Nasty Nits

We had an encounter recently with nits...are you scratching yet just thinking about them? I am.
I check my girls hair regularly when I know they are going around, which seems to be mostly when the seasons turn into Autumn and into Spring.
We haven't had them in over four years...so it was probably our turn again, and the fact that my guard was down led to the following mistakes.

This time I had mistakenly sent Cherub to preschool with freshly washed hair that she had refused to let me tie up. The evening before I had washed and conditioned her hair and whilst I was blow drying it I checked for nits. Nothing.
The next day when I picked her up from preschool I could see the eggs all around her hairline. They had obviously jumped on board early and started reproducing with a vengeance. I sat there squishing as many lice and nits as I could easily find...they were HUGE and gross. The only way to easily ensure you kill them is to 'pop' them between two thumbnails.

The nits are the eggs and the lice are the live insects.

Remember that lice don't jump they are just very agile swingers from one hair strand to another, so ensure your own hair is tied up and out of the way before commencing any treatment.
Immediate action was taken to prevent the spread throughout the family and within a couple of days she was confirmed nit and lice free. Remember that they love clean hair and dislike dirty greasy hair.

 Here is the best natural treatment for nits that I know of - not for the slight of stomach when it comes to squishing insects.

1. Wash hair thoroughly with lots of lathered Neem soap, I use Trade Aid Neem Soap. The neem oils seem to help unstick the stickiness of the eggs.

2. Optional: whilst hair is still wet apply generous amounts of conditioner and leave in. This makes the lice very slow moving. So when you are combing you have a chance to get them and squish them.

3. Take a time consuming fine toothed comb and gently comb out tiny sections of hair at a time. I find it easiest to go nape of the neck up towards one ear at a time, then up though the crown and forward above each ear, then around the face. This part is time consuming and natural daylight is best if the hair you are combing is dark brown at the root. There is truth to the term 'nit picking' you have to be so thorough to do every tiny section of hair.

The nits are laid very close to the scalp, any that are found more than a centimeter from the scalp are 'old egg sacks'. When you get an egg on the comb you need to pop it between your thumb nails. Leaving them to fall on the floor, chair or couch where you are sitting will just promote the spread of them throughout the household. They are laid close to the scalp for incubation purposes, once off the head and not incubated they are unlikely to survive but it is better to be safe than sorry.

4. If you haven't used the optional conditioner: As you are combing sections add small amounts of oil to the roots of the hair in the sections that you have cleared. The reasons for this are to deter any missed lice from laying any more eggs (remember that they prefer clean hair because it gives them easy access to the scalp), and if any missed nit hatch they won't survive in the grease.

I use any body oil, but I usually have almond oil on hand with added aromatherapy (which is even better at deterring and kills insects).

5. If you have used the optional conditioner: Once you have combed out every single nit and louse that you can find and killed it, feel free to rinse out the conditioner. Once the hair is rinsed generously add the oil to the hair roots.

6. Leave the oil in for as long as possible, preferably 24hours or more. Then wash it out with the neem soap again.

7. I recommend thoroughly fine combing the hair every 3 days until you are certain that there are no nits or lice left. Any that have been missed will have hatched and be big enough to see. You have to keep interrupting the cycle. Using this method I have never had to do more than a quick check on day three, but it all depends on how thorough you are with the fine combing.

Good luck and may the force for killing be with you.

Immune Boosting Aromatherapy Blend

Today the weather finally turned....the frost was thick on the wooden fence rails and the house was freezing. It was one of those days where I just couldn't seem to get warm. First real cold snap usually brings the sniffles.....so I'm arming myself ahead of time.

I had run out of my usual immunity boosting blend, but timely coincidence the Courier also arrived today with my aromatherapy supplies order. I quickly mixed up my favourite blend and infused my home with it.

Mix together in equal parts eucalyptus, rosemary and lavendar essential oils. Simple. These oils in combination are highly effective at fighting germs.

Therapeutic Properties

Eucalyptus: analgesic, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-neuralgic, anti-rheumatic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, decongestant, deodorant, expectorant.

Rosemary: analgesic, antidepressant, astringent, carminative, digestive, diuretic, emmenagogue, hepatic, hypertensive, nervine, rubefacient, stimulant, sudorific and tonic.

