Strong Willed

Sweet boy Jack, all you want to wear, EVERY SINGLE DAY, is a pair of shorts, an FSU t-shirt and your FSU hat. You will only wear your grey New Balance sneakers and refuse to wear a collared shirt or Tom's or anything decent looking, unless we bribe you with skittles. Speaking of skittles, I think you could live off of milk and skittles. Also, I have no idea just how in the world to get you off of your Nuni's (paci's). Your older brothers never took to a paci (thank God), so this is all new to us. Please, Nuni fairy, come in with your magic wand and take them all away. I just do not have the strength. This is how it works, right? Also, the latest sleeping arrangement has got to change. I always swore I would NEVER let a child sleep in my bed, or drive a mini van, and we can all see how life has made a mockery of me.

Before I launch into all of the difficulties that I face with my sweet 2 year old boy, I want to make one thing very clear. I love this boy of mine. Love him so much that if I dwell on it, my insides ache. His laugh infects my soul and his smile brightens my days. I love him so much more than I ever thought possible. But, parenting a strong willed, or "spirited" or "compassionate", child is exhausting. Jack has fought me about anything and everything. He thrives on attention, the positive and the negative kind...and we have tried every tactic. From rewarding, to disciplining, to ignoring, to praising, to redirecting, to encouraging, to distracting, to bribing...he has a set routine, with boundaries and structure and is smothered with love, but to no avail does he like to follow our rules. He likes to have a say so in everything. It is just Jack. And lately, he is pushing my limits. I am trying to focus on his positives, because he really does have many, many more pros than cons! He is such a fun child, who lights up the room with his grin and giggles. He is the first to comfort someone in need. He loves to help and be involved and is the world's best snuggler. He has love pouring out of him and rainbows shooting from his eyes...hahaha... Having a child with a strong voice is a good thing, I guess. Having a child who feels deeply about things lets you know they are connected. We are working on setting boundaries and keeping them. Following through ALL OF THE TIME.

Even through this phase in life, I think he is one of most special people I've ever met and love him to the moon and back!

Oh Jack..............I love you so very much my baby boy!