Being a parent has a lot of responsibilities. And sometimes, things happen to our kids due to our oversight, negligence, ignorance … or sometimes things JUST happen. And as parents, we have to roll with it, learn from it, and move on.
When they were babies, it was all about things like reflux, feeding them well, weaning, nappy rash – preventing it from happening and easing the pain when it inadvertently occurs. We have to consider the benefits of cloth nappies versus disposable ones. What pram to buy. What milk bottle to get. What spoon best helps them to feed themselves.
The list goes on … and on… and on. #BeenThereSpentThat!
And when they grow into toddlers, it doesn’t seem to get better! Teaching them how to tie their shoelaces (which, incidentally, is a parenting fail for us cos even my 8 year old still struggles, so he has been using velcro-type school shoes even till today. Potty-training (shudder.) Oh, and tooth-brushing.
Now, I don’t know if you recall how you were taught tooth-brushing as a kid, but I recall that when I started attending school, we would be required to bring a toothbrush to school everyday, and we would all have to learn the “proper” brushing techniques. There would be half-yearly visits to the Wielder of Horror, I mean, the school dentist. Oh, to be in class, and be informed by another student that your time was up – and the dentist was expecting you. Immediately. That walk down the stairs. No amount of licking your teeth would help, as you lay naked (figuratively, of course) on that cold dental chair and hear the dentist tsk-tsk away.
As you can imagine, I didn’t enjoy going to the dentist – even as an adult now!
But gah. Kids. They make you face your biggest fear. And with my kids’ huge love for sweets and chocolates and sweet snacks, making sure they brush their teeth at least twice a day is the least I can do. And to be honest, I’ve never considered getting electric toothbrushes for the kids. It just seemed, I don’t know… a little excessive? I mean, what good would an electric toothbrush do? A manual toothbrush would do the trick! Don’t be lazy now, Mummy! Teach your kids the right brushing method.
And then, thanks to the good people at Philips, this little goodie came in the mail some weeks back.
The Philips Sonicare Toothbrush – box has certainly taken a beating!
Yes, as you can see, my kids got to the box before I could stop them. Pfft! Kids nowadays – you’d think they would know I need to get a good shot for social media first, eh? :P
But I hardly blame them. The gorgeous, kid-friendly graphics, and the novelty of something new sure caught their eye.
And this little gadget came right in time. Just before Halloween. And if your kids are anything like my kids (and please tell me I can’t be the only one like that), candies, chocolates and sweet treats are a HUGE part of their lives. And chips. And cookies. And you get the idea.
Our “little” chocolate stash
Despite my best attempts, the challenge with having three kids is that you simply only have one pair of eyes and one pair of hands, and while helping one kid brush, the other (usually older) one will make quick work off brushing, do a quick gargle and race out of the bathroom shouting, “I’m done!” behind him.
But introducing Xavier’s new toothbrush. (He’s the chosen one this time haha! I figure as the middle kid, he often gets the shortest end of the stick, and all the hand-me-downs)
Someone is mighty pleased with his new toothbrush!
This toothbrush is suitable for kids from 4+, and the handle was slim enough for my 5 year old’s hands. But what really won his little heart was the fact that you could customise (and change) the front cover of the toothbrush.
8 different sticker designs.
The designs were a hit – with my 3 year old girl AND my 8 year old boy! Which is no small feat. There were also smaller stickers to decorate the toothbrush with, but Xavier generously handed those over to Zoie to decorate her non-electric toothbrush with haha!
Easy enough to apply toothpaste himself!
And then it was brushing time. It was easy enough for Xavier to handle applying toothpaste himself, and the vibrations were a very new sensation to him. He wasn’t comfortable brushing his teeth too long that first time, but the next morning, he was more used, and in a few days time, he is now so at ease with it!
In those hard-to-reach molars, the electric toothbrush makes quick work of cleaning each tooth, getting rid of the gunk and keeping his baby teeth as clean and cavity-free as possible. Now, I just need to get him to move the toothbrush around each tooth. I don’t need to think if he got the up-down, side-to-side motion correct, so it gives ME a bigger peace of mind as well.
Why did I take so long to be electric toothbrush-converted?
It’s time to invest in one for the other two kids too!
Disclosure: Thanks to Philips Sonicare for the sponsorship of this product. No other monetary compensation was received and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.
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