NO MORE BRACES!!!!

The big day is finally here!  My dad accompanied me to the appointment and documented the entire process:

Before...

 ...during...

... the braces...

...the smile...

... the awkward pictures...

...the team...

... and the first bite!

AND WATCH THIS VIDEO AND BE JEALOUS THAT YOU DON'T HAVE THIS ORTHODONTIST.

I am celebrating tonight with friends I haven't seen since summer-- so excited!  I have more pictures to upload and a lot more to write, but I wanted to get in this quick update. :)) YAY!

OFFICIAL Debracing Date!

So I paid the orthodontist another visit yesterday to take impressions for retainers-- it was gooey and disgusting but I was so happy to finally be at that stage!  We agreed that a more convenient day for debracing would be the 21st, the first day of my Thanksgiving break.  THIS WEDNESDAY I WILL BE FREEEE! I will be able to eat Thanksgiving dinner with no wires or brackets to trap bits of turkey and sweet potatoes!! The date is so close I can hardly believe it.  I cannot WAIT.

Ouch in My Mouth

I woke up this morning and the inside of my mouth was absolutely screaming at me!  The braces have burrowed their way through the soft tissue, leaving the inside of my lips cut and swollen.  My tongue is rough, calloused from its repeated contact with the jagged metal around my molars.  One bracket especially feels like it's a spike attached to my tooth!
In this last month with braces, I feel as though my mouth is resisting these things more than ever.  I'm coming up on nine months with them now and they've almost never bothered me this much.  I have my appointment this thursday to get impressions done, then another two weeks (possibly one!) till they're off!  For now just poppin Advil.

SPIKE TEETH.

Also, here's my profile as of right now: 

Almost five months post-op!