Lavender: The therapeutic properties of lavender oil are antiseptic, analgesic, anti-convulsant, anti-depressant, anti-rheumatic, anti-spasmodic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, bactericide, carminative, cholagogue, cicatrisant, cordial, cytophylactic, decongestant, deodorant, diuretic, emmenagogue, hypotensive, nervine, rubefacient, sedative, sudorific and vulnerary.

You can make it into an air freshener which is useful to be spritzed around the house, especially if you have someone with the sneezes that may be letting fly some infected particles into the air. Or put a few drops into an oil burner with water and let it slowly infuse the air within your home.

This is a blend that I use in so many ways: as a perfume, eradicating nits, immune boosting and also cleaning my home. I will be blogging about all these ways - so check back in when you can.

Giving out to my addictions

I'm addicted to sweet stuff there is no two ways of 'sugar coating' this fact (pun intended). I can't resist something sweet in the evenings and any time I need a snack I'd easily pick sweet over savoury.
I'm not overweight but sugar can affect health status in so many ways, mostly related to metabolic hormones and reproductive hormones.
Recently I read Joshua Beckers book "Inside-Out Simplicity" (he blogs at Becoming Minimalist). Within this insightful book he talks about overcoming addictions and defines them as "anything that would be difficult to give up for the next 30 days". So I have decided to "give up added sugar" for the next 30 days.

My definition of giving up added sugar is this:
* adding sugar, honey, syrup etc to anything that I eat
* sweet treats, sugary snack foods, sweet baking
* non real fruit juice, lemonade or milo/drinking chocolate

The 'Hannah' Rules:
I'm not going to stress about a bit of sugar in a stir fry sauce if I am making a lazy tea.
I don't drink coffee but if I do go out to a cafe with a friend I would normally order a soy hot chocolate....that's gone :( even though I hate paying ridiculous amounts of money for a herb tea bag and hot water!
I will still make my own sweetened yoghurt though, and dried fruit in other things is fine (i.e. low GI fruit bread), but not handfuls of dried fruits

Day two - and it's going easier than I thought, apart from porridge with nothing sweet in it.
Canned fruit will be added next time - canned in juice not syrup, although technically there is sugar in it.
I'm exhausted today, not sure if it was from interrupted sleep or sugar detox. Will sleep soundly tonight and hope that tomorrow brings more energy.

I'll keep you posted on my progress, hopefully it will all be positive progress: in the meantime (in the words of Joshua Becker) "See if you can fill in this blank, I could never give up ______________ for the next 30 days!"

The Way Things Were.....

Day Two - Cherub meeting her 3 year old sister for the first time.

Nearly 4 and a half years ago our little Cherub arrived early. Not spontaneously though, I was induced at 30 weeks gestation due to severe Preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome.
I was pretty sick and if she hadn't come out early she would have died and possibly I would have too.
Having a premature baby is a journey that one can never truly understand unless one has traveled that road, and everyone's journey is so different.
When we were going through the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) experience we had so many friends and family throughout the world sending their love, positive vibes and prayers from the believers. I have always firmly believed that all that positive energy targeted at Cherubs spirit was what energised her enough to do as well as she did, despite her gestational age, birth weight and enduring constant exhausting medical procedures. Even putting an IV line into tiny premature veins is exhausting for these babies as the physical rubber gloved contact and pain is so stimulating to their fragile nervous systems.
At that time DH put together this blog to keep everyone updated on Cherubs progress. I just wanted to link it into this blog now as a way of unifying the past and present.

Cherub age 4yrs as flower girl at our wedding

Challenge Wanaka Half Plunket Team Jan 2011

Swim distance 1.9km, deep water start in Roy's Bay,    Lake Wanaka

Media shot for the local paper - with a nice calm lake!

Well I only got over my irrational fear of swimming in the lake with my head in the water and eyes open, the sunday before race day. Prior to that I was freaked out about what I might possibly see down there. Intellectually I knew nothing could hurt me, emotionally it was a different story!

Anyway, I woke at 2.20am on race day and heard the wind. The day before had shown ideal conditions. I cringed, knowing that the bad weather option was running 5km along Waterfall creek wasn't a good option for this non runner with an ongoing ankle injury.

I dozed on and off until 5.30am when I felt REALLY nervous! Tried to have a good breakfast at 6am, managed to get half of it down by 6.30am.

