How a City Council meeting is like a visit to the dentist

Hmmm....they're both mind numbing, you have no idea why they're taking so much money from you....

Well, ok, they're not really all that similar, but I went to both today! :)

Connor and Logan had back-to-back dentist appointments this morning. At Connor's first visit six months ago he only let them clean his top two teeth and then didn't want to allow Mr. Tooth Tickler back into his mouth. This time he knew what to expect so it wasn't as big a deal - he let the hygienist clean all of his teeth, floss, apply marshmallow flavored fluoride (yuck) and even take top and bottom x-rays. He doesn't have any cavities but does have a small chip on one of his back bottom teeth. The dentist said it was nothing to worry about but they'll call that tooth "Chippy" from now on. Connor loved that :)

Logan's part of the appointment was much less interesting. The one year old visit is free and all they do is count the teeth (he has 6 but I guess it looks like many more are coming soon) and make sure there isn't any major decay. Everything looked good!

The City Council meeting was good - lots of moms and even one Dad talked about the merits of Discovery Days so I lucked out and didn't have to speak! I've never been to a City Council meeting before but I was able to pick out the regulars right away...they just have that look. :) I met two guys who are running for City Council who of course promised that if they were on the council right now they would save Discovery Days. Uh-huh. :) One mom was really funny - she managed to tie all the issues together in her 3 minutes by saying that her 4 year old son loves Discovery Days and can't believe they're getting rid of it so in its place he asked to learn how to play hockey but the City Council is going to shut down the outdoor ice rink so that's out. And since he can't learn how to play hockey and take out his aggression in an appropriate manner, he'll likely break the law when he's a teenager and be sent to jail instead of getting probation and rehabilitation (the Council is trying to cut the majority of probation services). It was funny and yet...possibly true :) I'm not sure if any of the comments actually got through to any of the council members but at least we tried, right? And it was good to observe our city government in action...or something like that. :)

Here are a couple pics of the boys playing in the sandbox today. Yes, they're wearing matching shirts at Connor's request. :)