Do you ever have those moments, those "things", in parenting that just make your skin crawl? For me, the moment has been occurring every day, twice a day, for at least two years.

It looks something like this.

Me: "It's time to brush your teeth."

Him:
"Noooooo."
"Do I have to?"
"I don't want to brush my teeth."
"Why do I have to brush my teeth?"
"You have to come with me."
"Can you do it for me tonight, pppllleeeeaaasseee?"
"I don't like to brush my teeth."

And once his toothbrush finally hits the mouth, then it's my turn.

Me:
"Keep moving the toothbrush around."
"Don't stop."
"You don't have to have a cup of water to spit."
"You have to be able to brush for more than 20 seconds without spitting."
"Keep brushing."
"Get the front teeth."
"You're not brushing."
"Did you LIKE having those two cavities filled? Are you wanting MORE?"


Then the other day I decided to bring him home a new toothbrush. A battery-powered one, like his cousins have. This was very hard for me, because I felt like I was rewarding bad behavior. It seemed like I was saying, "You whine, cry, and complain every time you have to brush your teeth, so here you go, have a fun toothbrush."

You would have thought I handed the kid a million dollars. Or a million M&M's.

And here is what I learned: Who needs mom and dad? Just bring on the superheros. Spiderman is a miracle worker. He arrived at our home, jumped into the hands of my son, and instantaneously rewired whatever part of his brain oversees teeth brushing.

This is what I hear now.

Him:
"Is it time to brush my teeth yet?"
"I love brushing my teeth now."
"Can I brush after lunch too?"
"Can I brush for four minutes instead of two?"
"Wait, we haven't brushed my teeth yet!"


Best $4.96 I've ever spent.