Rounded up the family and my gear and got down to the transition area and got changed. Headed to the water with one of those crazed nervous smiles on my face. Had a great time with our runner Vicky helping me to get my caps gear on and chatting to all those lovely people who came down to watch.

The water was grey and choppy with rolling waves.

Said my farewells to my loyal supporters and went out to the deep water start. Chatted to a lady beside me - she'd thought ahead and put on her sea sickness bands. There I was treading water nervously thinking....how big do the waves get before they can the wet course!!!!

HONK. And away we went. I got about 100m before the sea sickness started to creep in. I tried swimming waterpolo style. When I have my head down there's nothing solid to focus on, fixation on a solid object helps to balance the disordered vestibular system. Waterpolo style didn't work with the size of the waves.

I flicked between back stroke and side stroke....all the while my mind was FREAKING OUT! I'd get bounced up to the top of a wave, then buffeted down the backside of the wave, putting me into a nose dive through the next wave. The waves were so close together.

I tried to calm my mind...which worked until a man not far from me got into distress. He couldn't put his hand up to signal the kayaker who was looking the other way and kept bobbing out of view over the waves. I put my hand up and hollered for her, yelling "get him, Hey he needs help". That's when I realised how few support kayakers were around.

I think that threw my mental game and I started thinking about getting a boat ride back in. If I had been an individual I would have - but I so didn't want to pull the pin on my team.

I chugged on, back stroke (with my head raised to the waves slammed into the back of my head and not over my face which was gasping for breaths). Flipping over to side stroke periodically to sight my line to the corner marker.

I started to feel dizzy with the sea sickness. I raised my hand for the kayaker, she came over and I held onto her bow for a moment or two. Caught my breath then realised I had only 3 marker buoys to the corner. I tried to slug on into the waves free style, but it just made my sea sickness worse.....breakfast was fighting to come up, I was fighting it down - there was enough fish food in the lake already.....and some of it was up my nose and in my lungs.

It's hard to gasp for a breath between waves whilst coughing up water.

Panic was setting in. Every now and then there was two or three bigger waves that just crashed right over me. I signaled to the support boat again. I held on for a while until I was sure my breakfast would stay down, the smell of the exhaust from the IRB motor was sickening too.

Then I broke free and pushed onto the first corner. 500m down....1400 to go. Can I really do this, shit, how long have I been out here, can I make the time cut off? Shit, Debbie will have to make up all my extra time to meet her cut off. The swell is getting bigger! If I could have just swum it faster, then I would be on my way in by now and be missing these bigger waves.

The support kayaker was just there, she calls to me to swim buoy to buoy, I am allowed to hold onto them. I rest on a buoy - then slug onto the next one. Back stroking means I can see the big waves coming and time my breaths to them, whilst I roll sideways up and over them.

I pass a man in a red cap....he's an individual full, he's been out here a while. I call my support to him, he manages a half-smile and I see him slide down the back of a wave, then he bobs back into view and continues on in his breast stroke. I look up at the mountains to fix my sight the roll over onto my front for a few moments of free style.

I skip a few buoys and managing to keep a straight line make the far corner buoy, the last few metres in doggie paddle. 1000m done! 900m to go. Over half way.

I rest on the corner and chat to a lady in a spectator boat. She feels empathetic to my sea sickness, she says she was wondering how that was going to be for people.

This next leg is the shortest leg, but I must be now reaching my goal time of  45 minutes! ARSE AND DAM IT! People will be out of the water now...I so wish I was one of them.

I backstroke whilst I watch the waves catch me, they are still huge but not getting any bigger now. I need to rest on the kayakers bow again - she's worried my weight holding on will tip her out too,as my weight on the bow is pulling her broadside to the waves, so I let go and hold onto a buoy. Not far to the corner buoy. I freestyle it again, I see patches of shadows...it must be shallower here. Then I see a random white bucket tied to rope, it takes me a while to figure out it's the anchor for the corner buoy. The way the Red Bull blow up buoy is pushing over the orange buoy means I can't hold onto that one, I breaststroke and doggie paddle to the next buoy. I need the kayaker again I'm so fatigued. It's the homeward stretch but I'm all out of energy. I fight back the tears - I hope my team aren't disappointed in me.

