Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes (Abbie will appreciate the Bowie reference)

Abbie had a great Thanksgiving (I think). If for no other reason, we finally made enough cranberries to suit her. She ate so many that she ended up with a canker sore from them. She was also a huge help with preparing the meal. She peeled all the potatoes herself (and it was a lot of potatoes!), made a pumpkin pie, and was happy to help with anything that we asked her to do.

Thanksgiving week also yielded some big changes for Abbie. First, the new do. She was overdue for a haircut and she and the hairdresser decided to have a little fun, so voila - bangs! I think they look super cute on her.

They purposely kept the bangs long so that she can pin them back or wear them as side bangs if she wants. So far, she has been happy to wear them on her forehead, but this does mean a little extra time in the mornings to get them to behave.

The other big change that came during Thanksgiving week was a trip to the orthodontist. Yes, it is time for braces, my friend! Abbie got her spacers put in just before Thanksgiving and had a little bit of a sore mouth for the holiday, but she thought that it was better to have a sore mouth during a break rather than when she is also busy trying to deal with the tortures of middle school.

The week after Thanksgiving, she got her upper braces and in January she will get the lower braces. So far, she has been doing really well with them. Most of the pain is from the hooks that are poking into her cheek, but she has been able to cover them with wax to keep them in check.

Before - her last ever pre-braces photo!

As you can see, we elected to go with the clear uppers and I think it was a really good decision. Abbie didn't care either way because everyone her age has braces, but Chad pointed out that there may come a point in the future when she does care and it will be well worth it to have clear. He was definitely right, so the before and after photos are not too stark of a contrast.

After

As they tend to do, they are estimating a two year treatment time, but we'll see how it goes. These things have a way of dragging out.

Aside from all this excitement, Abbie is still knee-deep in her love of all things Hamilton. We went to the library today and she chose an Eliza Hamilton biography and an Alexander Hamilton biography. I think that she has also been reading The Federalist Papers online. I think she has the entire musical memorized. She also has a Hamilton book that she got from the school library and treats as if it is the bible - reading it before bed every night, treasuring every page. She has always enjoyed history so this is right up her alley.