I can’t sleep. That in itself is nothing to write about, but the reason I can’t sleep is. I went to change Oscar’s bedding this morning and found bedbugs. Just typing that makes me cringe. Oscar has no clue what’s going on and wants to know if we can trap them and let them out the door like we do with spiders sometimes. No, son. This isn’t a time for wildlife conservation.
John is tapping it out on his legs because this is a trauma trigger for him with his childhood and I’m strangely calm about it this morning and on the way to a soccer game. We notified anyone we traveled with and anyone who might have had contact with Oscar at school. Thankfully, overnights haven’t started for him because of COVID, so no one’s been in his bed or stayed in our house in a while. After showers, throwing anything we’re going to wear into the dryer on high heat for 30 minutes and going to a soccer game, I feel like we’re going to be okay.
All of the bedding in both bedrooms is on the porch currently and just going to stay there, we have sheets and comforters in trash bags, hit the hardware store on the way home and got a ton of traps, foggers, etc. We think we’re okay and have put in a call to our normal exterminators to get with us on Monday to figure out a plan.
No, son. This isn’t a time for wildlife conservation.”
We find out on our way home from the store that a friend’s house has burned down and were asked if Oscar has any clothes that he can send to their young boy. Well, that puts everything in perspective and we all realize that we could be losing everything in our home, so bedbugs is not as bad as it originally sounded.
As the day goes on, I lose it repeatedly at my husband and my son though. I mean the kind of yelling where your voice changes and it kinds of sounds like there is a demon coming out of your mouth. We’re all horrible at organization, overcollecting (I don’t think we’ve reached actual hoarding levels) and putting things back where they belong. This is a constant challenge in our household and while I have made numerous complaints, requests, and beseeches to clean, organize, get rid of things that we don’t use anymore, I’ve been ignored and never followed through.
The chickens have come home to roost now as they say. And I realize that while Oscar’s room has now given bedbugs so many places to hide and live that we’re practically going to have to destroy it to make sure they’re gone, all the crap we have everywhere is also a fire hazard. Organizing and decluttering have now taken on the same importance as taking care of our health. Or making sure the carbon monoxide alarm and fire alarms are in good working order.
I’ve vacillated between wanting to get rid of everything in the house and thinking that there is really nothing that can’t be saved with the right treatment. I don’t know which way is up right now and am going to have to wait until a professional comes in and tells me what I should really do. All of this is keeping me up….all of this and the inevitable thought that wherever I lay my head now is dangerous.