gum
My nephew, Tucker Schulenberg has been through a number of big changes over the past year, not the least of which is a name change. This past summer found Tucker’s dream coming true, when his dad, Ron Schulenberg officially adopted him. It is something Tucker had wanted almost since the day his mom, Rachel Schulenberg married his new dad. They are best buddies. Tucker has looked up to Ron for years now, and carrying his name is the ultimate honor for both of them. We are all very happy for them all, because we have all wanted this as well. Now, Ron and Tucker work together and play together. Ron is a great role model for Tucker, and he is very, very proud of his son.
Tucker is in his first year of middle school now, and with that change has come some other changes…some his mother is almost dreading. The biggest “dread” for Rachel is girls!! Nevertheless, try as she might to avoid it, Tucker is a bit of a chick magnet. So far this year, Tucker has had four girlfriends. I guess that his love of girls is definitely in the early stages…nothing serious for Rachel to worry about. Tucker is a complex kind of guy, and that might be what attracts him to the girls. He is well liked at school, for several reasons. Tucker likes to share the wealth, so to speak. He shares gum…by the 6 pound bags…with the kids at school. It’s not just the gum that makes the kids all like him, however. Tucker hates bullying, and will not tolerate it, against himself or others. He stops it in its tracks. While Tucker isn’t one to pick a fight, he will fight it it’s necessary to stop bullying. That is something that makes us all very proud.
Tucker likes LEGOs, YouTube, comics, the outdoors, shooting targets, and his dog. His varied interests, and his friendly nature, make him fit in everywhere. While his new interests make all the kids at school like him, Tucker still loves his daddy the best. They will always be best friends. Tucker is growing up fast, and I find myself amazed at how big he has grown. Where have all the years gone. It seems like just yesterday that Tucker was the almost 3 year old son of my brother-in-law’s new wife, but that was 9 years ago. Today is Tucker’s 12th birthday. Happy birthday Tucker!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
Few things are more exciting in the life of a young child than the day they lose their first tooth. Everyone knows what comes next. The tooth is placed in a glass of water, or under a pillow, and the child tries really hard to go to sleep, because they know that in the morning, there will be money, and sometimes gum, in place of the tooth that was lost.
I will never forget the day my oldest daughter, Corrie lost her first tooth. The tooth had been loose for a while, and she wiggled it constantly. She wanted it to come out so badly. For days that was all she thought about, and all we heard about.
Then one night…in the middle of the night, I awoke to Corrie screaming. Now when you come out of a deep sleep to a child screaming…and I mean a blood curdling scream…it can be hard to get your bearings. I tried sleepily to figure out what was wrong, thinking she had a bad dream. She screamed, “I’m bleeding” and showed me her mouth.
Ok, I was awake, and my mind had it all back together again. we rinsed out her mouth and I looked to see if the tooth was loose enough to pull it out. I tried to get a hold of it, and couldn’t. I said that it just wasn’t quite ready yet. Corrie said, “Just push it Mom!” And with that, she pushed the tooth toward her tongue, and out it came. I couldn’t believe that my 5 year old knew more about how to get her first tooth out, than I did.
Corrie’s teeth never presented any problems. She would go on the “push” them out easily as each became loose enough. Her sister, Amy’s teeth…well, that is another story.
