Thursday, June 3, 2010

Fruit Fly Infestation

My kitchen is infested with fruit flies, and I'm about to freak out that I can't get rid of these things. Have you ever sprayed Raid at fruit flies? Well, it doesn't do a dang thing to them. They fly away for a second only to come back and hover. They creep me out when the swarm hovers like that, and I'm sure if they were bigger, I'd be ready to call in the National Guard.

I'm also amazed that they won't just die. I thought if the sugar source disappeared, so would they. Not so. Somehow this growing swarm of fruit flies is a nagging reminder of all that I feel powerless to control in my daily life. it's like the never-ending chain of full laundry baskets that always fill up again immediately, no matter how much laundry I do. Or the sippy cup spills that I clean up and then seem to reappear all over the house. They just never fully go away. I think that's why it's been so important for me to have other mommy friends who remind me that I'm not alone in my vain attempts to control the uncontrollable. They help me remember that I'm also doing something more important than keeping up with chores.

President Thomas S. Monson put it perfectly:

"If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will—to your surprise—miss them profoundly."

Finding Joy in the Journey, October 2008 General Conference
http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-947-26,00.html


I'm sure I will miss these days of being surrounded by my sweet little children.

However, when the fruit flies are gone, I will do a happy dance!

5 comments:

*Katie May* said...

We were infested a month ago and they just wouldn't got away. I did find end up finding a banana hiding and once I got rid of that it helped a little then I got those hanging sticky fly traps and they worked fairly well. Also you can pour bleach down your disposal if they happen to be coming from there. Good luck hate those little boogers!

Paul and Celeste said...

I'm sorry, Kim! I hate those things, too. My father in law uses a bright yellow stick smeared in Vaseline. The flies just stick right to it. Or I have also heard that a bowl of sugar water will attract them and they drown themselves. I'm not sure if either of those will work - it's just what I've heard.

I love the quote you shared. Thanks for the reminder to find joy in Motherhood!

Financial Aid for College said...

The fly strips are good. They look tacky hanging above your counters for a week, but if the fruit and peels are gone, they will eventually die off. The reason they never seem to die is that they reproduce within a few short days, so there are new generations always hatching while you wait for the older generations to die off.

If you can stand it, choose a day you will be out of town, and release a bug-bomb in your living room or kitchen - being careful to turn all your dishes upside down, cover them and food packages with dishtowels, and open all cupboards. It will rid you instantly of all fruit flies, as well as all the hidden spiders, potato bugs, scorpions, grain and wool moths, mosquitoes, and other insectivora (and mice) that have been hiding inside and beneath the furniture, in the cabinets and closets, and other crannies. You'll have to vacuum up all their multitudinous little bodies afterward.

Fun!

Omgirl said...

Are you sure they are fruit flies? Last year I had an infestation that I thought was fruit flies. I tried all the tricks people told me to use to catch/kill them and got rid of all fruit for weeks. But they didn't go away. Finally I googled the problem and discovered they were a kind of gnat and had come from a house plant I had recently bought. They were breeding in the over-moist soil. so I swapped out the soil on my houseplants and got some spray that killed them. It worked!

Jen Johnson said...

We've had issues with fruit flys too in the past! Bella bring flies outside and I don't like the big flies either. You are a great mom and I feel the 'never ending' daily cleanups too. I love that quote! Very inspiring...
JeN