This past week it's been all about teeth. Bradley's are falling out, and Bryant's are coming in. (See the bottom front left of his gums; you can just barely see it breaking the surface.) I guess this is what it's going to be like having kids that are seven years apart. The thought of Bryant being Bradley's age meaning that Bradley will be getting ready to drive sends my heart into palpitations.

Bradley has lost two of his front middle teeth since Wednesday, which he thinks is really cool because now he and Dylan have matching smiles. He doesn't believe in the tooth fairy anymore, so he brought it down to me before going to bed and said, "Here Mom, where do you want me to put it?" So sad really.

Last time he lost a tooth, he just asked me point blank, "Mom, is the tooth fairy real? Tell me the truth."
Being caught off guard, I asked him, "Do you think the tooth fairy is real?"
"No."
Taking a deep breath, I said, "I will tell you the truth, but you have to promise not to ruin it for your sister or anybody at school. The truth is that I am the tooth fairy. I am telling you this because there are things in life that we can't see that are real."
"Uh-huh, like God."
"That's right. I don't want you to wonder whether God is real if I've told you that the tooth fairy is real and you find out later that she isn't."

I was really proud of him, because he took it all in stride. Later, when a neighbor asked if the tooth fairy had come, he just said yes and gave me a big wink behind their back. It was an edible moment. I'm kindof dreading having the Santa conversation, though. Hopefully he'll think it's fun to play it up for Bailey. He's a good big brother like that.