Not much to report....

I am starting to realize what a long, slow process this is.... Months seems to drag buy with no change. September 28th I go in and they finally start to close the gap from when they removed the 4 bicuspids back in February..... UGH!!!
We had been talking about possibly being ready for surgery by December but I do not see that happening....
On the up side I got a new job working in a local Hospital and switched my major from Nursing to a Bach in Health Service Administration. Ive been trying to get into a hospital for a couple years now and am so happy that I found a good position in a hospital right in my own town. No travel to work and I am meeting so many People, which is nice since I moved here 3 years ago. This town is finally starting to feel like home.
On another good note. My Beautiful, smart daughter starts Kindergarten in less than 1 week. She is so excited. She got to see her classroom yesterday and she already knows her teacher from the summer reading program she took. She also has some friends in her class this year so she should adjust really easily :)
I will be back in a week to post pics from her first day!

Progress...

Well not the best after pic. You can click on it to make it bigger. I need to get a close up. The pic on top is present, the one on bottem is before anything was started.

Sadistic orthodontists....

Orthos must be sadistic to ask someone to have 4 perfectly good teeth ripped out of your head. But that is what I did in hopes of someday having a nice smile. So it seems that once these 4 huge gaps that once were my bicuspids are closed we should be looking at My double jaw surgery. Ortho is guessing somewhere around Christmas. Right before the christmas before last is when I had my SARPE done, that made for a festive holiday :p Oh well, I'm getting closer to the end of this trip and I guess that is what matters....

feels like I am going nowhere....

Well I have not updated for awhile cause there is not much to tell. I did manage to miss my November adjustment and they could not get me in for another full month do to my lack of availability....ugh.
The ortho wants to talk to me about pulling the 4 bicuspids to make room for my teeth to move cause it seems the are having to tip them out to much. The only problem I have with this is I cannot possibly afford to have those teeth pulled. I just had a wisdom tooth pulled and they charged me $300 to do it and that was with no sedation.... I cannot afford to pay to have 4 taken out not to mention when they remove 4 they like to sedate. Not sure what to do about this. Oral surgeon says if they are not pulled I could relapse after surgery.....
Other then that not much is happening with my teeth other than the fact that it is becoming evident that my coffee drinking habit will be noticeable when the braces come off. Any coffee drinkers out there that had braces? Is there anything you did to help the staining while you had braces?
I guess that is it for now.... This is a long frusterating process....

Pics of the progress

Before any work on the bottom and after Sarpe and braces started on the top

Expander free for a week and counting

I cannot even begin to explain how wonderful it feels to be expander free. The first couple days were absolutly amazing. My first meal without the torture device went so quickly and easily that when I was done eating I thought to my self that can't be it... It required almost no work to eat that meal. I forgot how easy it use to be to eat.
I am getting to the point now that life without the expander is beginning to feel normal, tho I still have those moments where suddenly out if nowhere I remember that I am expander free and I relish for a moment in the fact that I can touch the roof of my mouth, read a book to my daughter with out feeling like I just gave my mouth a huge workout, and can properly pronounce every letter of the alphabet without even trying....
Life is good

I have a removal date!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My RPE comes out July 22nd at 8am!!!!!!!!!! I am so freakin excited. On a less than positive note the ortho thinks the reason my front few teeth are still loose after surgery is because there is not enough room and she think I may have to have my bicuspids removed to make room. no fun! but that has barely fazed me now that i know I have a date to remove this horrible tourture device!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7.5 months with this damn thing!!!! only 10 more days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So tell the truth.. those of you that have had an expander....How bad is the removal? quick and painless... slow tourture????? tell it like it is.... prepare me...