Introduction

For the longest time, I've wanted to get braces or some kind of orthodontic treatment to fix my extremely crooked teeth. (My fangs have been around for quite some time.)  After starting a great teaching job two years ago and getting married last year, I'm finally at a steady point in my life to get my teeth fixed.  My husband agreed to this a long time ago, so when the last school year ended in June, I was completely ready to get all of this started.  More details about starting the process will come in future posts.

I thought I should post some reasons why I want to change my teeth/smile, so here is an incomplete list of things I'm currently dissatisfied about.

1.  The previously mentioned fangs.  One is definitely more apparent than the other.  What bothers me most is that it, in my opinion, ruins a lot of my pictures because it's a HUGE focal point on that side of my face  I'm also self-conscious about laughing at times because I know it sticks out when I do! (I know some of you understand me here!)  Examples:

2.  Shadowed teeth.  Because some of my teeth stick out and others are tucked behind the others, taking pictures in the sun (or without a flash) can result in them being shadowed... making it look like I don't really have teeth there or just plain weird.  I've been aware of this one for quite some time.  The fact that I have really small teeth doesn't help the issue. Examples:

3.  The amount of gums that I show when I smile.  When I was in younger, somebody told me that I needed to "show more teeth" when I smiled.  I eventually took that advice and opened up my smile but ended up showing half gums/ half teeth when doing so!  When taking pictures, I often have a glare on those gums that shines brightly!  I've been trying not to show as much, but I go back to that 7th-grade smile when I do.  I'm not sure this is something that can be fixed, but I sure hope it can!

Okay, so I only got to three things on the list... but I think I've expressed myself well enough here.  Although there are many thinks I dislike about my current smile, I'm grateful that I have enough confidence to smile and laugh normally (most of the time!)  I'm completely thrilled, though, to see what my smile is going to look like in a few years!

So... here we go!