The Adventures of Jack P. Jarrett

My sweet baby Jack,

I love you so much. You are a very strong willed, independent nature boy. You have been strong willed from the day you were born. So determined. So strong. We watched a video of you trying to crawl when you were just five months or so, and we watched you grunt, and push your upper body up and were reaching. You were so determined! You started walking at 10 months. You are always looking to do more. You are confident in your decisions, even when they aren’t the best ones (walking in the road is never a good idea, boy). You surprise me when you take it upon yourself to change our activities, or direction of our walk. I have learned to go with it, and yesterday after I tried to force you to turn back to walk home, you turned on your own. You said, I think it’s time to walk back home. And I thought…wow. I need to trust you more, and realize you are a smart little two year old that is sometimes reasonable. You have taught me to be more patient and to go with the flow even more than I already do. 

You love being outside in the woods. You pick up a stick and you are in your element. If you are irritable, we simply just go outside and your mood changes instantly. 

You are still VERY stubborn when it comes to certain things. You love playing inside cars, but when you do, you leave mama’s hazard lights on without her knowing and her battery dies. Lately, you DEMAND pretzels at dinner. I do appreciate you eating the rest of your dinner, but man you are obsessed with those pretzels! 

Jackster, bubba, Jackie…your smile and hugs melt my heart. You can be a major punk at times, but I gotcha. I know it’s hard having a brain of a toddler. You can’t control yourself sometimes. I know… I promise to not take things too personally, and to remain calm so you learn by example. I will protect you as much as I can, but now is the time for you to explore the world a little more. You are now in day care- away from home, from me, Dada and Matt. You are doing so well with the transition! We are so so proud of you.

I can’t wait to see what this next year brings us. I know when I am much older, I will look back on these days and wish that I could just travel back in time just to cuddle you in bed and play with your toddler toes. I love the games we play, and the bond we share.

As Marge said to Bart, You are my special little guy.

You are my world, my lamb, my love. 

Mama

Jack is a 2 year old! And my mama was right- he’s SO much easier now than he was from 15-20 months. He’s a little person- he understands most of what I say, and listens to instructions. He still has typical 2 year old mannerisms, but he is MUCH easier to deal with and he is much more reasonable. It’s amazing.

He is 36 inches, and 28 pounds. He’s slowed down on the weight but he’s very active and is growing tall like a weed. He wears size 8 shoes. 

His favorite words lately are 1) Moon and 2) Balloon. He points to the sky everytime he sees the moon and says “Moon”. He’s been doing this since Christmas- it’s something so fascinating to him. And the moon is pretty crazy. I remember one summer evening sitting on my back porch with my dad before bed, and he explained to me what we know about space, what stars are and the distance between us and those sparks flickering in the sky. I remember the exact night. Summer, calm, clear skies, warmth. I am still so curious and still share the frustration of the lack of answers I was given then as we are faced now. Where does the universe end? What is beyond the borders? Is it never ending? Are there other life forms? I can’t wait for those conversations in the future.

Balloons are every toddler’s dream. For some reason, it’s just a spectacular thing. 

I have noticed Jack is pointing to random objects and asking what they are. He’s been much more inquisitive about his environment. Still not talking much…but that will come. 

His birthday weekend was fun. We had pizza, cupcakes and he opened a few presents on Friday. Saturday, he opened a few more. Sunday, we went to Marbles in the morning, and he had his birthday party with grilled cheese, tater tots, berries (his faves), and he opened his presents. He still doesn’t really care for presents. I think that will come later. He loves his Mater bubbler. 

Jack got some amazing pajamas from Megan, Mia, Joe and Thomas. It has a cape and it’s BARTMAN! They are size four but fit him (a little big), but he will be able to wear those for years to come as well. 

Jack got a lovely homemade card from Ellen, Dani, and Pavel as well as a cool puzzle, baby penguins, stickers, and a book. He is very excited to see his cousins this summer in August! 

Jack received a tool kit which he LOVES from Great Grandparents Williams, along with other toys and goodies. 

Jack loves his HUGE Toy Story fleece blanket from Uncle Ben. Fleece blankets are his favorite. When he falls asleep, he looks like a kitten gripping and releasing the blanket by his face. It’s so sweet.

Matt got Jack a Little Tikes Basketball net, which is a favorite. Matt claims he always gets Jack his favorite gifts. 

Cici and Papa John got Jack a big wheel tricycle. It’s a little big at the moment, but he will hopefully fit it by mid summer. Luckily in this climate, we can use it year round! 

Babi and Gee-off got Jack a sweet little soccer outfit. I need to find Jack some sambas and he’s good to go. 

Thank you to everyone who wished Jack a happy birthday, and also for the gifts. We are so lucky to have family that cares for our little guy so much. 

Jack is excited for his St. Louis trip and Canada trip this summer! 

I am looking forward to see what these “terrible twos” are all about. I am excited and ready for the worst. 

I am also experiencing a little baby fever right now…but we can’t afford another baby at the moment. I would most definitely have to quit my job if I were to get pregnant now as 2 children in daycare would cost over 2,500 a month. I really am working right now for a few hundred dollars/month after gas, but I NEED health insurance and so does Jack. It’s a shitty situation. I also need my job to stay in this country until I become a permanent resident which I am in the process of doing. 

Ah, such is life. A family of 3 is pretty perfect right now, though. 

Till next time…

Why hello there!

I feel like I owe it to little Jackster to write about his accomplishments as of late.

1. He goes to bed at the same time each night without problem (I knocked on wood right after I wrote that). Seriously, this is AWESOME. We have our routine, and he’s been so cooperative. I remember this used to be a huge cause of stress. 

2. He holds my hand! He actually holds my hand. He used to HATE to do this. It made me sad…he actually somewhat enjoys holding my hand and running through our neighborhood together.

3. He loves to play. He can play by himself without problem. He also loves active rough play…and can get out of hand with the pulling of mama’s hair. But I am a tomboy at heart and love playing rough with him too. He is very physical and doesn’t get hurt very easily.

4. He HUGS me! He actually hugs me! He used to be such a snob… but now since he goes to Daycare, he hugs me when he comes in and sees me. It’s the best feeling in the entire world. 

5. The boy EATS and is not picky. He is open to all different types of food. He loves to eat and he eats often. 

6. He loves his doggies. He plays with Beaker everyday…they have their different games. Jack loves to feed him ice cubes. They also play a chasing game in which they run around the kitchen circle. Jack grabs Beaker pretty rough but Beaker just licks Jack’s face in return. They are best friends. Jack tries to involve Marxy but Marxy isn’t too interested yet. 

7. Jack STILL naps 2 hours each day. HOLLA!

8. Jack prefers Pixar. Dude already has good movie taste. 

9. Jack is a true independent. He isn’t needy, he’s not a mama’s boy, and he is pretty confident. Obviously this may change, but since his birth he’s been a pretty content independent bud. He does like being around other children though- just not when they steal his toys. 

10. Jack’s a “car” boy. Dude will play with cars all day. And dinosaurs. 

We are still concerned about his speech delay and hopefully will see progress in the next few months. We probably will be referred to a speech therapist at Jack’s next appointment. He understands everything…he just doesn’t talk. Josh was late, and so was my brother. So who knows?! 

Jack’s second birthday is in a few weeks. Which means I will be entering the territory knows as “The Terrible Twos”. I am going to be an optimist and change it to “The Tremendous Twos!” because I know with every age there will be age specific challenges, but also so much progress will be made as well. 

Happy Easter everyone!