What are you afraid of?

It's been kind of interesting as Jeffrey has grown up to see what has scared him. In most ways, he's like the average little kid: unexpected loud noises, big animals, tall heights. He's actually remarkably good at comforting himself when confronted with them. ("It's ok, Jeffrey, it's ok....") However, occasionally something terrifies him in ways I never would have predicted:

1. Grass. He refused to sit on it or touch it for the first year of his life.
2. Bubble gum. If someone blew a bubble anywhere in his vicinity, he would seriously run and hide.
3. Vacuum cleaners. I call mine "Monstera" because it's big, clunky, and both kids HATE it. Jeffrey's gotten better, though. He now allows me to turn it on without screaming the whole time I vacuum. As long as he can watch my every move from the couch. With his blankie. And a cookie. And his fingers in his mouth. Then it's ok.
4. Electric toothbrushes.

This last item is the topic of my blog today. A couple months ago, I read an article about what a HUGE difference it makes to brush your teeth with electric toothbrushes rather than regular, and how they should especially be used by young children, who squirm too much to let you brush their teeth effectively. Wooed by the article's statistics and doom-and-gloom threats, I was thoroughly convinced. I let Jeffrey pick out a super-cool Walle toothbrush. He loved it. He played with it all the way home from the store.

Then I tried to put it in his mouth.

Screams. Tears. Tantrums. Whimpers. I tried everything I could think of. We sang toothbrush songs. We did a toothbrush dance. We counted to ten before trying to put it in his mouth. I let Jeffrey brush my teeth with my electric toothbrush. I got Mr. Potato and let Jeffrey use Walle to brush Mr. Potato's teeth. (Jeffrey even kindly helped Mr. Potato spit in the sink.) I let Jeffrey try to do it himself. ("It's ok, Jeffrey, it's ok....") But he couldn't actually do it.

We waited a few days. We tried again. Screams. Tears. Tantrums. Whimpers

Repeat the above sentence 3-4 times.

Once or twice, Daddy MADE him use Walle. Not pretty.

Eventually, we just gave up and used Walle only as a tool of terror. The following scene was a typical one at our house for a couple weeks:

Mommy: Jeffrey, it's bedtime.
Jeffrey: No bed.
Mommy: Jeffrey, we gave you your 5-minute notice. It's bedtime.
Jeffrey: No bed.
Daddy: Come on Jeffrey, we need to get ready for bed. It's time to brush your teeth.
Jeffrey: No bed.
Daddy: Jeffrey, Elmo or Walle?
Jeffrey: No Walle no Walle no Walle!
And off he runs to get his teeth brushed by Elmo (the normal toothbrush), and for the rest of the bedtime routine he is absolutely angelic.

I had despaired of ever using an electric toothbrush with Jeffrey. He was doomed to a life of dental dismay. Then a few days ago, at the grocery store, I saw this:



Dude. PROBLEM SOLVED.