If you do decide to treat them yourself, do not even bother with Nix. Joke of a product. Ivermectin lotion will knock those m’f’ers right out. You can get a generic OTC tube at Walgreens, CVS etc…or name brand Sklice. Same stuff.

Use the whole tube. After you treat, COMB. The cheap nit comb works just fine, but you gotta use it! Don’t give these damn things a chance. Stick your kid in front of a movie, give them a lollipop or something, then section out the wet hair and comb right at the scalp alllll way down. Comb til you can’t comb no more. If you’re a lunatic like me, you can go a step further and strap on a headlamp, section the hair again, and pull the sticky little nits off each strand with your fingernails. Psychotic, but effective. And lastly, the follow-through after treatment HAS to be legit. The lice know if you’re slacking, I swear. You’ve got to keep re-combing and re-checking…show no mercy.

Side note: I also bought a LED light magnifying glass off Amazon, which can help in the search but is honestly more fun to use to check out what the hell you just pulled off your kid’s head.

The biggest shocker for me was just how SMALL these things are. Practically microscopic. You expect to take a look at a few spots on your kid’s head and see them…but unless they’re larger adult lice, good freaking luck. Thick hair? Dark hair? Curly hair? Godspeed. I think that’s one reason the lice live on at our school because the bugs and nits are absolutely the teeny tiniest things you’ve ever seen, and a naked eye “look-and-see” by a parent (especially when you don’t even know what you’re looking for) hasn’t been enough to catch an already active case.

Ugh. I hate them. So much.

I’ve managed to be elf-free by simply telling my 7 year old that Santa’s set it up so that parents can choose to sign up for an elf…orrrr not. And her mom chose not to sign up However last year she wrote to Santa that all she really wanted was an elf for Christmas, so I had an elf make an appearance Christmas morning alongside a note that she could only stay until her magic ran out…which…was promptly two days later she got her fill and I didn’t have to deal with more than I wanted to.

Some kind of prepped salad - tuna salad, chicken salad etc..., PBJ or a rice cake with peanut butter/banana slices, a frozen meal (you know like Lean Cuisine but...elevated and organic ha), sliced up avocado with lots of salt & pepper and Cholula, or I half-ass dupe a Chick-fil-a kale salad (kale, their apple cider vinaigrette which you can buy on-brand or off, and either bacon or pre-made grilled chicken kind of cubed up)

I'm always hungry. Clearly.

Following up on my own question...is that a thing? I bit the bullet, went and got measured, and here's the verdict: Natori, Natori, Natori.

Mother's Day is coming up...do y'all buy your own gifts for holidays? Or is it just me...

My daughter is only 7 so for this age it's been ok to keep it simple and say, "That might be OK for so-and-so to wear, but it's not what we've decided is appropriate for our family. You can wear that all you want to at home or to XYZ if you'd like." (maybe a weekend occasion or a friend's house...doesn't cancel it, just redirects where there's a bit more freedom). If it's a matter of school dress code, I don't hesitate to lean on that and say, "Hey, this is just what the school has for a rule and we're going to respect it, whether so-and-so does or doesn't."

Would be great to hear from a mom of an older girl to hear how those conversations go!

Kids are 7 and 3, and I'm a SAHM who is overstimulated, overtouched, and not exactly feeling like she's in her "Sexy Era." Once a week, max twice. Morning is an absolute NO GO. I'm not a morning person for literally ANY activity, but the likelihood of my kids waking up and/or busting in just absolutely kills my vibe. (Actually...it can't kill it cause it never even started). I've had to really battle to get my husband to understand that one!

@WalmartGreeter I have it in-hand, just haven't sat down and started reading. We're already committed to delaying access to smart devices/social media knowing what we know, but I appreciate reading the continued research being done. I'm interested in what it'll have to say.

@Whats4dinner appreciate your perspective as someone who's already had to navigate this! What did you feel like was the hardest app, both to manage as a parent and how it affected/impacted your kid(s)? And did you feel like when you walked through this you had a solid group of parents who were phasing these at the same time/discussing together?

@dyslexiadoc I'm going to check out your recs! @GetInTheCar we just completed testing for my daughter with her public school - also 1st grade and does ALL of what you describe. We suspected she was having trouble, but her struggles really started coming out of the woodwork early in the fall. We enrolled her in 2x a week tutoring as well, and it's been her only source of progress, albeit slow. The school has finally identified her as having "surface dyslexia" - a subtype, also called orthographic or dyseidetic dyslexia. I have a meeting with the school specialists and admin board in 2 weeks to learn what support she'll be given next year, since it won't kick in until 2nd, and I'm sure I'll learn more about my involvement then and can share! It's a whole new world for us of things I certainly don't understand, but I've adopted the attitude of the more information experts can give me on my child, the better I can support and help.

The small successes I've had at home have been based around consistency and choice of materials. Making reading a routine. Period. And sometimes bedtime is hard because they're tired and just want to comfort and snuggles...not the work! So find the time where she can be most engaged, with fewer battles for her to fight.

As for materials, one thing I've learned is that not every "early reader" or "first reader" book is created equal. Beginner Bob Books were a critical starting place and from there the I Can Read! My First - Shared Readers have been a good transition - they're the yellow label ones. But even then...not all. Read them first, find where you think she might get too hung up and or see if it's a feasible challenge. And even if they seem too easy, building the confidence and feeling the success that comes from completing a book or two books is so important. I've also found that for my daughter, subject matter is important...she doesn't want to read what I find cute or "classic" - she's more excited to read what she's interested in! Even though I hate the weird "Shimmer and Shine" characters (and it literally pains me to buy those), she's pumped that there's mermaids and sparkles and jewels and whatever.

At what age did you stop brushing your child's teeth and let them do it independently? We tried letting our daughter do it for a stretch of time because it was something she really battled us over... that backfired with multiple cavities. When does it become an age-appropriate task to pass on to them without the big dental bills?

Halo worked fine for us - and it's pretty easy to find a mom who wants to get rid of theirs cheap! They're used for such a short amount of time so condition is usually good!

Has anyone found success being screen-free in the evenings? Like...parents, kids, teens...everybody. We're all face-first in our phones once 5PM hits (guilty too) and missing out on the ONE time of day when we're all together. Tips to get everyone on board?

What is your FAVORITE bra that you've found now that you're left with your post-baby boobs? Like...actual bra...not a bralette or a sports bra...