For a brief period of time (two months?), I could not get enough of "Jon & Kate +8," the reality show about a couple who had twins and septuplets. Wayne complained that every episode was the same, "It's always about how difficult it is to raise 8 kids." True, it was about how difficult it is to take 8 kids to (1) an amusement park, (2) a furniture store to buy bunk beds, (3) the dentist, etc . . .. Our friend, Ythan, joined in on the "Jon & Kate +8" bashing. "Why would I want to watch a show about taking kids to the dentist?" It's a logical question, but I enjoyed watching the episode anyway.
What is exciting as a parent is not anything objectively exciting. "First" anythings tend to bring about some kind of emotion in me. Julia's first trip to the dentist made me feel proud ("What a big girl" "She's handling it so well") and sentimental ("What a big girl, I remember when her first teeth were just coming in.") Julia has been to the dentist with both me and Wayne. She's sat on my lap while I got my teeth cleaned (left her home for the route canal). After coming back from our dentist, she'd mention that she wanted to go to her own "little dentist." She's pretty serious about the whole thing, like it's a privilege or rite of passage (not exactly sure what's going on in her head). Anyway, it was a good first trip to the dentist. No crying. Healthy teeth, but instruction from her dentist that fruit snacks are worse for kids' teeth than most candies. Oops, we have since listened to the dentist and cut back dramatically from her one to two pack a day habit.
