Dentist and new bedtime idea

Ugh. Going to the dentist is always such a pain. Sometimes literally. A tooth on the top right side of my mouth has been aching for a couple of weeks. I put off going to the dentist, because several times in the past I've gone for that same reason, only to have the dentist tell me he can't find anything wrong. Apparently, some of my teeth have roots extending into the sinus above them, and so when I get a cold or other sinus infection, it can make the teeth hurt, sometimes well beyond the time I have symptoms of a cold. I really hate it. So this time, I assumed it was the same thing, but it kept getting worse, so I gave in and made an appointment. They took x-rays, and sure enough--couldn't find anything wrong. Except one old filling that was starting to look bad. The dentist said he could redo that filling and see if that helped, but if it didn't, then he'd look at referring me to have a root canal done on that tooth. I went ahead and had him do the filling. Hopefully that will help.

Tuesday nights are often difficult around bedtime, because Nate isn't home to help get the kids in bed--he's off with the Young Men. Tonight wasn't so bad, though. After dinner, the kids had a bath, and got out at about 7:00. I'd had a long day, and was really tired, so I got them in their pajamas, and started telling them that it was almost bedtime (hey, they don't know how to read a clock yet). We cleaned up their bedroom, and then I told them it was quiet time. They could play, but they either had to look at books or sit on the floor and play with a quiet toy. No running or yelling. It actually worked. I helped Bethany build a marble track, and Meagan bounced between helping us and looking at a book. It was rather nice. Then when it was bedtime, I put a blanket on the floor, and told them it was the story blanket. While we read our nighttime story and scriptures, and sang songs and had a prayer, they had to stay on the blanket, and no toys were allowed on the blanket. That worked pretty well, too. I've been getting frustrated lately with the kids running all over the room and not settling down for our nighttime routine. So I decided to confine them with the blanket. It helped. I'm going to keep it up, and see if it keeps working.