Catgyrl's (Cathy's) Journey at age 42...

[catgyrl]

Thanks, Elle and Angel! Would you believe the only one who noticed that my braces were off was my 8-year-old nephew! He jumped up and down and cheered for me! Not one person at work noticed, until I mentioned something. One had to get up in my face to see the retainer.

I ate my first "bad" thing today - I can't write the real name because apparently it's considered SPAM, but it's a nutty, almond/caramel candy with the initials A.R.!!! OMG, that was divine!

[iBorg]

A.R.? Must be a Hawaii thing.....My mind can't figure this one out.....A.J. Oh Boy what a Joy......

A.R. ?

Not a clue.

[catgyrl]

Almond r...

[iBorg]

SPAMMER?

Never heard of it....Google is our friend....

I'd look for Cadbury's Fruit and Nut. Let's see if that comes up as spam.

[klobird]

Almond SPAMMER--made right here in the good ole Pacific Northwest!

[catgyrl]

Hey, how come when I typed it, I got "SPAMMER"? Anyway, yeah, it was dee-lish-us!

[Mitch11]

Cathy,
Your teeth are looking gorgeous!!
I think it is worth all the effort to be able to give a full and proper smile!

I hope mine looks half as good when I'm done.

[lilone]

Yay Cathy! Looks amazing. I can't believe you are finished...must feel fabulous! Is your retainer like invisalign where it is just over the teeth or does it cover the roof of your mouth as well, like a hawley does?

[libbylou]

Hi Cathy - what an absolutely fabulous result!!!! I think your teeth look just beautiful - its just incredible the difference from before to after - absolutely stunning! Your ortho is obviously a really really good one! So thrilled for you - you haven't half been through it with all those different elastic configurations along the way! Massive congratulations to you

[catgyrl]

Thanks, Mitch11, Lille and libbylou! As much of a pain in the rear as my ortho was to me (and honestly, as I was to him), this experience was SO worth everything I've been through.

Lilone - my retainer is the clear, Invisalign-type, (I'm wearing it in the last pic above) but it actually does cover the roof of my mouth like a Hawley. I don't mind that so much, but drinking water does feel a bit strange because I can't feel the water up there. Thus far, I've no pain or problems with the retainer. Taking it out in the morning is really gross, though. If you think your breath smells bad in the AM without braces... Ten times worse after you take the retainer out! LOL

libbylou - I just cleaned out my purse and threw away 4 half-full bags of elastics.

[libbylou]

Ha! - you aren't likely to need those elastics again anytime soon! Honestly though - what a really lovely result you have ended up with! I love the way he has angled your front teeth - it just could not be more perfect. You must be like a Cheshire Cat smiling all the time at the moment - which will make a change from struggling to speak through those elastics clamping your jaws shut!

[GillyWeed]

Congratulations Cathy! They look wonderful! So glad to see that someone who had the same extraction as me ended up with such phenomenal results. I am feeling veryy reassured. Enjoy your new million dollar smile

[catgyrl]

Thanks, GillyWeed! What IS kinda funny about just having the one extraction is that my Essix retainer looks a bit "off" because there's one less tooth on the left side. It looks like someone chopped off the last tooth on my retainer. I have to be extra careful putting it on so that it's lined up properly.

[ArchWired28]

To me, your smile looks AMAZING. Congrats and good luck with retention. I've heard that is the hardest part

[Joye30]

Congrats!! Your teeth look so great!!