Moonlit Narratives Blog

I just came back from My Saddle Brook Farm not too long ago.  I had my second horseback riding lesson thanks to Westchester Magazine’s Deal of the Day.  Initially I slowly rode several times around their corral and with the supportive nudge of my instructor, Helen, even had the horse trot a few times.  Hudson (horse) and I eventually went on a gorgeous scenic fall trail ride with Helen and my husband alongside us!  At the end of the lesson she asked me how I felt and I honestly told her the experience exceeded my expectations because that’s what it did.  I thanked her for encouraging me to go on the trail ride.  Lord knows how long I would have taken to dare broach the topic on my own.  Today, my school horse was a handsome and sweet fellow of 11 years and a thoroughbred who previously raced in Canada.  Through mud and rocky trails, Hudson endured for an hour long lesson and more than earned his carrots and Red Delicious from me.   Despite his vices of cribbing and wood-chewing he’s still a great horse companion.  There’s no feeling in the world like being on a horse.  You forget all your worldly cares and troubles really.  You can finally leave these things behind.  I equate the experience to going fishing in a quiet but lovely lake community- just you in a boat with food and drinks.  I have a second lesson left as part of the package deal and I’m happily anticipating it.

*Photocredit: Andrew

I’ve loved horses (specifically unicorns and pegasi hehe) since I was 9 years old.  They were my favorite subjects to draw despite the challenges of their complex forms.  Ever since seeing the movie, “Secretariat,” my love for horses has especially deepened.  They’re both noble and beautiful creatures.  It’s their big stature and power which really scares me so I never would have thought I would ever get the nerve to ride one.  Recently my husband saw a LivingSocial.com coupon for a 1/2 hour horseback riding lesson at Larkspur Farm, Connecticut.  He encouraged me to give horseback riding a try and I’m very grateful he did.

As we were driving to Larkspur, I could feel the butterflies in my stomach.   I tried to re-focus myself.  We (my husband had a 1/2 hour lesson too though he had ridden a few times before we met) registered and put our riding hats on.  While fussing with my hat, a tall and handsome 9 year-old gelding warmblood (patched white and dark chocolate coat) approached with his handler.  I remembered thinking this wonderful steed would be my first school horse and smiled to myself.

Domino was afraid to walk downhill and needed much encouragement.  I felt empathy towards him and hoped he would one day overcome this fear.  We met Amy, our instructor at the indoor sand paddock.  I liked that she, like Domino, was pretty patient with me.  Domino was all too happy at the slow pace I wanted to keep.  I found out that Larkspur acquired him about a year ago from his previous owner (who wanted to train him for dressage and jumping but realized he wasn’t the best fit for those activities).  Sometimes his slow sleepy movements would even turn into a full stop.  I would then give him a little squeeze with my legs to remind him to continue walking.  We were mostly circling around the paddock clockwise and counter-clockwise, and towards the end of the lesson we were navigating over ground poles.  I was amazed how sensitive he was to even a small pull on the reigns or adjustments to my body position when I needed him to turn.

It was a great first experience and he was a great first horse with a really sweet temperament!  Although, I do admit that while walking him back to the barn, he was quite adamant about feeding off of the hay bale which quickly drew his attention along our path- naughty boy! Imagine trying to tug an animal that’s 1400+ lbs away from his object of desire?!  He did warn me though that he wanted to go back a couple of paces, by blowing a small grunt and giving me a nudge on my right shoulder.  We finally got him back to the barn and fed him some carrot treats we brought from home.  We also fed his neighbors carrots too, that is, the ones with no dietary restrictions.  One of his neighbors was so cute.  He tried to get my attention by cocking his head sharply to the side and giving a little whinny as if to say, “how about me?  Can I have a carrot too?”  Of course we gave him one =).  I only wish we had brought more.

I really miss Domino and wish that he was mine!  If only the care and keep of a horse wasn’t that expensive and if only I had more leisure time (it’s heartbreaking to not spend any time with a horse you own)!  Hopefully I’ll get to ride him again in the near future =).  ‘Til then I can only hope he’s happy and living a good life at Larkspur.

*As an aside, I also have the Larkspur/Domino experience to thank for allowing me to cross off yet another item from my “feed bucket” list- a second pair of ear piercings.  I’ve been wanting to wear studs and hoops badly.  I was about 9 years old and the first experience left me with a horrible memory- it was quite painful.  In fact, I cried my eyes out and squirmed back then like the Piercing Pagoda, Danbury Mall CT customer several weeks back.  No tears this time; didn’t even flinch =).  My trip to Danbury was a spontaneous one and one that I will always be pleased about.  Jump and a net will appear before you!

*Photocredit: Andrew

While I was concerned of potential sensitivity to whitening products, I realized that my response to using Crest 3D Whitening Toothpaste was promising and that I should take a chance.  I did experience very mild sensitivity on the first few alternating days.  These sensations dissipated after rinsing my mouth following each whitening  application.  By the end of week one, I did see at least a two shade difference.  Do contact Crest 3D’s customer service if you have any questions; they are easy to talk to and very helpful.  I was reminded by both the Crest 3D rep and my dental hygienist to not exceed a twice a year whitening (6 months intervals).  I apologize for not taking photos of before and after so I will try my best to photo-document next time.

