Head Lice and Thinking Positive

I got an email today from the school office saying that there was a confirmed case of head lice.  I wasn't concerned.  There have been cases before and my kids don't get head lice.  It turns out that they do.  I realized this as I was putting Ryley's hair up before we left for her orthodontist appointment.  After the appointment (she had braces put on her top teeth), I picked up Nix at the pharmacy and headed home to de-lice the house.  Half way home, she announced that one of her braces had fallen off.  Back to the ortho we went.  This time, I stayed in the car with the boys, as Quin just wanted to climb in Ryley's lap during the first trip.  The brace was glued back on and home we went.  Laundry has been going since then.  All bedding has been washed, carpet has been shampooed, stuffed animals have been bagged for four weeks (that was the hardest part for Ry), both Ryley and Zeke were treated for lice, and I am exhausted.  I now really get it that anyone can get head lice.  That it's nothing to be embarrassed about.  My kids bathe regularly, wash their hair regularly, and aren't "dirty" (unless you count the food on their face after meals), but they still have head lice.  Gross.

^^^^ I wrote that last night at 10:30 and planned to finish it up and post before going to bed.^^^^

But I was interrupted.  By the sound of the washing machine shaking violently.
The load of blankets and a pillow was obviously uneven, so I jumped up to even it out.
There was water everywhere.  Okay, not everywhere, but throughout the laundry room and out into the kitchen, that's everywhere enough for 10:30 at night on a day that has already been full of unexpected surprises like bugs crawling on my kid's scalp.

JD was ready for bed.  I was about ready for bed.  Instead, we spent two hours cleaning up that mess, which somehow lead to cleaning out and reorganizing cupboards and the refrigerator.  I finally collapsed onto an unmade bed around 12:30.

So, thinking positively... here goes:

My kids have head lice.
It's just lice, it's not cancer.
Finn doesn't have it.
JD and I don't have it.
It's vacation and I have time to deal with it.
The carpets are finally clean.

The laundry room flooded.
It was just one little room.
The washer isn't broken, just overfilled.
The laundry room is clean now.
JD was home to help.

I woke up to a mess on the counters, a product of our late-night clean sweep.  I dealt with it, moved shelving out to the garage, reorganized a couple more cupboards, threw stuff away, and feel quite productive.  All a result of head lice.  Thank you, lice, but please stay away from now on.