Dental woes

I have been very fortunate that in my (almost) 29 years, I've never had a cavity (or at least, one I know about). I don't know if I have my mom to thank (as she has told me numerous times that she drank a LOT of milk during her pregnancy), good genes, or vigilant family members who constantly told me to brush my teeth. I had always hoped that my kids would be as lucky as I was. Well, not so much. Emma has had one cavity filled, and during the last couple of weeks, has been telling me that her tooth hurts. So, off we go yesterday to the dentist. I'm thinking that it's just another cavity, silently berating myself that I let her get another one. She gets an x-ray done to see how bad it is, and the nurse comes back with a shocker. She's got an infection in her tooth that's down to her nerve. The first course of action is an antibiotic regimen to get rid of the infection. After that, we could either of two things: a pulpotomy (now doesn't THAT sound fun), where they basically drill down to the nerve, and then put something in there that deadens it, and then come back on another day to get a crown put on ($$$$$), OR just pull the tooth ($24). I kid you not, it's cheaper to PULL a 7 year old's tooth, than it is to fix it. This, I just don't get. It wouldn't be a stumper for me what to do, if this were a baby tooth that was going to fall out in the next year or so. No, this is a molar, which might not fall out on its own until she's 10 or 11. Now, she's been pretty early with some of her teeth falling out (she's had 8 come out in 2 years), so in all respects, this one could be out as early as age 9, but still. That's a 2 FULL years without a tooth, and having to have a metal spacer put in to keep the space open. Call me snobby, but I'm not sure that's a stigma I want to put on my kid. Ugh, I hate parenting decisions like this. We have until the 10th of January to decide. That's when she'll go in next, after the infection's gone. I just feel so bad for her. She hates doctors/dentists already, now I get to have her freak out every time we only go for a check-up or a cleaning.