Hi~!  We’re back from Michigan!  Evan & I are sick though.  Boo.  I still have to download my Maui & Michigan pics!!  I have so many things to post about but not enough time.  Boo.  We’re off to Palm Springs…all of us sick bunnies…at least we get to catch up on sleep and rest together.  Hope you have a great weekend!!

Skippee’s Birthday

The Big 3-0!

I don’t like being the center of attention so I’ve happily passed many birthdays quietly with very little fanfare.  However, Andy and my friends made sure this one would be super special since I was turning 30!  I had two different birthday shindigs!  Thank you so much to my truly wonderful friends and Andy for helping me celebrate this big milestone.

Xanga Book

For one of my birthday gifts Andy made me a book of all of my Xanga posts from the past 5 years.  I burst into tears when he gave it to me because I was so touched.

Andy had spent endless hours secretly putting this together for me.  It was no easy feat as he had to do it 3 times to make it perfect!  3 TIMES!!  The first one didn’t work because the chronology was reversed and the second one didn’t work because the quality wasn’t good enough.  I’m sure once was hard enough but to do it 3 times…I was speechless.  I can’t even fathom how tedious it was…it wasn’t just a matter of cutting & pasting…he actually had to create new layouts for each page and individually insert photos and text.

The Past 5 Years

The Xanga book is now one of my most prized possessions.  It isn’t just a book filled with photos and writing…it’s my life and who I’ve become in the past 5 years.  The joys, achievements, heartbreaks, festivities, amazing moments of life…all encapsulated into one book.  Reading through the book made me realize that I’ve come a long way in the past 5 years~

I graduated from law school, passed the bar and went on my bar trip to Asia.  [here & here]

I got Bella.  [here, here, here & here]

I got engaged.  [here]

I worked at 2 different law firms.

I got married.    [here, here, here, here, here & here]

We honeymooned in Italy & Bora Bora.  [here]

I got Gracie [here & here] and then she passed away [here].

I retired from law firm life.[here]

I was pregnant.  [here]

In between it all, I traveled to New York [here], Las Vegas [here], Michigan [here], Korea, Taiwan [here], Hawaii [here] and Hong Kong [here] several times.  I also traveled to South Africa [here & here], Koh Samui [here], Bali [here], Punta Mita [here], Cabo, Kansas City, Florida, D.C. [here] and Arizona.

I had a baby!    [here]

Way back when I was a little girl I had a bunch of dreams…become a lawyer, travel the world, find the love of my life, have a fabulous wedding and have a baby.  30 is a special age for me because all of those dreams have come true!

A Few Favorites

Favorite Gift

I just received one of my all-time favorite gifts (other than the Xanga book) — a pair of earrings.  It wasn’t for my birthday, Mother’s Day, a push present, etc.  Andy just gave them to me to say “thank you for being such a good mom to Evan” and “I love you.”  I will never forget the words that came with the gift.

I’m ecstatic but a part of me feels guilty having something so extravagant when the economy is terrible and people are struggling.  Once I get more comfortable with this whole thing I’ll wear them out more.  For now…even wearing it at home makes me so happy because it reminds me of the meaning behind this gift.

Favorite Blanket

Is it weird that I’m in love with a blanket??  I first found out about the Aden + Anais blankets when I saw that almost every single baby in my mommy & me group had one.  They said they loved it so I started my research.  I was curious why these blankets are so great since they’re much more expensive than regular receiving blankets.  I obsessed about them for a whole week – scouring the web for info.  I finally bought a bunch and oh how I wish I knew about these before!  Read Amazon reviews here.

The blankets are made from 100% cotton muslin breathable fabric.  Muslin has a light, open weave so air flows through the material.  I love how soft and thin the material is!  There are so many different uses~ I use it mostly as a stroller cover, for swaddling, as a blankie to lay on the ground and even to entertain Evan since he likes looking at the patterns.

A Great Deal!

I’m so happy I can share another great deal with you!  My friend’s friend has an online baby boutique called Eggy.  They carry the Aden + Anais blankets!  There are so many cute things on the site in addition to the blankets.  The best part is that they offered me a special 30% discount!  Enter fandf30off at checkout.

Hi hi!  We’re baaaccckkk from Maui!!  Thanks so much for your thoughtful tips and comments.  Will post photos soon but for now just a quick post on my baby bear!  I’m soo behind.  I like to post new entries after I’ve had a chance to respond to all comments/messages/e-mails but I haven’t had time~!  We just got back from Maui this week and next week we’re off to Michigan.  In between Maui & Michigan I have 4 birthday celebrations, 1 Mother’s Day celebration, 2 sets of friends coming over, 1 playdate, 1 babygroup session, 1 photo session and a ton of errands~ busy but fun!    

100 Days

100 Day Celebration

We celebrated Evan’s baek-il (100 days) with a small bash.  It was so awesome to have our closest family and friends with us to celebrate Evan’s big day.  We don’t have much family close by so it meant that much more to have our friends there for us.  They’re just like family too.  I feel truly blessed.  Seeing them all there for Evan made me so incredibly happy…happier than if it had been an event for me.  If you love my baby bear, I will love you for life! 

One of the best moments of the day was seeing our family friend who is 100 years old with Evan.  The two of them together signify the true miracle of life.   

The Winner is…

Hey jpjchen~ congrats!  I’ll be sending you the Teething Bling necklace and bracelet!  I’ll message you to get your address.

For everyone else~ check out the Smart Mom Jewelry website and type S-SKIPPEE at checkout for 25% off your entire purchase! 

[Click me!]

A Grandma Bear with the Youngins

My sis-in-law is getting married next week!!  I’m so excited and happy for her!  She was recently in LA for her bachelorette party and I got to hang with the girls.  I felt like a grandma bear next to all the youngins but they were all soo sweet and made me feel welcome.  Check out my SIL’s post for more pics!

Happy Mother’s Day!

I leave you with a poem my friend sent me today…it totally touched my heart, especially since this is my first Mother’s Day as a mom.  Happy Mother’s Day everyone!  Have a wonderful weekend with your loved ones!    

Before I was a Mom,

I never tripped over toys

or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn’t worry whether or not

my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind

and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held down a screaming child

so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night

watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held a sleeping baby just because

I didn’t want to put him down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces

when I couldn’t stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small

could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,

I didn’t know the feeling of

having my heart outside my body.

I didn’t know how special it could feel

to feed a hungry baby.

I didn’t know that bond

between a mother and her child.

I didn’t know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,

the joy,

the love,

the heartache,

the wonderment

or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn’t know I was capable of feeling so much,

before I was a Mom.