Tuesday, August 14, 2012

The next Gardner adventure!

As most people know by now we are finally moving back to the NW! YAY!

This has been a long, exhausting, growing and at times trying experience for the 3 of us this past year here in Colorado. When the opportunity came up to apply for the Bellevue, WA store a few weeks ago we HAD to jump on it! Jesse will have quite the challenge ahead of him with this store but in my mind nothing can be worse than what we experienced in Colorado the first few months we were here.

Jesse and I have had quite the different experience in Colorado. Jesse had a very set schedule where he knew what he was doing everyday and always had people to talk to (whether he wanted to talk to them or not). Jack and I on the other hand had a basic idea of how each day would go with meal times and nap time but other than that we had to create our day and at times the only adults I would talk to for days a time were the angry checkout people at the grocery store. That was until this past spring when Jack made a wonderful little buddy and I a great new friend. This now will be the hardest part about leaving Colorado :( Jackson constantly asks to play with his buddy a few times a day and while I know he will still ask for his buddy after we leave I hope that over time he will ask a little less because it just breaks my heart for him.

On a happier note we are SO excited to start our new adventure in Washington (a mere 4 hr drive) vs getting on a plane and going 4 months inbetween seeing all our family and friends. Especially with our precious little GIRL on the way! AH i still cannot believe we are having a GIRL! I still go toward the boy clothes in the the store because I just can't believe it's really a GIRL! But the ultrasound tech assured me that she is definitely a girlie :) Little lady had here legs WIDE open...silly girl :)

Now I am in the midst of packing up our apartment by this Friday for the 2nd time in 2 months because we get on a plane on Saturday to come back to Oregon for our annual camping trip with Jesse's family (YAY) and Jack & I will not be going back to Colorado after that. Jesse will come back with my dad and drive all our stuff to Washington at the end of August...what a whirl wind move! But we're happy to do it because it means we get to be with our family and friends again!!!!

See you all soon!!!

Saturday, August 4, 2012

2 1/2

We joke that Jackson has been going through the terrible 2's for roughly 2 1/2 years...and while this is basically true he has really kicked it into high gear lately!

Sometimes I honestly feel like I'm talking to a dog. You know when you give a command such as "sit" and the dog stands there staring at you with the dopiest expression on its face and does nothing. Yes that is pretty much what it feels like talking to my child daily. The only difference is that instead of standing there with a dopy expression he is yelling back at me and doing the complete opposite of everything I tell him to do and I'm the one standing there with a dopy expression of my face!

Defiant, completely unreasonable and unable to listen to any instruction is what describes Jack's behavior right now. At times I feel that he is getting great joy out of doing things he shouldn't and getting disciplined for them. Blows my mind....I know he's 2.5 and this is normal behavior at this age but it still leaves me standing there with my mouth wide open at times.

When I thought about how it would be to be a mom one day and what my child would be like...I honestly never thought I'd have a child like Jackson. Sure I knew that my kid would throw fits and well...be a kid. I love Jackson's larger than life personality, his innate ability to make anyone smile and laugh and his beautiful spirit.  But with all of these wonderful qualities he has he is also an extremely challenging child. I've read lots of books about different parenting methods but none of them seem to work for Jackson. I feel that we have created an entirely different method for him...and for the most part we make it up day by day.

I just hope that behind all of the discipline he receives and the tears that both of us shed daily that he knows how much I love him and want to be the best mom I can for him. Sometimes it feels like I'm failing and not doing the right thing but all I can do is provide him with love and comfort and pray with all my might that he comes out of this soon!