Making a Deal with Amelia

Today at Church, I had a most happy moment! One of the little girls in my Primary class came and sat by me, and her family came along, too. That much of the 'story' was happy enough, but there's more! Amelia had a paper towel in her hand and she excitedly told me that she had brought it along in case her first tooth fell out. OH!!!!!!!!! What a thing to tell ME! For some reason, pulling kids' teeth is one of my favorite things to do. I don't like hospitals or other medical things, but teeth........ it is just so exciting! Well, Amelia let me 'feel' her wiggley tooth, and magically it snapped when I pulled it forward. Then it was REALLY loose. She didn't want me to wiggle it after that. But I really wanted to! I pulled out all the loose change I could find in my purse (31 cents) and told her I would give it all to her, if she'd let me try to pull her tooth. She said she already had $8. and she didn't need any more money. So, then I offered her a dollar bill, plus the 31 cents, if she'd just let me try. She thought about it and asked if she could still keep the money, even if I tried and it didn't come out, and I agreed. Kry-manee! It was barely hooked in! I KNEW it would come out! So, she let me, and it came out, and she was so happy! It was her first lost tooth. She kept hugging me over and over and saying how funny it felt with her tongue. Her two big sisters have lost teeth, and she was feeling like she had just stepped up a notch. I pulled some pictures for my lesson out of the clear plastic page pocket, and let her keep her tooth in there, where she could see it, and it wouldn't get lost as easily. There you have it! THAT is what made me so happy today! There is a moral to the story: Don't sit your kids next to me if their teeth are loose! I know how to make a good deal with children. :)