Principessa lost her first tooth today. The moment I arrived to pick her up from school, she opened her mouth to show me the fresh gap. She'd been wiggling that tooth for the last month; so eager to lose it. Surprisingly, she told me that she felt "a little bit sad" now that it was finally gone. I assured her that a new one would grow in the spot and "you're still just as pretty with a missing tooth." She said, "I know. I don't know why I'm sad. I just am."

She wasn't too sad to play with her friends in the schoolyard and, once engaged with them, seemed to forget about the tooth. On our way home, though, she got happily excited again. She told me she wanted to surprise her Dad with the evidence, so the two of us created a plot. After she'd done her homework and watched a little TV, I sent her to her room and told her to change her clothes (it didn't matter which clothes she picked; just something other than what she'd worn to school).  Five minutes before her Dad was due back, I told her to go to her room again and not come out until she heard me talking to her Dad. When he walked in the door and asked where Principessa was, I would say, "She went to her room to change her clothes." That would be her cue to emerge. She would come out and spin around in front of her dad, as if displaying her outfit. That's when I would say my next line: "Do you notice anything different about Principessa?" She would give her Dad time to comment on the clothes, with me saying, "No, that's not it." (I had to do the talking so she'd be able to keep her mouth closed.) Finally, when he gave up, she would smile and show him her brand new gap!

Well...it worked perfectly! Her Dad seemed genuinely stumped and was properly excited about the tooth. He made her get it out of her book bag so he could put it away carefully: "You want to make sure it's under your pillow when the tooth fairy comes."

I enjoyed the whole business so much. It's enormous fun to carry out a benevolently sneaky plot with a six-year-old.  She was extremely proud of herself for pulling it off.

Grown-up life and worries do go on. They always will. But I was grateful to get a little vacation from all that, today, and be reminded that there's still some sweet, simple wonder in the world.

Blessings and well-wishes,

Eva T.