As I wrote the other evening, No. 3 pulled out his own tooth (I think he’s up to #6 or 7, if I’m not mistaken!), and I had every intention of going straight to my purse after I got off the computer to scrounge up a buck to put under his pillow.

I forgot.

It didn’t cross my mind again until after I got to work the next morning, so I called Dad while he was still at the house and asked him to check & see if the tooth was still in the baggy under the munchkin’s pillow. I hoped that maybe No. 3 forgot about it, too, and I could pull a sly switcheroo. Otherwise, I figured he’s old enough to break the news and end the fantasy. I’d simply have to come clean and tell him the big-kid truth about the tooth fairy and offer an apology for forgetting about it. Nos. 1 & 2 already know, of course, but we have a “secret” deal where they trade their teeth for dollar bills. They still get the cash, so they’re happy to keep the secret from the little guys.

I wasn’t upset about having to tell him the truth; I’ve always said that I won’t flat-out lie to them about fantasy things like Santa or the tooth fairy. So, imagine my surprise when I got home and No. 3 proclaimed: “Mom! The tooth fairy came during the day this time, instead of at night.”

“Oh?” I asked, “Perhaps she just got busy and ran out of time the night before.”

Without missing a beat, he said, “Or, maybe she had Mother’s Day off or something.”

What a sweetie. I didn’t have the heart to burst his bubble. So, for one more tooth, at least, the fantasy is still intact.