Ear Piercing Day

The girls have wanted to get the ears pierced for a little while, so a little under a month ago I said if they could brush their teeth two times a day for two weeks straight without being reminded I'd let them. It was about being responsible enough to take care of their ears. I was certain C10 could do it, because she has been very good about self-medicating for warts and ringworm in the past without having to be reminded. But Q9 hadn't had that sort of experience. So a chart went up in the bathroom and we started.

We had a couple of setbacks: One Saturday morning they forgot to brush and one Sunday evening. Both times I just added three extra days, because, yes, the weekend IS different, and even adults forget to brush their teeth sometimes.

So, the smiley faces and checkmarks added up, and pretty soon 20 days passed by and Saturday the 29th was the 20th day ... so instead of waiting until Sunday, we took the free day to get ears pierced.

We went to a tatoo parlour to get the piercing done. When I was 11 or 12 I went to a mall shop with my grandmother and got it done ... but I kept reading how unsanitary it was, and yes, I do recall having a few infections. So I long ago decided that we'd go to a professional to get their ears pierced. And I have to say, they were methodical, and sterile, and totally within compliance with the law. We had to bring a photo ID and an original birth certificate and a parent with ID. I called and the woman who answered the phone checked with the piercer to see if he would do children that young (even with all the ID and parents! Because, the piercer told me when we were there, ears and faces continue to grow and they want to make sure the piercing stays aligned with where they put it. So I guess they wouldn't do infants).

As you can see both girls were excited at this point, thrilled to get their passports out (The only photo ID we had for our kids).

But by the time we got to The Tatooery, both girls had gotten a little nervous, and neither wanted to be the first to get her ears pierced. But C10 stepped up as the older sister and did it. She balked HARD at getting photos taken, though. But I managed to get two in the chair.

 

And although she moaned a bit about the PAiN, the PAIN! after it was done she said it wasn't that bad. And let me take another picture.

Then Q9 was up. We had to hang in the waiting room for a bit while our piercer sterilized the area again and got out new needles and sterile tools for Q9. Nerves set in, but we eventually got back to the piercer again, and Q9 hit the chair.

She let me take pictures, and they are priceless. But, just to be fair, nary a whimper crossed her lips. She was scared, but stoic.

But the end result? 4 pierced ears between the two girls. And C46 checked his ear and he CAN still wear an earring, the hole IS still open. Girls have been washing their ears (3x/day, charts up on the wall!) and no sign of any infection yet. Fingers crossed.). Both girls are excited to go to school and show off their new accessories.