How do you hold your bookcook open?

A hefty Roman soldier lends a helping hand, keeping this cookbook opened flat.

 

 

What do you use to keep a cookbook laying flat and open?

 

 

• Can of tomatoes/soup/beans
• Another cookbook
• Flour/sugar canister

I often use a can of whatever I’m putting into my recipe, but then you have the problem, what do you do when it’s time to open the can? So, this time I (temporarily) solved the problem with a heavy ceramic bookend.

Question: Would you pay a little more for a cookbook if it came in a lay-flat binding? I’m pricing reprint options for The Braces Cookbook 2: Comfort Food with a Gourmet Touch and would like to have it lay flat the same way as with The Braces Cookbook: Recipes You (and Your Orthodontist) Will Love. Comments?

Cross bite, open bite – what does that mean?

If your orthodontist uses terms that confuse you, you’re not alone – it’s another world with its own language that means everything to them but not much to us outsiders. Here to solve a lot of the confusion is a great list of Orthodontic Terms from Coast Dental (a practice with over 175 dentists in Florida and Georgia). Read all about it and surprise your orthodontist with a savvy comment of your own next time!

Braces Cookbook eBooks – get Kindle direct from us

Amazon has great offerings, but as a business, it sometimes makes decisions that don’t fit with the business plans of other companies. My book distributor, IPG of Chicago, has decided to pull the Kindle eBook versions of its titles from Amazon, due to new business policies that are considered unfavorable to IPG and its authors (like me!)

So, if you want to buy the Kindle version of The Braces Cookbook: Recipes You (and Your Orthodontist) Will Love, just go directly to the Metal Mouth Media purchase page and scroll down. The Nook version is also there, as well as on the Barnes and Noble website – your preference. I’d appreciate it you all help spread the word – the Kindle version is still available direct from me!

Cavity Capitals – Best/Worst US Cities for Dental Health

Here’s an enlightening article about 100 major US cities and how they rank for healthy (or not!) teeth (Research by Julie Stewart, MSN Men’s Health). MSN Health looked at such factors as community water fluoridation, percentages of people who visit a dentist/had teeth extracted/use floss, money spent on oral hygiene products, and number of dentists per capita.

The WORST five:

1 – St. Louis MO – F

2 – Philadelphia PA – F

3 – Newark NJ – F

4 – Baltimore MD – F

5 – New Orleans LA – F

The five BEST:

96 – Sioux Falls SD – A

97 – Lincoln NE – A

98 – Boise ID – A

99 – Fargo ND – A+

100 – San Jose CA – A+

I know the recently formed American Academy for Oral Systemic Health would like to see these numbers/grades improve, for the sake of overall health, too.

Talking to surfer Bethany Hamilton about her amazing smile

Last Friday I had the awesome opportunity to sit and chat with world-champion surfer Bethany Hamilton about life, braces and her favorite foods. You may remember reading the news about Bethany (now about to turn 22): a shark took off her left arm when she was 13 years old. Her incredible recovery story (she went back into the water less than four weeks later!!) has been written up in the autobiographical book, Soul Surfer – A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board (an amazing read), and turned into last year’s movie of the same name (featuring AnnaSophia Robb, Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt). I love how her family and faith kept her going and moving ahead (I got to meet her cool Mom Cheri, too, who wrote Raising a Soul Surfer – One Family’s Epic Tale). When you find out what Bethany has gone through to become a world-champion surfer, you won’t be surprised to learn her slogan is “Smiling Through Adversity” – wow.

She is so easy-going to talk to! I met her at the Damon Forum, a yearly gathering of orthodontists and staff sponsored by Ormco, the producers of the Damon System of orthodontic treatment plus thousands of other products relevant to this field. Bethany is now their spokesperson, as she had her smile enhanced with the Damon System whose constant, low-force design allowed her to spread appointments to every three months. The latter was a great benefit since she lives in Hawaii and her orthodontist lives in California!

Bethany is so laid back and positive about life. When asked how she feels about having had braces, she said, “I was always a pretty smiley girl, but after I got braces it definitely improved my confidence. I feel more beautiful, having a good smile.”

She added, “A lot of kids aren’t blessed with getting braces. I’m thankful to have had that opportunity.” Her advice to teens getting braces is to not be nervous about their looks, be diligent (with cleaning), and listen to your doctor (!). She says, “Before you know, you’ll be done.”

Her favorite thing to eat while in braces:  smoothies – all types of fruit smoothies but especially ones made with mangoes. Her cute confession: “I was naughty and sometimes ate an apple!”

New Blog: My Invisalign Journey

Just found a blog called My Invisalign Journey that tracks the progress and experiences of a Mom who started Invisalign treatment in November 2011.  She just posted a note with tips about removing an aligner without tearing it. I didn’t know that could be an issue, so this sounds helpful.

Do Your Teeth Shape Your Personality?

Have a fun look at this infographic, Do Teeth Define Your Personality? Brought to you by the Dental Hygiene Program at Carrington College.