diff --git a/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/restoreProperty.js b/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/restoreProperty.js
index 37713d56..05e0a316 100644
--- a/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/restoreProperty.js
+++ b/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/restoreProperty.js
@@ -23,13 +23,7 @@ const restoreProperty = new ValidatedMethod({
     assertEditPermission(rootCreature, this.userId);
 
     // Do work
-    restore({
-      _id,
-      collection: CreatureProperties,
-      extraUpdates: {
-        $set: { dirty: true }
-      },
-    });
+    restore(CreatureProperties, property, { $set: { dirty: true } });
   }
 });
 
diff --git a/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/softRemoveProperty.js b/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/softRemoveProperty.js
index 7c0753bc..3d62655a 100644
--- a/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/softRemoveProperty.js
+++ b/app/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/methods/softRemoveProperty.js
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ const softRemoveProperty = new ValidatedMethod({
     assertEditPermission(rootCreature, this.userId);
 
     // Do work
-    softRemove({ _id, collection: CreatureProperties });
+    softRemove(CreatureProperties, property);
   }
 });
 
diff --git a/app/imports/api/library/LibraryNodes.js b/app/imports/api/library/LibraryNodes.js
index 56373c55..b31333ca 100644
--- a/app/imports/api/library/LibraryNodes.js
+++ b/app/imports/api/library/LibraryNodes.js
@@ -284,7 +284,7 @@ const softRemoveLibraryNode = new ValidatedMethod({
   run({ _id }) {
     let node = LibraryNodes.findOne(_id);
     assertNodeEditPermission(node, this.userId);
-    softRemove({ _id, collection: LibraryNodes });
+    softRemove(LibraryNodes, node);
   }
 });
 
@@ -303,7 +303,7 @@ const restoreLibraryNode = new ValidatedMethod({
     let node = LibraryNodes.findOne(_id);
     assertNodeEditPermission(node, this.userId);
     // Do work
-    restore(LibraryNodes, _id);
+    restore(LibraryNodes, node);
   }
 });
 
diff --git a/app/imports/api/parenting/parentingFunctions.ts b/app/imports/api/parenting/parentingFunctions.ts
index 6dc3d219..96398e53 100644
--- a/app/imports/api/parenting/parentingFunctions.ts
+++ b/app/imports/api/parenting/parentingFunctions.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import CreatureProperties from '/imports/api/creature/creatureProperties/Creatur
 import { Mongo } from 'meteor/mongo';
 
 export function getCollectionByName(name: string): Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> {
-  const collection = Mongo.Collection.get(name)
+  const collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> = Mongo.Collection.get(name)
   if (!collection) {
     throw new Meteor.Error('bad-collection-reference',
       `Parent references collection ${name}, which does not exist`
diff --git a/app/imports/api/parenting/softRemove.ts b/app/imports/api/parenting/softRemove.ts
index 10c49523..3783a3b5 100644
--- a/app/imports/api/parenting/softRemove.ts
+++ b/app/imports/api/parenting/softRemove.ts
@@ -1,19 +1,28 @@
 import { getCollectionByName, getFilter } from '/imports/api/parenting/parentingFunctions';
 import { TreeDoc } from '/imports/api/parenting/ChildSchema';
 
-export async function softRemove(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, doc?: TreeDoc | string) {
+export function softRemove(collectionOrName: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, docOrId?: TreeDoc | string) {
   const removalDate = new Date();
-  if (typeof collection === 'string') {
-    collection = getCollectionByName(collection);
+
+  let collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc>;
+  if (typeof collectionOrName === 'string') {
+    collection = getCollectionByName(collectionOrName);
+  } else {
+    collection = collectionOrName;
   }
-  if (typeof doc === 'string') {
-    doc = await collection.findOneAsync(doc);
+
+  let doc: TreeDoc | undefined;
+  if (typeof docOrId === 'string') {
+    doc = collection.findOne(docOrId);
+  } else {
+    doc = docOrId
   }
   if (!doc) {
     throw new Meteor.Error('not found', 'The document to remove was not found');
   }
+
   // Remove this document
-  const removeDocPromise = collection.updateAsync(
+  collection.update(
     doc._id,
     {
       $set: {
@@ -23,13 +32,11 @@ export async function softRemove(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string,
       $unset: {
         removedWith: 1,
       }
-    }, {
-    selector: { type: 'any' },
-  },
+    }
   );
   // Remove all the descendants that have not yet been removed, and set them to be
   // removed with this document
-  const removeDescendantsPromise = collection.updateAsync({
+  collection.update({
     ...getFilter.descendants(doc),
     removed: { $ne: true },
   }, {
@@ -39,10 +46,8 @@ export async function softRemove(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string,
       removedWith: doc._id,
     }
   }, {
-    selector: { type: 'any' },
     multi: true,
   });
-  return Promise.all([removeDocPromise, removeDescendantsPromise]);
 }
 
 const restoreError = function () {
@@ -51,18 +56,26 @@ const restoreError = function () {
   );
 };
 
-export async function restore(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, doc: TreeDoc | string, extraUpdates?) {
-  if (typeof collection === 'string') {
-    collection = getCollectionByName(collection);
+export function restore(collectionOrName: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, docOrId: TreeDoc | string, extraUpdates?) {
+
+  let collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc>;
+  if (typeof collectionOrName === 'string') {
+    collection = getCollectionByName(collectionOrName);
+  } else {
+    collection = collectionOrName;
   }
-  if (typeof doc === 'string') {
-    const foundDoc = await collection.findOneAsync(doc)
-    if (!foundDoc) {
-      throw new Meteor.Error('not found', 'The document to remove was not found');
-    }
-    doc = foundDoc;
+
+  let doc: TreeDoc | undefined;
+  if (typeof docOrId === 'string') {
+    doc = collection.findOne(docOrId);
+  } else {
+    doc = docOrId
   }
-  const numUpdated: number = await collection.updateAsync({
+  if (!doc) {
+    throw new Meteor.Error('not found', 'The document to remove was not found');
+  }
+
+  const numUpdated: number = collection.update({
     _id: doc._id,
     removedWith: { $exists: false }
   }, {
@@ -71,11 +84,11 @@ export async function restore(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, do
       removedAt: 1,
     },
     ...extraUpdates
-  }, {
-    selector: { type: 'any' },
   });
+
   if (numUpdated === 0) restoreError();
-  return collection.updateAsync({
+
+  return collection.update({
     removedWith: doc._id,
   }, {
     $unset: {
@@ -84,7 +97,6 @@ export async function restore(collection: Mongo.Collection<TreeDoc> | string, do
       removedWith: 1,
     }
   }, {
-    selector: { type: 'any' },
     multi: true,
-  });
+  }) + 1;
 }