Why Pediatric Dentistry??

Before Jeff went to dental school I knew there were different types of dentists but didn't realize that you had to go to more school to be that type of dentist. I thought dental school was a lot like law school...you choose what type of law you want to practice in school and start practicing right after graduation. Midway through Jeff's first year of dental school, he decided that he wanted to specialize. It was then that I learned that specializing in dentistry required another 2-4 year commitment. My 1st thought??...Heck no!! How can I do another 2-4 years when I've already put Jeff through 4 years of undergraduate school at BYU and 3 years at Temple Dental school? Especially since I had my degree a year before we were married and yet I've been putting him through school for the 7 years we've been married. Stick a fork in me, I'M DONE!

So, here we are, approaching graduation from dental school in less than a year. My frustration quickly changed to admiration as I've watched Jeff work so hard and learn so much over the last 3 years. He has made endless sacrifices to keep his grades up so that he could keep windows and doors open for the future. We've had to turn down many weekend trips or vacations and other outings so that he could study. During finals weeks, Jeff would average 3-4 hours of sleep a night and never complain. I know I could never do it.

I'm not one to get all sappy and gushy about my husband publicly (he'll probably get mad at me for posting this), but I truly am so proud of him. I am so grateful that he works so hard for our family and never complains about it. His hard work has already paid off. He found out last week that he was the recipient of a very signifcant scholarship. In my mind, no one deserved it more.


So, what is all this hard work for? So that he can spend the rest of his life trying to get a 3 year old to open their mouth and teach them about good oral hygiene. Crazy, I know. But, he's the perfect man for the job. To answer the question, Why Pediatric Dentistry??........


Because he voluntarily is willing to do this....for hours....and has the time of his life. He adores little kids and connects with them on a level that I just can't achieve.

He'll be a great pediatric dentist.....and it will all be worth it in the end.

Oh, and here's a cute picture of Ethan catching his 1st fish. Way to go bud!