Rachel was commenting to me just two weeks ago that her teeth and Lydia’s seem the same size. I reminded her that she’s had her teeth since she was Lydia’s age and that’s why. “So, they’re my BABY teeth?!” she gasped. Somehow, though she has been on the front row of Benjamin’s tooth loss, she’d forgotten about it concerning herself. Realizing that she had more in common with her one year old sister than her older brother in this area was almost too much. “WHEN will I start losing my baby teeth and get my grown-up ones?” she wanted to know. “When they’re ready,” was all I could say.

Last week, she gleefully reported that she had a loose tooth and began working on it relentlessly with both tongue and finger. Joe checked on it last night before bed, but said it still wasn’t quite ready to come out. Ten minutes later, a triumphant Rachel squealed and ran into our room with a tooth in her hand and a big smile on her face.