Brush, Brush, Brush Your Teeth

Look at that adorable baby, brushing her (practically non-existent) teeth like a pro, the first time out. This was the first day, the first moment, really, that I gave G a toothbrush. She stuck it right in her mouth (no big surprise, she was 8 months old...she stuck everything in her mouth) and proceeded to gleefully chew on the bristles. Perfect. I handed her a toothbrush and she was self-sufficient in toothbrushing in 3.5 seconds.

So, let's pause a second and do the math, here. I handed that girl her first toothbrush a year ago, when she was 8 months old. She is now 20 months old. That means that she has had in her possession, in her routine, a toothbrush, for 12 out of 20 months...more than half her little life.

Would someone care to explain to me, then, why toothbrushing has suddenly and forcefully become pure, soul-destroying torture! to this child? Oh! The drama! The agony that is toothbrushing of late! Those that follow me on Twitter or Facebook aware of the battle royale that took place in my bathroom two weeks ago. And my desperate cry for help. It's only gotten worse.

There is wailing. There is closed-mouth lock-jaw. There is thrashing and writhing as if possessed. The other night she practically drowned herself in the bathtub while both John and I tried to get at those pearly whites. (Note to self: no more toothbrushing during bath time.)

What I don't get is why, all of the sudden, it's become a stand-off. She used to love brushing her teeth. She would constantly ask for her toothbrush. She'd chomp happily and then let me "finish up" with a few scrubby swipes. I bought her a toothbrush to keep at Grandma's and she brushes her teeth there. It's not a new concept for her.

In fact, she still loves her toothbrush. She goes and pulls it out of the cup on the sink counter all by herself. She also pulls out her Orajel Toddler Training Toothpaste (Fruity Splash flavor) and brings them cheerfully to me, asking "bush, bush". She giggles when I put the toothpaste on the brush and sticks it gratefully in her mouth. And then she sucks the toothpaste off. And that's it. She won't brush. Sometimes she even fakes it and brushes her closed lips. And if I try to "help" it's World War III.

I've tried everything I can think of. We bought her a Cool. New. Big Girl. Toothbrush!! And made a big freakin' deal about it. It's an Crest Spinbrush that she picked out herself, shaped like an ice cream cone, for goodness sake! And she still has her manual toothbrush that she can choose to use. We've always given her excessive praise whenever she sticks her toothbrush in her mouth. We still do. We sing songs. We play games. We have a book about brushing. We let her do it herself. We let her brush our teeth. I've acted nonchalant. I've been stern. I've held her arms down and practically forced her mouth open. But that's what I DON'T want. I absolutely do not want this to become a fight. Because I know I'll loose. And I don't want her to hate brushing her teeth because she's had a toothbrush jammed in her mouth. However, I feel caught. I'm afraid if I let her get out of brushing because she threw a fit, she'll just learn to throw more fits. And won't learn to brush her teeth.

So, I keep trying. I let her scream and cry and I give her a hug. I tell her I know she doesn't want to but we have to brush our teeth. I let her cool off and then try again. I settle for a little bit less toothbrushing than I would like and try to keep it positive. I give her lots of opportunities to do it herself.

Someone please tell me I'm on the right track! I need positive reinforcement here. Have you run into this battle? What did you do?