I know so many of us struggle with this, so I thought I'd add our little story in case it helps others.
My dd HATES having her teeth brushed. We were pretty much resigned to holding her down and just doing it. Hating it all the while of course.
So then the other day, DH is playing with dd and her Little People and MegaBlocks people figures. Well, one of them is a doctor. Since dd also dislikes going to the doctor, and Dh was pretending that this little doctor was giving dd a checkup. And she was loving this game, saying "Don't forget to check my tummy. Don't forget to check my ears." So DH hit upon the idea that "Can the doctor brush your teeth?" DD said yes!
So she sat there on DH's lap *willingly* with mouth wide open while the doctor "held" the toothbrush and brushed her teeth. No screaming, no fussing!
For the past 2 days, she's had different characters brush her teeth. Yesterday it was the farmer figure. Today it was the mechanic figure.
So I guess we've found what works and we're sticking to it!
My dd HATES having her teeth brushed. We were pretty much resigned to holding her down and just doing it. Hating it all the while of course.
So then the other day, DH is playing with dd and her Little People and MegaBlocks people figures. Well, one of them is a doctor. Since dd also dislikes going to the doctor, and Dh was pretending that this little doctor was giving dd a checkup. And she was loving this game, saying "Don't forget to check my tummy. Don't forget to check my ears." So DH hit upon the idea that "Can the doctor brush your teeth?" DD said yes!
So she sat there on DH's lap *willingly* with mouth wide open while the doctor "held" the toothbrush and brushed her teeth. No screaming, no fussing!
For the past 2 days, she's had different characters brush her teeth. Yesterday it was the farmer figure. Today it was the mechanic figure.
So I guess we've found what works and we're sticking to it!
