The Pumper's Wife

It’s the holidays and here at our house we are excited!  I feel like this time of year every house in America has their own “Clark Griswold Family” version raging inside.  Crazy is the new normal and our house is no different… MOM I am baking and continuing to add decorations here and there to keep everyone excited that Christmas is only days away.  I think I might be on a bit of a Yuletide high…if there is such a thing (actually I’m pretty sure there is...I’m living proof!!)  I’ve insisted upon taking the kids for hot chocolate and then Christmas light gazing around town.  We’ve read Christmas stories by candle and Christmas tree lights in the evening.  Thanks to the ABC Family channel, I have made sure we watch the scheduled Christmas movie every night since Friday. Even today, as we go about our final errand running, I plan on having the kids wear their Santa hats!  I know I need help and I don’t even care!! DAD Our very own “in-house-Scrooge” -  bah-humbugging everythi

For those of you who know me, you know I like love need things neat, clean, and always picked up…sanitation optional.  In fact, it seriously drives me crazy when there unmade beds, things left out on the floor, gook or grime build up, “cluttery” counter tops or other such messes in my house.  Not sure if what I have is a treatable medical condition, but I would happily sign up for a research study to find me a cure.  To a degree, I wish I wasn’t so bothered by it all – it is impossible for me to stay on top of all the fingerprints, organized closets, pee around the toilets, and sports related items in the garage.  I have had to prioritize what HAS to be done every day and what can wait until later.  The older I get and the older my children get, it is harder and harder for me to stay on top of it all and still have time to do normal every day tasks like bathe and dress myself.  Despite the fact that I know I can’t always have things “just so” I am most at peace when my house is rece

Do you have a holiday tradition?  Thanksgiving starts the holiday season of food, family, and all the crazy things families do to celebrate the holidays.  As for our family, we have  a few things we do, but as my kids get older I want to focus more on the time I spend with them and less on the things I get them.  Traditions create memories, don’t you agree?  I know that when I think about my own Christmas’s, I don’t remember the presents I received, I remember Christmas Eve services at my great Grandma and Grandpa Volker’s church.  I remember going to their house after the service and all the family (there was always a LOT of us!) and the amazing food. (My great aunts were FABULOUS cooks!!  They would use Christmas Eve to debut their latest recipe and it was ALWAYS great!)   I remember all the laughter in that crowded house.  My great-grandpa Volker was a character!  He always had some little trinket, mind-scratching game, or gag gift to get the grandkids.  My aunts and uncles wer

Do you have words of wisdom people have given you over the years that has influenced you? Not just the “say please and thank you” kind of stuff – those words that maybe your favorite aunt told you right before you went to college or something you read that has never left your mind.     I mean, if you think of the millions of conversations a person has in their lifetime or the countless things one has read, isn’t funny how a few of them just stick in your head? Do you remember the “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” posters?   I know many of the things on that list were good and sentimental, but you know the one that stuck out to me?   Flush.   (Ironic don’t you think?   Especially considering the business I am in? God has a sense of humor.) When I was teaching school in Kansas I once had a poster above my chalkboard (yes, I am that old…I had a chalkboard not a white board…) anyway, it stated “Attitudes are contagious, is yours worth catching?”   One particular day

What is your opinion on learning?   Does just reading this title get you excited or make you want to vomit?   Personally, I think it matters what you are learning.   For instance, I remember learning to snow ski as a teenager.   I knew how to water ski, but our youth group was taking a snow skiing trip and I wanted to go so thought it would be fun.   I looked forward to the challenge and though it took me a while to get my “snow-ski-legs” I finally did – and I LOVED it! I am a lover of science and history.   Biography of a historic figure?   Give it to me.   New discovery in space?   Tell me more!   Anything and everything scientific or historical is good.   I love it all.   (I will now happily accept my nerd awards.   Thank you.) I LOVE music.   Classical, oldie, country, or pop?   Really doesn’t matter to me.   A new song on the radio with a catchy beat is my kryptonite.     I will listen to it until I know every word and nuance.   (Don’t worry…I stick to the tune only….well

Do you agree with this statement?   “You are what you read.”   Prior to being a Pumper’s Wife I would have never really given this statement much thought…but now I can’t help but take it literally!!   You are what you read…if you read about fashion, you’re fashionable.   If you read about cooking, you’re a cook.   If you read about dogs you’re a…wait.   Let’s come back to this in a minute… When I taught science, I loved to read about the latest scientific discoveries…I still do.   I kinda think once a science teacher, always a science teacher…but I digress.     The age of the internet made reading these articles so easy.   As my students’ parents got to know me better, they would find great discoveries to share with me as well.   I especially liked reading anything relating to space or the oceans.   Though I am removed from the classroom now, I still have parents (and former students) who share articles they think I might like.   I LOVED the one I got last week from a parent about

  Now, I’m sure many of you are just dying to know the kind of life a Pumper’s Wife leads.   Let me tell you, it is beyond glamorous!   Jennifer Aniston doesn’t have ANYTHING on me. I am sure Jen doesn’t get to talk with people in the wee hours of the morning about backed up septic in their house, or clean her husband’s clothes after a long day in the bottom of a grain elevator (and then clean out her washing machine before using it again).   No…poor Jen, her life isn’t nearly as exciting as mine.   The girl is really missing out.    All joking aside though, our day isn’t much different (or more smelly) than yours.    A typical day for this septic-business-family is to first get the kids off to school.   Mr. Wonderful starts his pumping route and comes home at the end of the day.   I answer the phone for customers, do office work and pick up kids when school is out.   Stop me when it gets too glamorous for you….   “Excitement” happens when someone calls with backed up septic

Let’s say you’re a typical married woman with a couple of kids.   This month is your birthday…what would you say is your ideal birthday gift? Homemade cards by the kids? A nice piece of jewelry? Flowers delivered to the workplace? A nice evening out with the hubby ? A day started with a facial and back rub, followed by a trip to Starbucks, all the while little fairies are cleaning your house, doing your laundry, mowing your yard and even cleaning your car so that upon your arrival home the only thing left for you to do is bask in moment of having NOTHING to do???? (Okay, maybe this is just my daily fantasy…) Obviously, the ideal gift is different for everyone.   For this girl, it’s the purchase of a new pump truck.   I mean, what woman doesn’t dream of getting a 2005 Freightliner 9 Speed Vacuum truck with air ride suspension and a 2500 gallon tank with a Jurop pump set up?   No doubt your dream gift too, am I right? If you have read my previous post, you know

As a little girl I dreamed someday of growing up to be a Nashville star like Barbara Mandrell.   I would sing into my hair brush while standing on the hearth of the fire place (the perfect stage in the house) and dream of the fame and stardom that would soon be mine!! As a high schooler, I dreamed of fashion and thought maybe I could someday design homes.   But, at the same time, I loved science and everything I learned in my science classes intrigued me.   I craved more knowledge on that subject and took as many classes as I could to learn more.   Yes, yes…I was a wee bit of a science nerd.   But don’t worry, my wit and amazing personality made up for my slightly off beat nature.   SIDE NOTE: Do you know why you can’t trust an atom? It’s because they make up everything.   See what I mean? Wit AND personality. For the first two years of college I majored in interior design…but too much time over a drawing board and not enough time with people made me change my major to educati