- jcleland185
The Tooth Fairy Didn't Show Up! Now What?
This past weekend, my oldest daughter lost a tooth.
While watching Zootopia during movie night, she decided to stick her hand in her mouth and just –pluck– out she pops the tooth like it was nothing! “It just fell out!”
As usual, we got ready for bed, she put the tooth under the edge of her pillow, double and triple-checked it was in the perfect spot, did our goodnight kiss and hug routine, and shut off the lights.
Then, the unthinkable happens…
I decide I'll wait the 30 minutes before I go in to make sure she's asleep. I get busy doing work, then mindlessly watching a show… and I fall asleep!
This isn’t the first tooth my daughter has lost, but it is the first time the Tooth Fairy has forgot to come, and of course a 6-year-old is going to tell you instantly when she wakes up that there is no coin and the tooth is still under her pillow!
How could I be so forgetful and irresponsible?! This girl questions the Easter Bunny, but believes so fiercely in the Tooth Fairy that she loves to write letters to her to go with her teeth!
After silently cursing myself out, I asked her what she thought might have happened…
And this is when the brainstorming started, and I was able to see what ideas made sense in her mind. This helped me know what angle to take when thinking of excuses as quick on my feet as possible…
And with this, I give you: reasons the Tooth Fairy forgot to come!
We’re all in quarantine right now; it took her SO long to wash between houses for staying healthy that she didn’t make it to your name on the list
You lost your tooth late at night, so your name was near the bottom of the list and there must’ve been so many children who lost teeth today!
She took a wrong turn and got lost on the way
She didn’t get the memo and she went to our OLD house… that silly fairy!
When she came she noticed you were awake and got scared! She decided she would come back later
That darn dog/cat scared her away!
She accidentally sat on her magic wand and broke it, so she didn’t have enough power to get here
She was SO busy, she ran out of goodies/coins to leave you and felt bad not leaving anything
When she visited, you rolled over onto the tooth and she was afraid to get squished!
Did it rain last night? I forgot, fairies can’t fly in the rain!
Did you wake up early from excitement? The Tooth Fairy comes right before you wake up, so you probably scared her off before she showed up!
There was a tooth emergency that she had to go help with, and she’s so sad she couldn’t make it before you woke up
Just like Santa, she only shows up when children are well-behaved
… Now, the best way to get these to work is to figure out the best cop out to go with, stick with the same story, and write a note!
I’ve found that a note explaining the reason from the Tooth Fairy herself is the best way for your child to reclaim hope and belief, as well as take the spotlight off of you!
My advice for writing your note:
DON’T FORGET A SECOND TIME. Seriously, set yourself a damn alarm on your phone (or seven), write a note and put it on your pillow, make your partner remind you, whatever it will take!
Know where you’re going to leave it. Will you put it under the pillow with the treat/coin like a Take 2 of the night before? If it goes with your story, will you put it somewhere else? Maybe take the tooth and put a note when they’re at school? Figure it out.
Make the note believable! Whether you write it yourself (I don’t recommend if your child knows your handwriting) or print it on the computer, remember that it’s from a fairy… write a small letter! Use the most cheery, positive wording you can think of in words your child will understand. Go the extra mile and add some glitter! Make it special… you DID forget in the first place, so make up for it!
This morning, my daughter woke up TWO HOURS early, looking for the coin from the Tooth Fairy, and was SO happy she woke up to a cute little note and a toonie (we upgraded from the usual loonie because we felt bad)! She was so excited to share what the note said, and even saved it in her special drawer.
I am so happy she seemed to forget that the Tooth Fairy forgot to come the night before, as she was overcome with excitement for the coin and the note.
….Now we just have to make sure it never happens again!
(Oh yeah, bonus pro tip: make damn sure you act as shocked as your child! Ask the questions and look surprised. “What do you mean a note? What does it say? That’s amazing! You’re so lucky, I never got a note when I was little…” Milk it, mama!)