Georgia chews. She was a binky baby from day one, and she finally gave it up on her fourth birthday. She has mourned it, but braves it out for the greater good, the health of her teeth. But she still has the urge to gnaw, chew, bite — and when things get a little stressful, or if she gets tired, she gets “chewy.” We usually give her gum at times like this, but there is no gum or candy at Kindergarten. It’s been hard.

She loves school, but it’s long, and confusing, and sometimes she gets chewy. And since she can’t chew on the school’s pencils, she chews on her sleeves. The girl can’t help it, and I feel for her. I know it’s a big world out there, and pretty overwhelming, and when I pick her up from school, sometimes her sleeve is soaking all the way to the elbow. I wanted to find something that could calm her, without being a distraction for her or the other kids.

I thought I might be able to find some sort of teether that I could make into a bracelet or a necklace for her. It would have to be BPA- and phthalate-free, and it couldn’t be a toy. I did a search and was surprised and delighted to come up with Teething Bling. Some Smart Moms got together and made teething bracelets and necklaces that they could wear to pacify their babies. And they are nontoxic, phthalate-, BPA-, lead- and PVC-free, and the necklaces have a breakaway clasp, though they don’t suggest babies wear them. There was no indication of anyone using it like I planned to, but it seemed perfect. I got a necklace and bracelet, unsure which would be best for Georgia, and I told G that we were waiting for it in the mail.

“Did the chewing thingy come today?”
“Where IS that teething thing?’
“I need to chew, is the chewy necklace here yet?”

Finally, they arrived. Georgia decided they looked “pretty enough,” but when it came to a test chew…

“Hmm, it doesn’t taste like anything! It’s very chewy. Oh, I can chew on this! My teeth are very happy. I think this will make my chewiness not ladle-laddle-laddle around my head so much.”

She prefers the necklace to the bracelet, but keeps the bracelet by her bed, just in case. The necklace hangs on the key hook, ready to go out when we do. She has used it, but doesn’t rely on it too much. It has been useful at home to keep the erasers on the pencils, and bite marks off the pens during homework. The silicone material is sturdy — she can’t chew through it, but there are tiny tooth indentations on it. It seems like it will last a while.

She took the chewy to school today. When I picked her up, I asked if it had helped, and she huffily barked, “My TEACHER wouldn’t let me chew on it, even when we explained that it was the POINT!” I’m guessing “we” is her little band of pals, and it’s nice to know they are all sticking together, but now I have to go plead her case to Teacher. I can’t imagine the necklace is more distracting, and it’s certainly far less disgusting, than chewing on her sleeve. But there may be some other reason I can’t figure, so wish me luck at my first parent/teacher conference!