*Photocredit: Crest 3D

The first time I used Crest 3D whitening toothpaste, I had an instantaneous sensitivity to it.  It felt so uncomfortable and the sensation lasted intermittently for a few days.  By the following days, I mostly experienced this sensitivity during brushing.  Eating and drinking were fine for me.  I would describe it best as a “raw,” “nerve,” or cold achy feeling.  I waited until a month later to give this toothpaste another try before deciding to give it away or dispose of it; brave or stupid as that may seem.  To my surprise, I never experienced any sensitivity to this product since my first try.  I don’t have any plausible explanation for this except that the menstrual cycle/hormone levels have been known to cause temporary gum sensitivity.  I do have a long-standing habit of loading my toothbrush with lots of toothpaste.  Perhaps by cutting back on the amount of toothpaste I use per brushing, this has also helped to reduce sensitivity?  I really do like this product very much.  The toothpaste is very minty.  From my understanding, this toothpaste alone cannot whiten teeth once it has been discolored for a long period of time but is good at removing superficial stains which have not set.  If you do decide to try Crest 3D, start brushing with a small amount.  Everyone’s reaction to this product will be different.  If you have any questions, I’ve found Crest 3D’s customer service to be very patient (I had lots of questions for them) and helpful so don’t hesitate to contact them for advice.

*Photocredit: Crest 3D

Yet another unremarkable retainer follow-up.  I did receive an unexpected surprise.  Dr. B asked me how often I was wearing my retainers.  At first I thought he spotted an issue.  I was usually wearing them every other night.  He then said, “I don’t think I need to see you anymore; it’s been a pleasure working with you…  I really hope things go well for you.”  Wow, I couldn’t believe today was really IT!  I had reached the end of this journey!  I was a little sad; if you’ve been following me, you know that it’s been quite a long process.  Of course I’m delighted that I’ve finally reached this milestone!  Although I probably won’t have that many more retainer stories to post, I’m still here to entertain questions or to hear of your progress and journey and of course there’s the blog sale I promised a while back.  I hope you have found my posts to be informative and it has in some small way helped in guiding you.

I am planning a new series of dental “chat” on the topic of teeth whitening products, in-home, and in-office procedures.  I do have an important event approaching so this will become a key preoccupation for me.  Stay tuned =)

I had a deep cleaning today by the hygienist and also had films done.  It was less unpleasant than usual; x-rays bother me much more than procedures usually because the x-ray pads are so uncomfortable to hold steady in place.  I did have a small scare after the cleaning.  The hygienist wanted to make sure my upper left molar was free of cavities so she had Dr. L come in to double-check.  He poked at the tooth a couple of times and didn’t believe it was an issue.  She later explained to me that this particular tooth has a discolored “darkened” ridge which looked somewhat suspicious; however, most cavity patches are also a bit sticky (which this area of my molar wasn’t).  I was obviously relieved when Dr. L told me it was nothing of concern.  I asked if ACT Total Care was a good rinse (I had switched to this one recently on my own).  The hygienist believed that most rinses seem to do a good job and brand doesn’t matter very much.  Following my deep cleaning, I saw Dr. B for routine retainer adjustments for 10-15 minutes.  My next appointment is scheduled for the beginning of May, 2011 so ’til next post…

P.S. I am planning to have a blog sale soon for brand new retainer cases.  When I had purchased mine, it had arrived in a big bag with many others.  I just need one and a back-up so I will sell these soon.  Please check back if you are interested.

P.P.S.  Please excuse my very chappy lips in the above photograph.

Another quick visit for retainer tightening.  I was so happy to hear that I’ve graduated to less frequent ortho visits.  Yippeee =)!  Although Dr. B intially scheduled my next visit for early February, he approved an early March visit instead to coincide with my next dental deep cleaning.

The front lower gap closed within the first month of using my retainers with the ortho elastic and has not returned since.  What a relief!  That was one stubborn gap.  I’ve become used to having my retainers on at night.  It didn’t take long to adjust but is there really a choice in the matter?  Dr. B has been tightening my retainers a little here and there.  He says they can loosen with regular wear and tear but that it’s a normal occurrence (a snug fit without any discomfort is the ideal).  I was so happy when he told me I didn’t need the elastic band anymore.  It was slightly annoying to get them on my left and right retainer hooks.  I did lose a bunch of elastics as they went flying in the air when I tried to put them on the retainers (which was what I had to do 3-4x per day).  My prescribed routine remains the same as the day I received them.  I do however go retainer-less most mornings and evenings.  I wouldn’t dare go without them at night.  Don’t want to ruin all that hard work of 18+ months! As you can tell by the update, I’m still going to the dental office once a month for now.  I believe the visit frequencies will probably decrease down the road, of course not counting my dental deep cleanings which are every few months.

*New picture to be posted soon*

I wasn’t sure whether or not this topic was post-worthy but I finally decided to write on the subject of retainer cases since I found it difficult to find one I liked (I know I’m very particular). I recently ordered from Smile Shop’s online site and was pleasantly surprised (more like shocked actually) at how quickly my order arrived on my doorstep.  They also have an excellent variety to choose from so check out their site!  I opted for their sparkly purple and bubblegum scented pink hard cases.  Another place you may want to check is on eBay (remember to always check a seller’s feedback rating before deciding to bid); luckily I have found that most sellers I have dealt with have been very professional…..  Always good to have a backup retainer case =)

*Photocredit: Smile Shop

This has been a recent curiosity of mine…    VIOlight Dental Cleanser/Spa, which boasts both sonic and UV technology is said to be ideal for dentures, bite plates, retainers, sport mouthguards, invisible braces, and whitening trays.   Does anyone own this for retainer care?  I’ve seen several good ratings/feedback on this gadget but wouldn’t mind hearing what others think of this for retainer cleaning.  I saw one comment which suggested that cleansing retainers in this particular dental spa is best at maximum twice a week (as per a dental office).  I also saw another consumer comment that the “longevity” of VDS is about two years. Not sure if anyone can confirm these things to be true??? Please drop me a comment. I would appreciate your insight very much.

*Photocredit: Drugstore.com