact that someone is cleaning their teeth. They'll tell all sorts of stories about cats or eating cookies for breakfast or meeting Thomas the train and the kids just listen as their teeth are being "counted."

This is the first visit I remember where Joshua LOVED the horse! In the past he'd get on it, but he didn't want it to go because of the movement. Caleb's still not sure of the horse and didn't get on at all. But, Joshua thought it was AWESOME this time! He kept asking for it over and over again.

The other toys he really liked were the wind-up toys. There was one with a mouse that walks and then flips that cracked Joshua up. Another one was a pair of shoes that walked on their own after being wound up, and one was a lady bug whose wings flapped. He thought these little things were neat-o. And, of course, he loved the remote control Mater and Lightning McQueen cars.

At this visit, Dr. Aaron gave us tips on good brushing, flouride rinse and eating at specified times of the day but not throughout the day as the mouth and teeth need time to recover for at least an hour in between meals. I thought that was interesting. He took x-rays of the Bean, and we left feeling like it was a decent visit - no cavities. BUT, I received a note that there was a question on the panorex and could we come back in for a consultation with the Bean.

Upon going back in (with all three kids since Daddy was running late from work - he ended up meeting us there), we learned that Joshua has an infection underneath one tooth. I'm not sure how it got there, but it affects either the root or the nerve or something like that. Anyway, in speaking with the dentist about it, we all decided that it was best to have Joshua sedated than to try and remove this tooth without anything. Dr. Miller recommended the oral surgeon who extracted Joshua's teeth after his fall. After the tooth is removed so that they can clean out the infection, we'll have to go back to Dr. Miller for a spacer to be put in because that tooth won't grow back in until he's 10.

I was heartbroken upon hearing the news. First, no child should ever have to undergo as many surgeries as Joshua has. He's already had trauma with his teeth and is already missing too many out of his mouth. What is up with this random infection? There was no concrete answer of where it comes from or why it's there. Praise God that he's not in any pain and there's no current swelling, but if anything occurs like that, Joshua will need to be put on an antibiotic. So far, we wouldn't have even known it existed except for the x-ray.

So, please pray for Joshua. Pray that his adult teeth would be wonderful, that God would protect him from further surgeries, and that this one would go well. It's tentatively scheduled for June 26, BUT that's if all goes well with getting the insurance to review the procedure. If you think of it, please pray for that too!