Happy Birthday

Our first birthday of the New Year, and today is Jonathan Camerons 12th Birthday...Happy, Happy Day to Jonny Blue Eyes, Jonny B Good, Jonny Man, the Mail Man..the Great Blondini...

You were a joy and delight the day you were born, and you still are..you are way up there on the ornery scale, but no one is more caring and loving...I am blessed by you, and thank God for my sweet if not slightly ornery 4th son..

I look forward so much to seeing the man you will grow into..

I am really not complaining but,

I am really not complaining, but, I have no water again...oh, yes, I know, I have said that so many times before. It just never ceases to freak me out when the tap no longer gushes forth, and the toliets do not flush.

My meter was replaced this week, because like many things around here, it has decided not to work. It didn't bother me any, but really bothered the water company, because they had to estimate my water bill...last months was only 21.00.

It was in the fixing, that it all came undone, figuratively, and literally. My water pressure began to drop, and then when i went to wash my wands, instead of whoosh, whoosh, it was drip, drip. Oh no...**** amongst other things, and i called my water lady to question work on the lines, broken pipes, empty water towers, all things we have experienced before...she said go check your meter, they just installed a new one.

Now having lived in rural Oklahoma 15 years, and knowing i had a little hike, i put on a jacket, and my mud boots. When i arrived at my destination, i couldn't find my meter, i did find a fountain, where my meter should be, and a babbling brook complete with gurgling sound running onto my neighbors back pasture about 10 feet over the property line...

Woe is me...woe is anyone who has 10 people or more in their home on any given day, and no water...lovely, sweet, pure, clear, water, but i digress.

The water man came out, shut off my water, said i had a broken line, and needed to fix it, but they would probably help me out..

The head water man Abe came out today, with his helper in the(uphill both ways), and tried to temporarily repair the line...turns out it is on the water companies side, and i don't have to pay for the water, or the repair.

I currently have enough water that the toliets are filling, and we can brush our teeth, and our faces, but not much else. The trickle is smaller than my pinky finger, and while they are going to try and improve the situation, until the weather clears out, there isn't a whole lot they can do..

It snowed all day, and is supposed to snow tomorrow, and then the weather is supposed to go from snowy and cold to frigid...i am praying that we do not have a blizzard or an ice storm..it is supposed to be a high of 21, and a low of 8...for the sake of my water man, i am praying it is over quickly, as he is unable to shut off the water to repair the leak, and it will be a wet fix..

For this moment, I will be grateful for flushing my toliets, and not having to haul the water from Andrew and Tiffs, for this moment, i will be grateful for being able to brush my teeth without having to hunt down a bottle of water. For this moment, I will be grateful for being able to wash my face tonight, without all the trouble of last night. For this moment I will be grateful. Everything else, I will worry about tomorrow

updating life

I realised tonight, that i need my pictures updated as well as my life. I have been so caught up in the everyday and mundane, that i sometimes loose sight of the big picture..

My blog hasn't been updated in six weeks, as i have soldiered through kidney infections, Ben having more health problems, problems with my auto-immune diseases, and the holidays.

The craziness of cooking Thanksgiving for a small army of people..better known as my family, plus a few extras. I served 19 people that day.

We then jumped to Christians' 5th birthday with a party and dinner for the family, i think there were about 25 people at the house. Two weeks later Alexandra went from a 2 year old to a precocious 3 year old. She has changed so much lately. Then of course, my baby girl Nicole turned 15 on the 21st...

Meanwhile, back at the farm, secret shopping, crazy wrapping partys in my bedroom until 2:00 in the morning with the help of Tiffiany, our exchange student Yo, and Niki...the wrapping went on for days..

Lola invaded Santas' hiding space on Christmas Eve, and started dragging things out of hiding while we were distracted..she also hid 4 of Nicoles gifts, and began unwrapping them for her, and passing them out..i am sensing a conspiracy here...

Ben took the girls and i to the Nutcracker, my favorite event of the year, criss-crossed with chaperoning field trips, spending the day in Christians class-room, attending childrens Christmas parties...no wonder i am such a nut, when i write it down my exhaustion makes sense..

I am going to try to look at the big picture this year. I want to spend more time in prayer, and less time complaining. I have so much to be grateful for, and so many people that bless my life. I am going to remember each day to be content with these things, and not mention everyday, i am sick of the mess, the dishes, the dusting and sweeping the laundry, and the laundry...and remember how much i love these crazy messy people i live with.

Somehow, in the midst of the madness, i am going to make time for me, and my husband, because when i am stressed out, and burnt out, in the end it helps no one, not my husband, not my children, and certainly not me.

everything sounds cuter when you are 2

I love listening to Alexandra talk...she really has a fantastic vocabulary for a little girl who is not yet 3...but, i have to admit my favorite words and phrases are the ones she makes up..

She talks about hippolagatamus', and her ya-ya mommy(Ashley), I am mommy-mommy..and her Nik-Nik, and Bubba..and other words, i am not really certain how to spell..

