The $125 Bead and a Pinto Bean?

I was laying down with Ayla to read her some books before she took her nap and she says to me…”Canyu get es bea outta my euh?”  Say that again. I couldn’t understand you.  “Can you get this bead out of my ear?”  What?  Let me see.  Can’t see much, but then I feel inside her ear and sure enough there is a bead stuck inside.  Hmmm…How do you handle this situation?  So, I call my dad and see if he has any advice after seeing all kinds of stuff having been a firefighter all his life.  Tweezers don’t work.  Dad suggests a vacuum to suck it out.  While Ayla naps, I try the vacuum out on my ear to see how loud it would be to her.  Way too loud. So, we call the doctor and head into see him.  $20 co-pay.  He can’t get it out.  The next morning we go to the Ear, Nose and Throat specialist and instantly he pulls it out with ease.  $35 co-pay plus $70 bill.  Ayla stayed so nice and still for both doctors.  The nice nurse says, “Are you going to put anything else in your ear again?”  Ayla says, “yeah.”  Hmmm….maybe it should have been a little more traumatic for her.  And it was a cheap, little black bead, well…I guess it cost us more like $125.

 

So a week or so later, I am combing through Ayla’s hair after a bath.  I come to one section and am surprised to see what looks like a pinto bean in her hair.  How did I miss this big  chunk of food when I was washing her hair.  And then I panic,  that is no bean, that is a tick embedded in my daughter’s head.  I get a cold sweat as I realize that Toby is at work and I will have to deal with this.  Well, I am tough, but I could not handle this one.  I call Toby and he is swamped at work and can’t get away.  He suggests calling my friend, Dawna, who lives on property and has to deal with ticks on a regular basis.  Dawna asks how big it is an proceeds to tell me how to get them out by using tweezers right on the head and make sure you don’t just pull the body out….I can’t do this.  So, I head over to Dawna’s for some assistance.  Then she sorda freaks at the size of this tick.  Ahhh.  I thought it was big.  Thankfully, Hannah, her 14 yr old daughter is home.  She didn’t hesitate at all to get this tick for me.  Thank you, Hannah!!!  When she pulls this nasty guy out along comes part of Ayla’s scalp.  Ayla didn’t wince a bit.  Somehow it didn’t hurt her.  I am so thankful for Ayla’s calmness through all these ordeals.  If this is what it is like with girls.  I can’t imagine boys!