We waved and said good-bye. He cried, which didn't make the saying any easier.

Now they're on their way, and I'm sitting in the kitchen while two of my children eat their breakfast of toast and cantaloupe; the youngest child is rolling around on the floor, trying to grab toys he hasn't yet figured out how to reach. I am sad to see Daniel go, as much because he is my friend as because he makes me better at what I am called to do.

But...

I am encouraged. My first day of "checking" the lice has proved an encouraging one. Thorough inspection located not a single louse--not even of the baby variety. Eggs, of course, are much harder to find, particularly because the shade of hair my children have is the same color as those pesky things, but I figure that if I keep checking at least twice a day (once in the morning and once after nap, corresponding with the stripping of bedsheets and spraying of mattresses), I'll be able to kill those lice as soon as they hatch if the eggs have avoided my discovery that far.

Actually, I'm realizing how fortunate I am to have an easily-bothered son. He complained of itching long before the lice broke out too badly, seeing as how I've still only seen five grown lice between both my children's heads. At times, Gabriel's overly-particular personality has its downfalls, but today I am praising God for his attention to details!

So we'll live the next week at least here in our home only. I'll wash bedsheets and mattress pads and express dry pillows twice a day. I'll spray furniture once a day. I'll vacuum in the morning and evening. I'll comb scalps thoroughly and glance over them even more often. I'll use a lot of electrity and by far more physical energy. And eventually, we'll be "lice free" and I will be glad for my stubborn attention and unwavering determination.

Right?

Of course right!