Heading Back To School: Tips On How To Prevent Head Lice

Many years ago, when our daughters were early elementary age, our family somehow got a nasty case of head lice. We’d been traveling and have no idea where the head lice came from. In the treatment of that episode of lice, and in one subsequent episode, we learned a lot about how to prevent and treat the itchy, annoying affliction. Here are some tips as children are heading Back To School.

Head lice is common between the ages of 3-11 years since these are day care to elementary aged kids, and most at risk. They are also the population who don’t understand the importance of prevention. Lice is a parasite that drinks human blood. They are most often found behind the ears and lower neck. Bites leave signature rashes there, and a case of head lice is very itchy, especially at night. Find out what head lice looks like and the stages of development over on WebMD.

Tips On How To Prevent Head Lice, hair care, hair health

Head lice is passed from head to head/hair to hair touching. On upholstered furniture in public places, such as movie theater seats, or lying on rugs in a classroom or library, it is possible to transfer head lice.

How to avoid getting head lice 

  • No sharing combs, hats, scarves, or hair accessories. 
  • No sharing pillows or bedding at sleep overs or at camp.
  • No sharing ear buds and helmets.
  • Wash and high heat dry new hats after purchase before wearing.

The next step in prevention is what to do once you suspect your children or you could have been exposed. Be sure to wash all possible exposed clothing, coats, hats, scarves, etc in hot water and high heat dry. Do the same with stuffed animals and bedding if possible. If it’s not possible, seal them in a plastic bag for three or more weeks. We did the same with combs, brushes, and hair accessories. Admittedly, I over reacted and boiled our combs each day. They sort of melted.

Another tip for prevention is to keep longer hair tied back in a pony tail or braid, or pinned up in a bun.

Washing your child’s hair with tea tree shampoo and conditioner, and the heat of blow drying also helps to kill any possible lice. Keeping your child’s environment clean helps control any spread of the lice should your child get it. Be sure to keep carpets and car seats well vacuumed each day. I found the biggest asset to the whole ordeal of our children having head lice was that we got our house clean and organized because I became obsessive about vacuuming and laundry.

Twice daily combing with a head lice nit comb scrapes any nits down the hair shaft and away from the scalp. We did use RID for our daughters’ first stint with head lice. The lice weren’t necessarily killed. We had to do a second treatment. Their hair got fried, and their scalps were dry.

A nurse friend with ties to a nurse at the local health department also advised us to use olive oil during nit combing. Once we were diligent with combing and using olive oil to comb, washing with tea tree oil shampoo and conditioner, and blow drying, the ordeal was fortunately contained. The olive oil may have done nothing more than restore our daughters hair to good health.

Unfortunately, the girls report that the smell of olive triggers bad memories for them, and the only good thing about having lice was that we let them watch movies while we nit combed endlessly.

Here are examples of the products we used.
DISCLOSURE: These are affiliate links which means I earn a small compensation to support this blog if you make a purchase through these links. There is no added cost to you. We are independently owned and the opinions expressed in this post are my own.

I hope this helps you prevent lice in your own home, and manage it if your child ends up with a case of it.

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Wild Alaskan Company Fish

After my brain surgery recovery after a very large acoustic neuroma was found on my right vestibular nerve, the main nerve that controls hearing, gait, and balance, I was researching how to heal my brain, my nerves, how to grow back healthy hair, and how to stay healthy while I recovered from my newly founded gait and balance issues, one sided deafness, and facial paralysis now turned facial synkinesis. Obviously there is no way to rush healing. I knew I could only provide as optimal an environment and healthy habits for healing as possible.

I didn’t know at the time that my craving healthy foods like salmon, avocado, almonds, spinach, berries, etc, were all foods that I needed for brain healing, hair growing, and healthy nerve regeneration. I’ve never ever in my life craved salmon.

Yet, while my dear friend was with us for nearly three weeks helping with my home and rehabilitation, we ate salmon more than once. Not long after she left, and my wanting to avoid being in the stores because of germs and my inability to drive, I researched how to have salmon shipped to my home so that I could continue to have it, and have the healthiest of options.

That is how I found the Wild Alaskan Company and started an every other month subscription to have wild Alaskan salmon shipped to my home, along with the option to have other fish sent too. DISCLOSURE: Clicking through Wild Alaskan Company is an affiliate link, meaning I get a $25 reduction off the cost of my next shipment if my readers opt to have a fish shipment sent to their own home also. There is no extra cost to you, and in fact, clicking through my link will give you $25 off your first order too.