The kayaker asks me if I want a ride in....I seriously consider it. I ask about the time - she doesn't have a watch and tells me not to think about that 'You have heaps of time' (yeah right I think) and tells me not to worry about my team mates. She wants me to swim buoy to buoy, breaststroke might be easier but it makes the waves break into my face. I roll between backstroke, sighting in side stroke and doggie paddling the last few metres to each buoy. I'm so dam close to finishing but I want so badly to quit. I don't want to slug on if I've passed the time cut off, but I want to finish if I can do it within time. Suddenly around the buoy come a crowd of orange swim caps. Here come the top swimmers of the Full distance teams. I slug on in back stroke, a few orange swimmers pass me - rolling up and down the waves. Whilst back stroking I fling my arm into one of them....opps. I can see the tall BlueSeventy buoy, but the kayaker directs me to the white Red Bull buoy telling me I have t go around it....I'm sure I don't, because the orange caps have to swim around it the opposite way to me - but I kind of have to slug on towards it because the kayaker is herding me there. She paddles off to help some other people and set them onto course. I can now start to see people on the shore....they're all blurry. I rest on a buoy and pull my goggles up for a better view. The kayaker comes back and asks if I'm getting too cold....I feel fine - temperature wise. I think that hot feeling you get before you throw up is keeping my body temperature up. I am probably bright red in the face but I still feel green.

A few sets of really big rollers come in. It must be gusts of stronger winds blowing them up, because I thought the 'every seventh set is a big one' theory only applied to the ocean.

They wash over me causing me to cough, I wretch on my breakfast but keep it down. I marvel at these top team swimmers - how do they just get their bodies to roll with the waves. Lying flat in freestyle lets the body roll over these sideways waves, I wish I had something on the bottom to fix my eyes on to stabilise my vestibular system.

Not far now....two buoys to the white red bull buoy, then a straight line into the large BlueSeventy one, 100m from shore.

I rest on one more buoy before I make it to beside the Red Bull one, the orange caps are going around it on their left, I can't go around it with them there confirming my suspicions that the kayaker directed me wrong. I tread water for a moment then push onto the orange BlueSeventy buoy, I pop my head up to sight the tall trees in line with the buoy, I correct my line slightly and swim around it. I hear the crowds on the shore. I see the shapes of two people in red near the exit carpet.

I push on in freestyle the waves are heaps smaller here, I can see things on the bottom - yeah things to fix on. I kick hard with my legs, ready for the run. My hand grazes the stones on the bottom. For a moment I feel like scooping up a handful and throwing them back out at the lake in disgust.

I've made it to dry land....FINALLY! I hadn't trained in backstroke. 1.9km of mixed inefficient strokes without any training in choppy water!

Exiting the water and running to the transition - legs like jelly

I hope I'm in time for Debbie to head out on the bike leg. I don't want a DNF on my conscience.

I stumble out of the water and start running up the path. People are cheering and clapping...I feel embarrassed. It's a sea of faces and shapes. I try to focus on them to see if I can see Angel, Darling Hubby (to be), Cherub and anyone else that I recognise.

I see my Mum's blue top out of the corner of my eye, then I hear someone yell my name, I turn to see Susan cheering me on, I try to smile....it probably looks like a grimace.

I run past the red bags, someone calls 'do you have a pick up' I pant out 'No'. I see two red bags there....does that mean I'm not the last out!!!! I so hope so.

I pull myself up the ramp. I think I ask the marshal on the top if I've made the time limit. No one seems to know.

I have to walk down the far side of the ramp for fear of slipping and bouncing down on my arse...I don't need anymore embarrassment today! I see Philippa ushering me into the womans change tent. I stagger in and look for the exit, there it is. Nearly there. That thought makes me smile to myself....it's nearly over for me!

I emerge from the tent and see Vickys team top. Debbie is there ready to bike. I try to wave, they haven't seen me yet.

I stumble up and lean on the bike racks, whilst pulling up my wetsuit leg for the transponder. Vicky or Debbie take it off and I watch as Debbie puts it on. They tell me the time....I've made the cut off with time to spare. That makes me smile a half-smile - I'm still disappointed with myself.

I apologise profusely for my tardiness and wish Debbie luck on her ride. Vicky, Glen and I watch her run off out of the transition. I tell Vicky that wind is going to suck for her, Vicky agrees then gives me a well done you've done it hug.

I walk over to the chain fencing to see my proud family. Proud, why are they proud of me, I sucked big time. That was my worst swim ever.