I also love how things sound so much better, when they are duckies, and juicey, and milky...and even eggesy..

I am more easily persuaded to make scrambled eggs and toast when it is eggesy with brown bread..no r's pronounced..

Life is sweet, and goes by so very fast, so it is time to get off here, rock my baby, with her favorite bookie, and blankie and dollies, and miss bunny...then we're off to bed

fall activities

We spent a busy week, with a party at head-start..trick-or-treating at the tribal offices all over the world with Christian, Lola and bus loads full of little ones..it was insane...

Nicole had 2 scrimmages this week, Connor had his final foot-ball game, and Jon is full-swing in basketball..

Every time i tell myself, i have to simplify and just not do something, i do something...it is so crazy...Sean had a party on fri, but i stayed home...

We went to a wedding on Sat. and then to the fall-fest at a church in Wewoka...we do this instead of trick-or-treating..the whole door to door thing gives me a head-ache..the kids enjoy the games and they get candy too...

Monday, i am chaperoning with 2 other adults the gifted and talented kids as they attend the Phantom of the Opera Ballet...i am looking forward to this trip, i am on the g&t committee, and have 3 kids in the program..

Wed. , i am going to the pumpkin patch with Christians class, and then i will probably check myself into the funny farm for a good long rest..for all my good intentions, it always seems all their special activities fall at the same time, and who do i say no too...i feel like i miss so many of their activities..

I battle the flare-ups and exhaustion that go with auto-immune diseases, some days, my body will just not go, and i can't sit on bleachers, and keep up with the demands of a large family, and then in between i push myself too hard, and then the cycle repeats..

Simplify, balance, sanity....i need to just remind myself over and over, that no one wins, when i am down..

Autumn has arrived

The weather here is finally turning, and it is about stinking time..we had a blistering hot summer, and I am so ready for the cool mornings of Fall.

Our leaves are gradually changing colors and starting to drop all over the property..which makes a beautiful backdrop, and a great thing to throw at your brothers and sisters..

I didn't get any of my fall decorations out yet, fall break was so hectic with the kids going here and there, and Ben completely down with gout, I couldn't get up into the closet to wrestle with things..

We do have some pumpkins and squash on the porch, on a tablecloth..maybe i should just throw some leaves over the whole scene , and call it decorated..

Tomorrow Christian has a halloween party at pre-k, and goes trick or treating at the tribal offices thurs. no school on friday for him..

Sean and Jon, have a party at school on Friday.. tonight is the weenie roast in Spaulding, but, i am not sure i will be back from my Dr. appt. in Okc in time to attend...I would cancel, but i have had such a flare up lately, it probably would be a bad idea..

Connors' last football game is tonight in Maud, which I will miss, and Nicoles' 1st basketball scrimmage is at 4:00..Andrew and Tiff are going to stand in for me..and bring Nicole home..

I really don't feel very motivated right now..yes, i would like to see the decorations up, but no i don't want to do it..i almost killed myself last week repairing my kitchen after my boys had been in charge for a short time...6 hours of scrubbing saints in heaven preserve me..and then there was the hall closet that had become impassible or is it impossible, i am not sure which...that was an all day job...especially with Sean, Christian and Alexandra rolling in the blankets, coats and costumes...and now if i was an exceptionally clever and witty person, i would tie this all up in a neat little package..However, I have dogs barking, a little girl perched on my leg, socks and towels all over my living room..and who knows what lurking in the hiding places of my home..

It is time to be off this thing and back to work..because there are 2 rules of housekeeping..1 a mothers' work is never done...2..when in doubt refer back to rule number 1..

grown-ups

Sometimes, I just hate being a grown-up, I hate acting like a grown-up, I frankly don't want to be the grown-up...

Take last night for example, I was at the schools large fundraiser...the fall carnival...I absolutely hate going...It doesn't really sound like it should be up there with a root canal, but trust me..i find it agony..

Why, it is really pretty simple and straightforward..most of the events take place in the elementary building and "little gym"...a one corridor school wing with 90% of the occupants of our town packed in there..unattended children of all ages..behaving as unattended children do..pushing, line cutting, strollers, hot, and lots of people..

I do this every year, and smile while i do it..then there are the extrem people..the ones my husband can never figure out who they are, and they smile, wave and talk to us like old friends...and he says under his breath, who the hell is that?????

I guess i just reach my saturation point...too many people, too tight an area, money actually evaporating out of my pocket..It is the elementary schools primary fund-raiser, and 1 of many for the upper grades...so i go, and i support..

How many people actually know you, my husband asks, as I smile, nod and wave my way through the crowd..know me..i mean actually none..but, I am the infamous Tucker Mother, the mother of 9, and they all know who I am...Either, they were teen-agers when ours were younger, and I knew them then, or they have children in the same class as some of ours..or, I have just pointed out as the crazy women with so many children..

How does she do it? Why does she do it? What makes her do it? When 2 are more than anyone can handle...I guess the answer is she wants to, and more importantly she is called to ...

No wonder they all know who I am...with so many children circling around me, I tend to stand out...even in a crowd...