Wild Alaskan Company will send a box once a month unless you change, pause or cancel your membership anytime before it renews each month. They have been very easy to order from. They ship your fish in box packed with dry ice. They are really good about messaging, and alerting us as to when our box will arrive.

When we open our box, we put on winter gloves, and carefully remove all the fish packages before taking our “Fish Stash” to our deep freezer.


A great gift idea with the holidays approaching is to Gift a Box of Fish! You get to choose a box of 12 or 24 pieces, whether you want only salmon, a mix of salmon and white fish, or only white fish when you want the box shipped, and include a message. Wild Alaskan Company ships to all 50 States in the United States. When you go to their website, click Give a Gift at the top of their website page, and then Happy Ordering! It’s easy peasy lemon squeezy!! 


Salmon is high is essential fatty acids and omega fish oils. These are recommended for reducing cholesterol and inflammation. Salmon is also high in protein. Fatty acids and protein are essential for healing brains and nerves. It also contains many B vitamins for nerve healing, and potassium and antioxidants as well.

Some say that wild and sustainable caught salmon, cod, halibut, and other wild caught fish are higher in these nutrients also, and better for you than farmed fishes. I have to say that Wild Alaskan Company salmon, cod, halibut, Rockfish, and scallops that we’ve received from them is the best fish I’ve ever had! This is coming from a person who really does not usually love fish!

While my life long friend was here with us during my rehabilitation, she taught my daughters how to poach salmon. So far, that is our favorite way to have Wild Alaskan Company salmon. In our air fryer, we’ve also made “fried” cod. Another favorite is to make fish and potato chowder. We’ve experimented with a teriyaki baked fish too.

Poached Alaskan Wild Caught Salmon! YUM!


All in all, Wild Alaskan Company, and the fish that they have sent in our subscription, has been a fun and worthwhile investment into our health.

In the meantime, I ended up writing another e-book, Nutrients for Growing Healthy Hair. It’s free and allows you to opt in to my LoveLeavingLegacy with Lilla Rose hair accessories newsletter. I know I’ve shared it before, but I’d love for you to have it!

9 Nutrients for Growing Healthy Hair free ebook, LoveLeavingLegacy, hair growth, health tips, nutrition

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I have other gift ideas for healthy hair, too, which you can see here.  

“Legendary” Green Bean Casserole?

In my last post, found here, I concluded by saying I was making my church family green bean casserole for the church Thanksgiving dinner. Have mercy. I hate that stuff, but I signed up for it because other people like it, and frankly, it’s easy. I was going for easy, so don’t peg me for being selfless. In my post I said:

I’m off to make a not so legendary Green Bean Casserole for the church family for tonight, too. I got it off the interwebs and the Google. <insert a 20 something’s eye roll here> There may be a piece out of that as well, because a girl’s gotta eat you know.

But no worries, I am not a canned cream of mushroom soup kind of girl, either, and I know some don’t like mushrooms. So at least it’s void of ‘shrooms and made from scratch. Well, except the canned green beans I used this time. I usually don’t use those. I was looking for easy–again. It does have flour in it if my gluten free family need to know. Signing off as the Whole Foods kind of girl.” 

I baked my two 9×13 pans and took my daughter over to church, smelling that stuff the whole way. Man, by the time I got home, I was starving. I had, in fact, saved myself some of my Mom’s Fresh Apple Cake, and a generous serving of green bean casserole. Maybe it was because I was starving, but gosh it was GOOD!

Here is the original recipe, because I believe in giving credit where credit is due.


Here was my version of the recipe with what I had on hand. I doubled this since I was taking two pans.

  • 1/2 large chopped sweet onion
  • Minced garlic to personal taste.
  • 4 tablespoons butterSauté all together, and once onions are softened add:
  • 4 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flourMix into butter/onion mixture until a paste is formed, and a little brown and nutty smelling.
  • 1 cup chicken broth (I used Kirkland/Costco brand, but I’d prefer homemade next time)
  • salt and pepper to tasteStir until thickened and bubbly.
    Add:
  • 1 cup of 2% milk
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • Bacon Crumbles, about 1 large handful. I used Kirkland/Costco brand.
    Pour over ~2 pounds of green beans  in a 9×13 pan. Mine were canned, but next time I would use thawed frozen ones. 

    Top with crispy onions. I used Fresh Gourmet from Costco.
    Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

 I didn’t get any fancy pictures, and who knows what the leftovers will look like. Alas, I feel a little like a genius tonight because I was going for easy. Not only was it easy, but it was delicious too! 

Enjoy!

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