The aftershocks of LICE

Stuffed animals bagged

Luckily all of Mima's quilts are washable!

LAUNDRY!!!!!!!!!!

Out with the old...

In with the new...

Colorado

Pretty Bad Day- part two

(Please read "Pretty Bad Day- part one" before reading this blog entry)

I told the nurse the same information as the operator. She informed me she would talk to the doctor and then call me back.

I was long overdue for a shower. I put the bat bloody yoga pants in the wash, set up the boys with packing tasks and set off to decontaminate. No time for leg shaving or hair washing as I was waiting for the MD call back, we had to soon leave for the lice check and I had to pack for four people.

The next hour went by quickly. Packing, redirecting children, yoga pants into dryer, find socks to pack, redirecting children, unpacking the toys the boys are trying to pack, more packing and then call from doctors office.

"I'm not sure if the bat blood saturated through my pants."

"No, I don't have any cuts, open sores or wounds on my leg."

"OK. Great. Thank you."

No need to get the rabies vaccination said the MD. Thank God!

Finish packing, jackets in car, bags in car, iPhone charger packed, off to the pediatrician.

Waiting in the doctors office at the exact time I was planning to be waiting for my manicure.

"Pickle" called the nurse (of course she used his real name).

The nurse asked pickle to step on the scale- which I found odd as we were there for a lice check! Into the room and I told the nurse exactly what Mrs. Barb said to me!  The nurse asked me if I had checked his hair yet. Apologetically, I said "no" and began to tell her about the trip to Colorado, the bat, and on and on. 

The nurse started checking Pickle's hair.  Within seconds we could both see little bugs crawling In his beautifully blonde, long, angelic looking hair!

Oh my goodness! !!!!!!!!!!!!

The nurse quickly went to get the doctor!

The doctor (luckily our pediatrician who I think knows we are clean and typically not bug ridden people) and I started looking in Pickle's hair together. Within minutes, we had plenty of bug samples for identification. The doctor left to do some more research as I continued to pick at Pickle's hair. 

I had five bugs on the paper towel when the doctor came back in.  So gross! But Pickle was being a champ!

She didn't think it was lice. Because lice typically doesn't fly. But she wasn't really sure what the bugs were. Regardless she said we could treat him like the bugs were lice. 

I thanked her much and watched her flush the paper towel full of lice, or whatever they are, down the toilet in the bathroom across the hall. 

We left the doctors office, headed to the car and quickly drove to the drugstore.

I'm in the drugstore frantically looking for the lice shampoo, with two little boy helpers shouting "i think the lice shampoo is over here!" I thought the lice shampoo would be with the other shampoo. It was with the first aide kits, which is kinda odd. As I'm trying to figure out what's the best lice treatment, I'm  on the phone with farmer J begging him to come home as soon as possible to help me pack, shave the children's hair, and decontaminate our house. I left a message. He was probably in the midst of teaching a class.  When he was done teaching his class, and checked his phone, he would hear this frantic message from me, get a text message showing the dead bat and a dead bat blood on my pants, and realize that he now had to drive back home to the farm before returning back to where he was teaching to fly out to Colorado.

We were finally home loaded up with lice treatment and a plan.  The packing was pretty much done. So I started with the lice shampoo on both of the boys heads.

Looking back, I really should've shaved their heads first before putting in the lice shampoo. But it wasn't really thinking straight at this point. We are supposed to leave to fly to Colorado in less than a few hours.

Between shampooing of their heads, stripping down their beds, putting all their stuffed animals into a big black plastic bag, and just thinking to myself "well this day has gone completely different than I expected", I stopped every once in a while to just breathe. Luckily no tears yet!

Next it was time to cut off all their hair.

And look for more bugs and Nits that the shampoo missed. This was truly a nitpicking experience.

I just cut their hair with the scissors. Picture their hair looking like Anne Hathaway's hair in the movie version of Les Mis. When Farmer J got home he finished the job with the clippers. 

Luckily, and I'm not really sure how, we made it to the airport on time. After we went through the security TSA check, I saw this sign and it really made me laugh. Especially after the day that we've had.

We had recombobulated pretty well given the lice, the dead bat, the frantic packing, and the wild ride to the airport.

Overall, the trip was really nice. The boys were awesome travelers. I'd have no concern traveling with them again. They were traveling rock stars!!!

There were of course a few things that happened on this trip that don't happen on most trips. Like stopping in the drugstore to pick up lice treatment, just to make sure J and I were louse free. And of course I'm sure most trips don't involve one sister-in-law picking through another sister-in-law's hair to see if she can find any bugs and nits. Thank you Colleen!

But Colorado was beautiful. And it was so nice to visit with J's sister's family.

Better go! I still have about 10 loads of laundry to do to make sure we are truly lice free.

Pretty Bad Day- part one

****Of note: When I write "oh my goodness" in this blog entry, my actual real life response was much less Jane Austen and much more trucker/sailor-- just keeping this blog PG (especially as my oldest can now read what I write). 

