Tooth Silver

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Pocket Pics Stainless Steel Pocket Toothpick Holder List Price: $14.95 Sale Price: $6.96 You save: $7.99 (53%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Kitchen - Shears- 1120 MM, Blister Pack with Magnetic Plastic Sheath List Price: $63.00 Sale Price: $49.95 You save: $13.05 (21%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

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Silver (Extended Edition) List Price: $13.98 Sale Price: $3.99 You save: $9.99 (71%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

The Dick Van Dyke Show - Show Me Your Walls/Man's Teeth Are Not His Own [VHS] List Price: $4.98 Sale Price: $3.00 You save: $1.98 (40%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

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Freud LU87R010 10-Inch 24-Tooth FTG Thin Kerf Ripping Saw Blade with 5/8-Inch Arbor and PermaShield Coating List Price: $59.40 Sale Price: $39.99 You save: $19.41 (33%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Freud LM74M010 10-Inch 30 Tooth TCG Glue Line Ripping Saw Blade with 5/8-Inch Arbor and Silver ICE Coating List Price: $85.00 Sale Price: $59.99 You save: $25.01 (29%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Married...with Children: The Complete Fourth Season List Price: $19.99 Sale Price: $8.25 You save: $11.74 (59%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

A Murder with Teeth in It Sale Price: $1.99   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

This don't hurt my fillings (Silver Removal) ... GloZell (Getting TV Ready)

How Much Does The Tooth Fairy Give Per Tooth?

The Tooth Fairy has been a frequent visitor in American homes since the early 1900's. The thought of a magical pixie exchanging money for teeth has helped generations of children through the unpleasant and often scary process of losing their baby teeth. Most lose all 20 by the age of 12, and even though they may be old enough not to believe in fairies any longer, most families play out the game to the end. It is an expression of love for our children to console them for their loss. When my son recently told my husband and me that he had his first wiggly tooth, it sparked memories of our own tooth exchanges. We both remember receiving a silver dollar for every tooth, but wondered if we should calculate for inflation.

I discovered through online research that a lady named Rosemary Wells, a former professor at Northwestern University Dental School and an expert on Tooth Fairy lore, did a study tracking the amounts the Tooth Fairy left for teeth from 1900-1980. The results were that indeed, the Tooth Fairy keeps up with current economics. I wish I had been able to view the actual study in its entirety. I would have liked to see the actual rates from year to year. Instead, I asked my friends what the current rate was among them, and most told me $5.

Somehow though, the evening that the tooth finally made its debut came as a surprise to us, and all we had in the house was a $20 bill. It was actually a miracle that we had that since we rarely have cash. Our son was VERY happy in the morning, and we had to explain that it was just because the first tooth is so special that he got so much. From then on, we have kept a little stash of $5 bills hidden in the house just for Tooth Fairy use.

I was still curious to see how the price of a tooth had risen over the years, so I decided to conduct my own small scale study and ask all my friends and family. I received responses from 25 cents all the way to $100 per tooth! The majority of people who responded lost their baby teeth in the 1960's and unanimously remember getting 50 cents per tooth.

I looked up average prices for the 1960's, and found that a loaf of bread cost 25 cents. Therefore, if children wanted to take their Tooth Fairy money and buy bread (humor me), they would have been able to get 2 loaves per tooth. The average price for a loaf of bread today is $3, so to allow children to be able to buy 2 loaves, they would need to get $6. A toy store conducted a survey of 150 Moms back in 2006, and found that the average amount they gave a for a tooth was $3. Tsk! Tsk! That means that parents today are only half as generous as their parents in that their children can only buy one loaf of bread.

About 25% of people believe that larger teeth are worth more, and give more for molars. The amount does seem to vary by location too. In some areas, $20-$25 per tooth is average. I recommend asking your children what others are getting and asking friends before your child loses that first tooth so you may determine the going rate for your neighborhood. You do not want to give more than others (other parents will resent you when their children complain), and you do not want to give too little or your child will be distraught thinking that there is something wrong with his teeth.

If you can't or are unwilling to pay the average, I came across a posting with a really clever explanation. You can say that the Tooth Fairy sets out with the same amount of money each night. If there are only a few children who have lost teeth, they get a fairly large amount of money, and if there are lots of children that night, each one will get a smaller portion of the pot. Pretty ingenious! However, if you use this excuse, I recommend that at least once, you come up with the higher amount so you can say, "Well, FINALLY, you were as lucky as your friends!".

My husband and I have decided to stick with $5 per tooth plus a $1 off coupon for bread.

About the Author

Elf Stacy has been helping Santa Claus write letters to good boys and girls since 1997. She recently started helping out her friends, Cupid, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy with letters in her off season. She is also the founder of the National Organized Elves League, a directory of Santa helpers.