Too Fast

I know it seems cliche' to ask, "Where does the time go?" But seriously. I have had to ask myself that this past week over and over. Not only did she just start preschool but today, Ella's first tooth fell out. Or maybe it fell IN. We can't find it. She had apple slices this morning and the thought actually ran through my head, Her tooth is loose, I should check it, then as usual some thing or some little one distracted me. The next thing I knew, she was talking to me and I noticed a hole on the bottom of her mouth. I said, "Ella, please open your mouth so I can see something." I looked in, and sure enough. GONE. G-O-N-E. I had a surprised look I'm sure because she asked, "Did I lose it?" I told her yes, then asked her where it might have gone. With wide eyes she said, "I don't know Mom." I told her it's okay, maybe we can find it by the table. Nope. Floor? Nope. Sink? Nope. Shirt? Nope. We are fairly certain she swallowed it. I'm not even concerned about that part, but how do you give a kid money from the "Tooth Fairy" when there is no tooth? I guess Andrew and I will have to discuss this after work. It's not like "No shirt, no shoes, no service," but with nothing to show for the gaping hole in her chompers how do you explain the tooth fairy taking it and trading for coins? She sure looks cute. This past week has been a whirlwind of emotions for me. Some of my very early memories were of going to school and losing teeth. I hope she can look back on this time fondly. I miss my baby girl, but it is fun to have conversations with her about the fact that she learned of school buses yesterday. I said to her, "How did this happen? You were just born!" She looked up and said, "No Mom. I'm almost five." She didn't get it. But I did.