Nathalieland Update - February/School/Skiing/Birthday

Busy February. In addition to braces and holidays, our calendar was full of fun activities this month. We tried (and successfully escaped from!) our third Escape Room: Seven Dwarfs Mining Mission. I had an overdue visit to Ottawa for auntie D's 40th birthday, we watched the Super Bowl with family, went out to brunch for Papa Garry's birthday, and watched cousin Brandt's hockey game. Awesome stuff!

Improbable Escapes #3

Future Schools' Open Houses. Also on the calendar: we had a chance to visit the girls' schools for next year! Emily's high school and both of Jessi's grade 7/8 options held open houses where we heard presentations from the staff and students, then toured the school and classrooms. Now the girls are that much more excited for the transition.

Daddy-Daughter Skiing. We were running out of time to make it to the Batawa Ski Hill before spring, but fortunately Steve and Jessi squeezed in a visit on Sunday. Sounds like they had a blast, skiing on the Bambi Hill for nearly 3.5 hours straight! Emily and I (happily) stayed home to prepare for Grand-Papa's birthday party that afternoon.

Episode 38: The Little Skier

Bonne Fête Grand-Papa. Our hard work paid off and Grand-Papa was spoiled for his 73rd with chicken fondue, raspberry-cream-puff cake, presents, old home videos, and a show from the kids.

What a month! And more excitement to come in March.

Emily Gets Braces:: Step 3: Dental Mold

On Tuesday Emily went back to the orthodontist for one main reason: do have a dental mold done of her upper teeth in order to create her expander.

First they had to remove the spacers from last week (which Emily said was sweet relief!). Then the hygienist put in temporary metal spacers before mixing up the minty, goopy paste and placing the tray in Emily's mouth. Emily has a strong gag reflex and it was definitely put to the test! Thankfully it only lasted a few seconds.

The final step was to re-insert new spacers in between Emily's teeth, just to make sure the gap doesn't close between now and the next appointment. It was an easy one and Emily even made it to school in time for the first bell (we love those early-morning appointments!).

N: How are you feeling today, Emily? How was getting the dental mold?

E: The mold was super gross but fast, as expected. I'm feeling pretty good, even though I still have the spacers -- these new ones aren't as bad as the old ones!

Family Day Antics

The highlight of our Family Day weekend was a hike in the woods behind our home (which never seems to disappoint!). There was so much brittle ice around that we couldn't help but have fun with it.

Listen to that crunching ice! So satisfying:

Episode 36: The Ice Path

The hole Daddy fell through

Thank goodness for tall rubber boots

Also satisfying: smashing huge sheets of ice.

Episode 37: Breaking Ice Chunks

When we reached the waterfall/creek area, Steve was tempted by the freezing water, especially after learning so much about cold water therapy. He wished he had brought a bathing suit. Ha!

There he goes...

Smiling for the camera

(A more accurate representation of how it felt)

Other activities this weekend included watching Survivor, playing games, attending a Zoom birthday party for Papa Garry, watching cousin Brandt's hockey match, and a lovely Sunday dinner at my parents'. It was a weekend about Family, for sure!

Emily Gets Braces:: Step 2: X-Rays & Spacers

On Monday morning Emily had her first appointment to get the ball rolling on her orthodontic treatment. The office needed to create a record of Emily's teeth for their files, which meant x-rays and lots of pictures. I wasn't allowed in the room with her, but fortunately I could see her from the waiting room! At one point they made her hold two metal pieces that retracted her lips so they could get a good picture of her teeth. Awkward!

Example of a lip retractor (source)

The second part of her appointment was getting spacers put in between some of her back teeth. It was supposed to be three spacers, but they weren't able to fit the third one in. I could tell Emily was uncomfortable, even from 40 feet away. She said that the insertion of each spacer felt like a bruise-type of pain for a few seconds.

Example of spacers (source)

The appointment only took about 25 minutes. At the end, the hygienist told Emily she might start to feel some pain/discomfort in 3-4 hours. She recommended pain relievers and cold, soft foods. Too bad Emily is not a fan of either of those things.

Spacers in!

Since Emily was a bit worried about the pain, she decided to stay home from school that day. Lucky for her, the pain never came and we had a relaxing day at home (she kind of wishes she had gone to school). Her teeth were a bit sore for the next couple of days and she can't eat any sticky/crunchy foods, but overall it's been fine. She's looking forward to having the spacers removed next week.

Our Before pictures:

Feb 13, 2023

Feb 13, 2023

N: How are you feeling today, Emily?

E: I'm feeling fine. I don't really notice the spacers anymore except when I'm eating. I miss cereal and crackers. It's been hard to find foods that I can eat, so I'm always hungry. But otherwise good!