My day started the same as most of my days...getting myself put together and the boys ready for school! But today was special for a few different reasons. First, later today we were flying to Colorado to visit Farmer J's sister. Second, the boys would be at school and J would be at work so the house would be all mine! For the first time in eight years, all the males in my life would be gone at school- leaving me to enjoy a quiet and calm farmhouse!

I dropped off the boys at school, got my Egg White Delight (minus the Canadian bacon) sandwich (my McDonalds guilty pleasure) and stopped by Walgreens to get some travel size toiletries.

I considered going to yoga instead of my usual routine of doing yoga outside the boys bedroom while they are"quietly" reading books! ("Quiet" is a relative term when referring to little boys and their volume, energy and activity! Let's just say I've gotten really good at switching between "zen" and "mama" mode!)

I got to the yoga studio and didn't even stop the car, thinking I have no time for yoga. I still have to pack, do one last load of laundry, shower and wash my hair and was hoping to sneak in a manicure (haven't had one since my wedding over 11 years ago and I start a new job next week...look sharp, feel sharp.)  One mile down the road I turn around the car and head back to yoga.I have to make my health and exercise a priority (my new anthem was "strong is the new skinny" and packing clothes wasn't going to beef up my triceps!) Anyway (self talk here) I have all afternoon to get ready for the trip! Right?!

9:00- at yoga

9:15 - yoga starts

9:45- sweating, shaking in poses; "strong is the new skinny, strong is the new skinny". Ugh... when will this be done!

10:30- corpse pose; relaxing; lavender pack on eyes; China gel on shoulders;ahhhhhhh!!!!!!

10:50- to my car; slightly freaking out by the time as yoga ran long. check my phone! Oh no- missed call from "boys school". 

Thinking in my mind:

-did I forget a lunch? No- hot lunch today

-did I forget to pack a snack? No.

-puking kid? Maybe.

-broken bone? Maybe.

-stitches? Maybe.

Called school. No answer. Only partially freaking out. A minute later. Ahhhhh- I hear the calm, always soothing, voice of Mrs. Barb (Pickle's teacher). Think of the most lovely preschool teacher- that is her! We picked their school over other great choices because after meeting "Mrs. Barb", you just KNOW she is the woman you want nurturing, teaching and caring for your child!

It's about Pickle. He was itching his head. She looked in his hair and found little, flying BUGS. Of my goodness.***

I immediately "recalculate" my day, my mindset and the car's route! "I'll be there as soon as I can!" Call and cancel manicure. Call and make appointment with the pediatrician. "Yes I am certain she said the bugs could fly. Oh, lice can't fly. Well we do live on a farm with animals. Yes, 1:45 will be great. "

Pick up the infested child while still in sweaty yoga clothes with my sweaty hair piled on top of my sweaty head. Pick up the other child (hopefully not infested and so glad they now sleep in separate beds.) The older one wonders why I'm at school early..."Your brother has bugs In his hair"! He shrugs and goes to get his backpack, acting like this news is not at all odd or interesting. 

Drive home. Farm chores first as I'm already stinky! And here is when things start to really go downhill. 

Bring in the recycling 

Clean up the barn

Bring the boy's bike ramp into the barn

Shut one barn door

Shut the other barn door 

WHAT JUST FELL ON ME?????!!!!!!! 

A dead BAT just fell on me!!!!!!

Oh my goodness !!!!!!!! ***

I look down at my leg where I felt the impact...

Bright red bat blood on my sweaty (but relatively new) yoga pants. And this is when I started flipping out! Minimal screaming but lots of flicking of my wrists and pacing in circles. The children immediately notice somethings off and run over.

"What's wrong mama?" "What happened mama?" 

"Oh I'm fine. A dead bat just fell on me when I closed the barn door!" 

Pickle- "You gonna die of Way Bees (rabies), mama?"

"No baby! I'll be just fine."

I survey the scene. Another bat on the barn.  

The boys are ordered into the house. I feed and give water to the sheep and chickens. I can't stop looking at the blood on my pants. I'm calling my doctor while lugging the hose around the farm to fill up the sheep, goat and chicken water pails. 

The phone call to my MD clinic goes something like this:

Me: Can I speak with Dr. K's nurse?

Operator: Of course. May I tell her your concern?

Me: Well I live on a farm and a dead bat just fell on me. I'm already coming into the pediatric clinic at 1:45 to see if my kids have lice so I thought I'd  see if I need to see my doctor too!  And we are flying to Colorado tonight so we're kinda pressed for time!

Operator:  (silence)

Me: Hello?!

Operator: I'll connect you right away to the nurse. 

To be continued...

Loving my new

Norwex produce bags

Autumn arrives

Thank you

Thanks to Tutu and Mimi/Papa for birthday money that went towards J's new grill!