Dentist talk - yet again.

So the quick review up to now ...
We took the older boys to see the dentist, a pediatric dentist who was reputed to be wonderful to the kids and not as wonderful to their parents, specifically in the pocket book.
Mick had a weak spot, no cavities. X-rays showed his adult teeth were just about perfectly aligned and spaced.
Mack had three teeth that didn't need work done and his adult teeth were already twisted and all of his teeth, baby and adult, were severely crowded.
Mase didn't HAVE teeth yet, so we waited.

The cost for Mack's bad teeth were in the thousands and because of his unpredictable nature and tendency to bite down on anything in his mouth plus the extensive nature of the work, the dentist required full anesthesia and a surgical room. This added to the cost greatly, and we didn't have it. We didn't even have enough to hold a date for the appointment because that was $500. Just to MAKE the appointment.
Our insurance paid 70% of it, but that wasn't nearly enough.

Til we raised the money, our hands were tied. Mike was helpful in mouthing off about pulling all of them... see, helpful right? ... but the best we could do was brush, floss and rinse every day.
Here is the part that's fairly new~
We went back for a check up on the 5th for the older boys and Mick had a cavity as well as two weak spots to watch. The cavity wasn't even from the weak spot the found the first time around! So much for brushing flossing and rinsing.
Mack now has not one single good tooth in his head. Nada. His front teeth have gotten bad enough that the dock suggested simply pulling them, but the rest have to be worked on - fillings, root canals and crowns galore. Then, in 2-3 years we'll have to start on orthodontics for him because of the crowing and twisting. This should have filled me with dread, but it didn't. Why? In the meantime, we got insurance in the form of a Beni-card.

For those that are as ignorant of this as I was, I'll explain. For one year the employer pulls an amount, designated by the employee, from each check and puts it in a special account accessible only by the Beni-card. It acts as a debit so you cannot overdraw. The employee can use the card to by health aids like vitamins, cold medicine, Aspirin, etc. as well as paying for doctor visits, Rx's, dental work, surgery, you name it. The employee can then use the card for up to the amount projected to go in the account for the ENTIRE YEAR.
Soooooo, we set an amount that allowed us to pay for Mack's surgery. Since we also had checkups last year, the regular insurance we still have pays 80% instead of 70% now. We'll be ok. We'll pay for a year, lol, but he'll get it done.
Things being the way they are, we set a tentative appointment for the 6th of March for Mack.
Mase had an appointment for the 10th since he has teeth now. this also wasn't a good appointment. He has "flawed shaping" to his enamel that causes ripples and bumps, primarily on the back of his teeth but on the front as well. These spots are bacteria catchers ad with his softened enamel already, they are going to be cavities. The Dr. wants him in every 2 months for floride and cleanings, hoping to stop the progress. If we can keep the cavities at bay for a year or two he can fill them, a year after that and he can pull them. Less trauma for baby and less pain (emotional and monetary) for Mom and Dad. Mase also has what the doc called "muscular bicuspids" and says they will interfere with spacing and be hard on the kids coming in. I knew they were going to be trouble, they came in like Mack's (long and painful) and they look just like Mike's... prominent and large. Again, talk of orthodontics when he's 6.
During Mase's appointment, Mick was taken back to get his tooth filled. He did BEAUTIFULLY. He wasn't scared of the dentist at all since he's never had anything but a cleaning and Mike says the worst it got was being unsure when they put the nose mask on him, his hands were gripping the chair hard. After the gas he was loopy and relaxed and didn't even feel the shot and kept trying to talk to the TV during the drilling, lol. He wasn't prepared for the numbness though, and when we were eating 4 hours later I asked him if it had feeling again. He was so hungry for solid food that he lied to me. I knew because of the blood trickling out the side of his mouth during our meal. Sigh.
Crowns and removals and braces, Oh my! I'm not looking forward to the years of work on the kids, but I am starting to be less fearful and more relieved. At least we have a way to get it done now. It was far worse watching the kids teeth going bad and knowing there wasn't a damned thing I could do.