5 Things Every Parent Should Know about the Tooth Fairy

Congratulations! Your kid is about to lose her first tooth. In order to help you out, we’ve chatted with the Tooth Fairy herself and found out everything you need to know to ensure the handoff goes as smoothly as possible. Keep reading to discover the best way to handle every question, from what the Tooth Fairy actually does with the teeth to when she “forgets” to make a stop at your house.

photo: Ryan Johnson for North Charleston via Flickr

1. What to do with the teeth.
Do they stay or do they go? Some kids get very concerned about where their teeth are going. Make it fun and tell your kid her tooth will be used in the advanced Tooth Research Lab to discover how to make teeth more resistant to cavities and decay. If you decide to keep them, tuck them away somewhere special in a little jar … preferably one that is not easily opened by curious little toothless kids.

2. Select your currency of choice.
First-time parents, please remember that your little one has a lot of teeth to lose, so if you start out high, you’re going to have to maintain that level of payment for the next 10-ish years. You can always increase the amount, offer more for molars, and how about combining cash with a new toothbrush and floss??

3. When the kids compare notes.
Have your story prepared for why some kids get more money than others. Something along the lines of the amount of the money you get depends on how many other kids lost teeth that day too is a good story. So, if there were a ton of teeth lost, he might only get a quarter, whereas his friend got $5 (parents who do this, you’re killing us) last week for her tooth because not many kids had lost teeth that day—the Tooth Fairy had more to give.

4. Provide a tooth receptacle.
So you don’t have to frantically search under your kid’s pillow without waking her up, consider a special bag, dish, pillow for teeth. There are a ton of fun options and we especially love these adorable, personalized pouches.

photo: Phillip Brookes via Flickr

5. Post-delivery clean-up.
If you want to go all out, it’s been said that the Tooth Fairy leaves a trail of glitter behind. Kids cam check window sills, front porches, kitchen tables, etc. for signs of arrival and departure. If you want to play it up, but don’t want to deal with a glittery mess, there’s even a Tooth Fairy door to welcome her into your home.  

—Katie Kavulla

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