Princess teeth and dungeon teeth.

Dentist appointments today for everybody.

This was Elin's first dental exam. She was awesome. She sat very still, said nothing, and was completely not herself. But she got her teeth cleaned, counted, and the hygienist told her she had princess teeth.

Not just plain old princess teeth - pretty princess teeth. WOW.

After her cleaning, Elin sat in the big chair and played with a Barbie laptop until the doctor came to check her teeth. The nice gal that cleaned her teeth raved about her: how good she was, how still she sat, how cute she was, how sweet she was . . . I mean I couldn't argue with her. As Elin's mom, I can testify, with no shadow of bias whatsoever, that all these things are completely true.

I peeked around the corner and saw Viggo immersed in playing a Game Boy, provided for him at the dentist's. He wore sunglasses for his cleaning, and kept them on, because it's super-cool to wear shades at the dentist.

Elin sat quietly and basked in the glow of the laptop and the knowledge that she has real princess teeth.

They played quietly with their little gizmos while waiting for the doctor.

Svea sat so still and did so well. I was so proud of her . . . she was the least excited about this appointment today.

If Elin had princess teeth . . . Svea and Viggo's teeth were doomed for the dungeon.

Was this ever a humbling dentist visit.

First of all, I would just like to say that in our household our kids do not drink pop, juice, or anything sugary. We drink water and organic milk, almond milk, and coconut milk. We do not regularly have candy, sugary cereal, or anything bad for your teeth. And they brush their teeth daily. Just wanted to let you know that. (Sure we used to eat donuts every once in awhile, but that was in Delaware . . . )

I have never had a cavity in my entire life. I figured this would count for something.

Regrettably, the kids have clearly all inherited Nate's teeth. Those poor children are doomed for a life of endless dental work.

Viggo has 4 cavities and counting. Svea has at least 2 cavities, one of which qualifies as the eighth wonder of the world and can apparently be seen from space. I've never noticed it.

You know, I was feeling like a pretty happy mom when Elin's teeth were deemed as worthy of royalty. But here's what else they found in Viggo and Svea's mouths:

- Viggo grinds his teeth like crazy. Yes, they are obviously worn down. No, I have never noticed.

- Viggo has some gingivitis. Right smack dab in the front of his mouth. No, I have never noticed that either. Aren't gums supposed to be red?

- One of Svea's bottom front teeth is slightly gray and pushed in a bit. Do I know what happened? Nope. Have I, as her mother, and person who is with her 24 hours a day, seven days a week, ever noticed it? Nope.

- The dentist recommended one capped tooth each, and with scrupulous care, the other cavity-ridden baby teeth will fall out with no further damage.

- Our life will become a life of endless flossing.

Then I saw the estimate for all the work that will be done in May.

That work will cost one million dollars.

Praise the Lord for dental insurance.

And that's just as estimate . . . it could go up. Gulp.

So what exactly is"theraputic pulpotomy" anyway?

I can testify that although I usually enjoy going to the dentist, I have never said, "Well, that dentist visit was theraputic." Poor Svea. Her cavity needs a lot of help.

We went to Wal-Mart and got Hello Kitty spin brushes.

They are SO EXCITED to brush their teeth.

Viggo passed on the spin brush. Shucks.

The dentist told me that they're not really superior to regular toothbrushes unless we got a high-end one, but the "gadget" effect worked well to get kids eager to brush their teeth. Seemed like a good idea to me.

Later this afternoon post-dentist appointment, Viggo was working on history.

Guess what. Hammurabi has a cavity.