Darling Hubby (to be) passes me my change bag and Vicky and I head into the recovery tent. I'm sneezing out lake water.

Vicky helps me change (Thanks Vicky), I don't think I could have on my own.

I think the momentum of running up from the lake has helped my motion sickness. But when I sit down the ground is moving. I get food and water into me then walk out of the tent. I'm done! That picks up my spirits - the nerves, fears and anxiety have now gone from my summer holiday. I sucked but I did it, no A+......a C- maybe.

Thanks to all of the people who supported me, cheered me on and believed in me. A special thanks to the lovely support kayaker who stuck by me. Thanks to Jules for being such an amazing Team Manager and organiser, Plunket and any committee in the future will be so dam lucky to have her - and Thanks for having tissues in your car for my trickling sinuses.....still no fish have emerged ;)

Maybe I'll volunteer for Challenge Wanaka next year, to give back...rather than drain resources!

Well done to my awesome team mates. Debbie for smiling your great wide smiles on the bike, even into the gruelling wind (and making the time cut off, I think, despite your delayed start!) and Vicky for being able to run so strong - and for pulling out the strength to carry Jack down the finishers chute.

We did it, even in challenging windy weather. Finished - time to celebrate.

I'm wearing my Finishers T as I type this. People keep asking me - so would you do it again....I haven't said "No" to any of them....but right now I'm a long way from saying "Yes". I have some demons out there on the choppy water to conquer.

Today the front of my neck is killing me from trying to keep my head up in back stroke to make the waves break into the back of my head rather than over my face.....aside from a few sore muscles and squeaky clean sinuses I have lived to tell the tale!

Over and Out.

Television Timesucker

Darling Hubby (to be) and I were watching tv last night - our Saturday night wind down ritual after the kids are put to bed (time-wasting I know!) and an advert came on about New Zealand tv going digital. We are a rare household, we don't have sky tv (New Zealand's version of cable) and we haven't gotten around to getting freeview (free to air digital tv that requires purchasing decoder box) because we haven't bought a freeview box.
 

Our tv is freeview capable, so it is just a matter of getting a freeview decoder box.
Anyway, we saw this ad and Darling Hubby (to be) said, "We will need to get a freeview box."
I thought about it and said, "or we could just not get one and not have tv."
We have at times in our past not had tv before and we've loved it. Times when the tv aerial plugs have been in an awkward place in the walls of houses we have lived in so we haven't put the tv there or times when we've lived in houses with spare rooms and we've set the tv up in the spare room with surround sound for movies, creating our own home theatre.
 

Now that our children are a bit older I wonder if we'd 'cope' without tv. Deep down I know we would, but would we be able to stand the protests and the early morning entrances into our bedroom. Because I have to admit - right now we get a bit lazy in the weekends and let the girls get up early, turn the tv on and watch it, wrapped up in blankets on the couch whilst we sleep in. LAZY!
I checked out the local website and our area of New Zealand isn't going digital until 28th April 2013 at 2am - so we have plenty of time to brace ourselves for the change....either to digital or to no tv.
In the meantime we will brace ourselves to try our bestest not to get sucked into the advertising, marketing and hype. Not to mention the store specials selling freeview decoder boxes. The Story of Stuff Project sums this phenomena of obsolete-ness up nicely. When manufacturing companies build obsolete parts into their products, which encourages us to buy into the next and latest model or fad that they bring out.
Do I have the will power? What do you think?

Sugar Body Polish Recipe

"Sugar Body Polish - ready to use"

Simple Sugar Body Polish

Take a glass jar (preferably brown or blue glass) and fill with sugar two centimeters from the top.

Pour in a cold pressed body oil (almond, jojoba) scented with your favourite essential oils, until sugar is completely coated and the mixture appears creamy.

Add three teaspoons of runny honey. Use a fork to blend it in until it becomes slightly thick.

For a thinner consistency add less honey and more oil

For a thicker consistency add more sugar and less honey.

Label with instructions to massage onto wet skin (in the shower with the water off is ideal), use firm circular strokes, especially on tough dry skin. Avoid sensitive or broken skin. Once skin feels vibrant and fresh - wash off in warm water, you won't need soap. Apply body oil straight after the shower, into wet skin, to trap in moisture.

Caution to users it will make the floor of the shower very slipper - so be very careful.