What a week!!!

Well, it's been a very hectic week in the Makan household. First, I happened to land a job with Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston and will be starting at the end of the month. I've been with UTMB in Galveston for over 6 years and it's going to be hard leaving it behind. I have made so many friends in my time on the rock.

The second, and most important milestone, is that Gage went to his first dentist visit. I chose a pediatric dentist because I just knew that Gage wasn't about sit on a chair while some stranger probed his grill. Based on a recommendation from a coworker, I setup an appointment and was quite happy with the result.

The forms that you have to initially complete, before the first exam, freaked me out. I had to consent to various forms of tortu... uh, restraint that may be used to properly exam the kiddo. I could just imagine myself having to hold down the kiddo.... Anyway, the place looked like a Toys R Us exploded in a dentist office. They initially took the little man aside and distracted him with a toy, while the dentist explained what they were going to do to prep both him and me. They had an elmo doll lying on top of the chair and demonstrated to Gage how the light has to shine into his mouth because it's dark inside. They explained the mirror to him and how they have to look inside into his mouth with it. Gage fell for it and actually got into the chair without a struggle and even laughed and tried to talk as the dentist examined his mouth. After about a couple of minutes of probing, the examine ended and the assitant took Gage back to the playroom so that the dentist could discuss the exam with me. As far as I can remember, this was the most uneventful visit to the doctors in a long time. Dr. Taylor - consider me a lifetime customer.

By the way, it's amazing how parenthood transforms us into creatures that are able to withstand vast amounts of snot and stinky poo. Gage has had a runny nose for the last several days and it seemed like he was just getting over it. While I was completing the forms, Gage sat patiently next to me (which is a first) and then all of the sudden he sneezed. The next thing I know, there's along string of snot hanging down from his nose and stretching all the way down to his knee. I've never seen so much snot before in my life, all at one time. Since we were not alone, in the waiting room, I immediately scooped the snot into my hand and started to look around for something to wipe my hand. Luckily, the dentists office is prepared for snotty kids and had a box (with a trash can next to it) sitting right by the receptionists window. I must have used half the box before I was able to clean all of the snot of my hand...