10 Reasons Why
The Tooth Fairy Did
Not Come Last Night
— by Katy M. Clark
I
t glistened in the soft morning
light, the single tear that fell from
my eight-year-old daughter’s eye
as she stood in our bedroom doorway.
“Mommy, she didn’t come!” she
breathed despondently. Then that single
tear turned into a torrent.
Oh, fudge. The Tooth Fairy didn’t
come last night.
“Uh,” I stammered in reply, elbowing
my husband awake.
“What happened?” he mumbled.
“The Tooth Fairy didn’t come last
night,” I replied.
“Oh, fudge,” he said. Only he didn’t
say fudge.
How did we let this happen? Quickly
I reviewed the night before. Exhausted by
my first Girls’ Night Out in three months,
I had gone to bed at 10pm (don’t judge)
and left the money with my husband. He
simply fell asleep before remembering his
Tooth Fairy duties.
There were more extenuating circum-
stances, too. Our daughter’s tooth had been
wiggly for just a day. That was extremely
short notice versus those teeth that hang on
by a (nasty!) thread for weeks. Plus, it had
been months since she’d lost her last tooth.
Our son, 12, had long since finished los-
ing his baby teeth. My husband and I were
definitely rusty in our duties as well as in
the twilight of our Tooth Fairy career.
Still, the plain, hard truth was that we
blew it. The Tooth Fairy didn’t come.
We sprang out of bed, soothing our
daughter (and each other) with hugs and
reassuring words. There HAD to be a good
reason she didn’t come, we told our daugh-
ter. In fact, my husband and I, along with
friends, family, and the internet, came up
with 10 Reasons Why the Tooth Fairy Did
Not Come Last Night:
1. The dew was too heavy. Her wings
got wet and she couldn’t fly.
2. The Tooth Fairy was on vacation
and the substitute Tooth Fairy
didn’t know what she was doing.
3. She couldn’t get to your pillow due
to your messy room.
4. Too much traffic. She’ll leave ear-
lier tonight!
5. She was sick.
6. Spreadsheet error. Your tooth was
projected to come out on Friday so
she wasn’t ready when it came out
on Monday.
7. Some Tooth Fairies like snacks.
Leave one out tonight and she’ll
probably come.
8. Oh, look, she dropped the money
on the floor over there. She must
have wanted you to keep your
tooth as a souvenir.
9. You probably woke up and scared
her away, even if you don’t re-
member doing that.
10. She ran out of money and will be
back tonight. She’s a tiny fairy so
she can only carry so much.
My daughter seemed to calm down
after she spent the day listening to our rea-
sons why the Tooth Fairy did not come.
All was made right with the world the
following morning when, hallelujah, the
Tooth Fairy DID come.
Moms and Dads, may your Tooth
Fairy always remember to come. In case
she doesn’t, may you find these reasons to
be a lifesaver!
Katy M. Clark is a writer who embraces
her imperfections as a mom at Experi-
encedBadMom.com. She lives with her
family in Michigan.
Resources to Prepare Children for their Visit with the Dentist
• Barney Goes to the Dentist by Linda
Cress Dowdy; Publishing Lyrick
• The Berenstein Bears Visit the Dentist
by Stan & Jan Berenstein; Random House
• Brush Your Teeth Please Pop-Up by
Leslie McGuire; Reader’s Digest
• Curious George Goes to the Dentist
Margaret Rey; Houghton Mifflin
• Doctor DeSoto by William Steig; Farrar,
Straus & Giroux
• Going to the Dentist by Fred Rogers;
Putnam
• Have You Ever Seen a Moose Brush-
ing His Teeth? by Jamie McClaine; Partners
Publishing Group
• How Many Teeth? (Let’s Read-and-Find
Out Science 1) By Paul Showers; Harper-
Collins Publishing
• Just Going to the Dentist by Mercer
Mayer; Golden Books
• Show Me Your Smile!: A Visit to the
Dentist (Dora the Explorer) by Christine
Ricci; Simon Spotlight/Nick Jr.
• “Smile” Says the Crocodile by Jane
Belk Moncure; Child’s World
• The Tooth Book (Bright & Early Board
Books ™) by Dr. Seuss; Random House
• A Trip to the Dentist Can Be Lots of
Fun! (Videorecording) by Robert Wortzel
and Rob Garner; Night Media Group, Inc.
• A Trip to the Dentist Through Pinatta’s
View (Videorecording); Boggle-Goggle En-
terprises
• What to Expect When You Go to the
Dentist (What to Expect Kids) by Heidi
Murkoff; HarperFestival
February 2019 WNY Family 23