AS the credit crunch deepens, a crunch of a different kind has led to a new burden on the Craddock wallet.

As Emily bit into her mid-morning toast at school, she felt something crunch in her mouth. One of her upper front teeth has been wobbly for a while. She pulled the peggy and it came away in her hand, along with a gush of blood.

So now she has a slight lithp and a new-found ability to whistle ear-splitting renditions of the show-stopping tunes of her favourite musicals Joseph and Oliver!

It also meant another down payment by the tooth fairy. And in these days of restricted credit and bank loans, it's getting tough to make ends meet.

So all chocolate, fizzy drinks and sweets have been banned until further notice.