The Tooth Fairy Charges How Much!? Time To Find Some Other (Cheaper!) Childhood Milestones

Childhood can be a time of joy and pain, excitement and nerves. And when it comes to losing baby teeth, sometimes we experienced all of those feelings in one go (especially if the dentist was involved).

But after that rollercoaster, we’d settle down, fall asleep, and wake up the next morning with cold hard cash under our pillows. 

(Well, apparently kids today are getting big bills. The average is over $4 per tooth! I still remember just getting a quarter.)

The Tooth Fairy still delivers, even if they’ve had to adjust their rates to keep up with interest. And no matter how much we’re talking about, whether coins or cash, what’s important is that it transforms what can be the slightly scary, sometimes silly, and always surprising experience of losing teeth into a part of growing up.

It turns it into an achievement. A milestone to be remembered.

And while the kids in our lives often show off this particular achievement by running around and showing everyone the new gap in their smile, there are plenty of other early achievements they can get just as excited about that don’t require tying a string to connect their loose tooth to the front door.

Other Achievements To Get Kids Excited About

When you think about what motivates us, it can be pretty random. Who decided, for example, that we were going to get so collectively excited about running 26.2 miles? And yet, here we are, crazy about running marathons.

Using the same mentality, we can help kids unlock their own potential. One way to consider that is with the Early Achievers IRLA Pack, which breaks down a range of cool, kind, and daring activities that kids can challenge themselves with, like: 

• Do something kind: Kids are generally sweet, but they also have a tendency to get caught up in their world. Here’s a chance to encourage them to be aware of their surroundings and to add something positive
• Head to a museum: While the odds are the kid in your life has already found the dinosaurs in your city, this is a great opportunity to start introducing them to a world beyond the T-Rex
• Read books: The library is cool enough as it is with its limitless supply of new reads and classic books. Adding an element of challenge can engage them even more.
• Go to the doctor or dentist: Sometimes conquering fears is all about changing our perspective. By turning a doctor’s visit that they’re worried about into a checkpoint on their race to a cool, collectible coin, they can look past the scary, uncomfortable feelings that have them all blocked up.
• Ride a rollercoaster: Though we know there are height limitations, sometimes that twisting, speeding machine that makes people scream can be intimidating. Help them push past and enjoy the ride of their young lives!  

Other ways to reward kids for their accomplishments

Not every kid is going to respond in the same way. Just like some love to lose their teeth (and will wiggle and jiggle them until they pop out) and others are more reserved, some will respond differently to these kinds of achievements. 

So while the IRLA pack is certainly a fun way to get kids engaged with the world and thinking about the milestones in their young lives, it’s not the only way to encourage them. Some families reward their kids with extra game time, a favorite drink or snack (extra marshmallows in the hot chocolate, please), or the ultimate achievement to unlock: getting to choose the movie at the next family movie night (so much power, only to keep picking Nacho Libre).

Of course, we’d love to hear from you, too. Have you done any of the above activities with your family? Which ones were a hit?