all part of the ebb and flow

The calm before the storm:  A posing for a photo before heading to school.
Who knew there was a problem under that beautiful hair?!

Well, last week at this time we were buried under loads of laundry, busy with hair soaking, washing and nit-picking, fatigued to the max with a child undergoing some intense phobias.  There was a morning I thought I might have finally really done it - lost my sense of humour, that is, through losing way too much sleep.  That was a rough day.  But it's rather like when one has a cold that feels awful, intense, acute.  Suddenly a week or so later, the realization comes that, "Oh, my cold is gone."  The getting better happened so gradually that it was hard to see it happening.  And so, though still very tired and still with mounds of laundry and daily hair routines (as we're into the second week of lice treatment where we get to do it ALL again), I can see that things have improved.  I don't want to downplay our past week and say it wasn't bad, as it was rough on many fronts, but there were some fun times and positives that still happened.

Case in point:  "beauty salon" time with my girls.  We did our first hair application Monday night, but unsure if I'd really killed the lice, especially as A has such thick, abundant hair, we went for round two:  mayonnaise on the head for 2 hours under Saran Wrap (to suffocate any live lice), then wash with vinegar to help break down the nits' glue.  Pleasant.  :)  The girls were fantastic sports and the three of us had fun looking like egg-heads.  Knowing Ai would refuse, I didn't bother trying, but his hair is so short it's not too big a deal.  One example of when its easier to be male . . .

The rest of the day had us chilling out.  I let Iz indulge in some nude time, which cut down on further additions to the wash load!  The three enjoyed having A home from school for a few days.

Tuesday dinner was a picnic at A's school, celebrating their Centennial year.  We'd pre-paid for dinner tickets, so we decided to go anyway and the kids had a great time.  The bouncy castle and other games were fun, but the highlight for the girls was the table set out with nail polish, and Ai was thrilled to sit inside the firetruck.  

Drying off her "power nails" - that's what Iz calls nail polish  :)

Another plus of our unwelcome head visitors is that we all (except for Ai) got our summer haircuts - something that we needed to get done.  S trimmed his beard back to a goatee, which is a look I always love on him.  :)

For the kids, play went on as usual.  I was happy to see them out in the rain, hoping it would help Iz get over her sudden rain-fear!  I got a chuckle finding her (once again) in one of her favourite dress-up outfits.  Unlike older sister, who loves dressing up in pretty clothes, Iz goes for other less dainty looks!  

I also got a laugh when we were out for a little bike ride and Iz crept up behind Ai and bumped him on the tire.  Upset, he yelled "Stop it!"  When she did it again he yelled, "Mom!  Iz is coupling me!!"  It reminded me of how my little Thomas the Tank Engine fanatic has incorporated the train lingo into so much of his vocabulary.  In his mind, her bashing the bike into his was like two trains crashing together when they are 'coupled.'  Cute.  :)

Iz started to get over her chest infection by Thursday and as of today (Tuesday), she seems to have overcome her intense fear as she was able to go to sleep without crying and she managed to sleep all night yesterday.   It feels like a miracle, after so many evenings in a row with her sobbing on and off for hours, needing much comfort at the sound of trucks driving by or the planes overhead.  To her they were thunder rumbles.  Other city noises sounded like rain, which was an indication to her that hail was coming.  There were a few hours past midnight where she clawed my body in fear for an hour, shaking in utter panic and screaming as I held her tight.  It was very intense.  

We ended up purchasing a soother for her - drat.  We also did lots of self-talk: "There is nothing to be afraid of" or "Everything is okay."  And 21 years after 3 year old Caleb sang a song to me back when I taught Sunday School, it popped into my head around 1:00 a.m.  I love when brain connections like that happen.

"Who's in the middle of the dark?  God is.  

Who's in the middle of the dark?  God is.  

Who's in the middle of the dark?  God is. 

I'm not afraid 'cause God is in the dark."  

We changed the lyrics from 'dark' to 'rain,' 'clouds,' 'thunder,' etc.  And out of her room this morning, proud Iz declared that she hadn't been afraid.  "I sang the song to myself last night, Mommy."  Proud Mommy gave thanks.  The hours of her despair in the darkness and my despair at my utter lack of sleep  helped me focus on something true, too.  God is with me.  There is nothing to be afraid of. Everything is okay.