I see, I see.
That thing about making the node to count multiple times actually sounds pretty interesting, I probably would have done that too if I actually tought on that.
I think you shouldn't get rid of it, instead try embracing it, since this is actually a very clever way to strategize with the node queue. The only problem I assume would be that it may be a bit difficulty to balance that out tho...
But hey, it's your game, you don't need to do what I tell you to do, I'm only giving biased suggestions x)