Happy Birthday Baby Haefan!!!

So onto another birthday already!


To my littlest Haefan Michael,

You have been such a blessing to our family. Your cute face has always been a welcome presence and we are enjoying every moment as you discover the world around you.

I think it is so appropriate that you being the caboose of the Skeehan boys and all, that you cannot function very well - or happily rather - without the loud noises and general chaos that comes with being the youngest of four. I find it harder to take care of your growing spirit when you are alone than when being surrounded by those rambunctious tykes. For this reason, I think getting your best puppy buddy, Fozzie Bear, couldn't have been better timed.

If only I could capture all those special moments you have with Fozzie. I am rather surprised to find out how [exactly!] similar you and Fozzie are. You have the same desires, the same interests, the same naughty behavior, and most especially, the same loyalty and capacity to love. Really, I am astonished how much alike you are to Fozzie - or vice versa. You both chew up the same stuff. You both must always sit on top of or walk over our "space" when doing various projects so that you are the focus of our attention. You eat each others food. You both love sticks and all sorts of outdoor stuff and like to bring it inside. Tennis balls are your absolute fave. The list can go on and on. Best of all, I love that no matter how Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde I might be from one moment to the next, the devotion of you two and your love to me is unwavering.

I can't believe that you were brought into this world a year ago already! On the flip side, I can't believe it's only been a year!!! We've both lived a lifetime in this last year, haven't we? I have to confess that between moving across the country, moving across the street (essentially), and trying to figure out our new lives out here in California in general, the cute little traditions I so sacredly upheld through the years (i.e. taking pictures, recording phases, marking milestones) were often bypassed, or just plain forgotten. I will forever feel horrible for this...but I am so glad that we have been able to have so much fun through it all!

How it all began:

It was an early morning with your water sac breaking at 4am. You must have some sorta sick funny bone built in because you decided to be born on April 1st. First, Daddy was out near downtown Detroit moonlighting that night, so he was away from home. Second, it was EARLY, so I felt bad calling any of the people I had lined up for watching your brothers if indeed I had to make a hospital run. Third, when I tried to call Daddy on his pager and on his cell phone, I got no response. I think he was so tired from an earlier shift that even though he kept both items on his chest when he slept, he was too far gone to hear or feel a thing. So in the process of waiting and wondering what to do next, I announced it was to be your big day on Facebook, which brings me to the fourth item - NO ONE BELIEVED ME!

Thankfully, my best girlfriend there, Sheila, came to my rescue. What amazes me to this day is that she is a "single mom" like me where her husband is gone most days - and many nights - with all his work stuff. And her mom, being in town, for some reason couldn't come and help her with her own kids (Lathan and Steven were best buds in MI and that's how we met) because of an illness or something, so she got them ready and drove them over to hang out at our house at 4:30am!!!! Talk about the love. Man, do I owe her.

FINALLY Daddy called me back at about 5am. When I told him the situation, he hurried home and we were off. Except for Lathan, I had driven myself to the hospital the other times. I'm glad I had him around for that. Once inside and gowned up, I decided that even though I had done all my deliveries "naturally" without epidurals, I was going to shoot for the stars and try everything to avoid Pitosin. For those that know - that stuff is of the devil. Not fun. Makes things go fast; but with fast, comes suffering. So you, me, and Daddy walked a good 4 miles in laps around the OB floor trying to get you to drop and find your way out into this world. Well, with all that walking AND being up before the crack o' dawn, I was EXHAUSTED and relented to taking the Pit after no real progress was made in those 4 hours. After only a little bit of time - I can't remember exactly how long (I'm mixing all of them up in my head right now)- you showed your beautiful face to the world. You were the only baby that cried right away right after the delivery. It was such a relief to finally see Daddy not so stressed at that very moment of your grand entrance.

In this first year, some of the things we've done include:
Those famous hospital onesies are GINORMOUS.


Your distaste for the car seat was immediate.


You on your favorite fuzzy blanket.


Lathan has always taken such pride in caring for you.


You had a major case of jaundice and here you are "sunning."


Your last nap in our Michigan home.


Making friends at the going-away party.


This is where you lived the first two months of your life (not in the restaurant, but the sling, silly)


We went on a lot of walks in this contraption.


Post-move, Daddy was on vacation. There was no stopping him!


Another vacationing moment.


Your family loves the beach, so you (and me) will have to tough it out on those cold days.




At the Oakland Temple doing our part to support our family.


On your way up on the Gondola to see what beauty Aspen has to offer.


At the top of Aspen.


Your hair naturally Mohawked before it filled in.


One of many things to go into your mouth...


Our local community swing set is still so much fun for you.


Just starting to get used to the idea of sitting up to eat solid foods.


At a wonderful birthday breakfast at our favorite restaurant here.


You are one crazy napper.


Books are so much fun!


This is one of those times when Daddy takes a picture with his phone to see if you are actually asleep. ...And the answer is YES.


It is such a treat for you to bathe with the crew.


Sunday afternoon nap.


You love these sleeping bags. I agree, nothing like feeling hot and toasty.


For some reason, you felt the need to hold on tight while you drifted off to sleep.


Your best buddy, Fozzie.


You are so happy in that backpack. I love that Dad gets to wear it, too. :)


We love you so much! I hope you can enjoy your first birthday to the FULLEST!

Crazy of Crazies

So let me just try to sum up just this last week...

Besides not taking pictures these last few months, I have had a lot on my plate and have felt less motivated than usual to really keep up with life. Hence my absence from all things not immediately needing my attention (read: blog).

So, to sum up: SO MANY things forgotten, SO MANY things left behind, SO MANY flaky moments, SO MANY sub-par results and overall inadequacy as a wife, mother, friend, and sister. Is this what four kids does to someone like me? I've (sadly) gotten to the point where when people come over to my house (unannounced, or less than 48 hours notice), I don't even apologize for the mess they see. I have swallowed that bitter pill of pride and said YES! This is how we live - chaos is our norm!

Just one example of my life that is chaos: the family moved in at the end of November, right before T-giving. I had a mental account of what and where various items were in boxes or around the house. Since then, too much has happened and I've since forgotten MANY things. We have two cars (no worries, we haven't lost those yet!) with two sets of keys for each. I have successfully lost one set for each car since moving. I have also, on many occasions, lost the second set; but by some miracle, it has always been found in a short amount of time and we are able to get around town. Well, our lucky streak ended on Wednesday night. Dave and I had a date (a hospital schmoozing gig) and we had most of our ducks in a row with a babysitter lined up, kids fed, house somewhat in order, etc. Once I arrived with the babysitter, we were to be on our way, but needed to take separate cars because Dave was on call and needed to go straight to the hospital for a surgery later that night. And I COULDN'T FIND MY KEYS. We looked for over an hour to no avail. We gave up the date because there no longer was time enough to go out before Dave's surgery and now we only had one functioning car, so I had to use it to take back the 'sitter before Dave left on his way. I was so MAD at myself. Asking questions like, "why am I SO LAME??" And, "what has happened to me that I've fallen this far???" I was really feeling beaten down.

I called a locksmith and asked them what my options were. I was told that these newer cars have computer chips that need to be coded to the car for them to start the engine and the recoding is a pricey service. Just the key was going to run somewhere in the $275 range. And the lock/unlock button key? Another $800 or so. This is after the drama of leaving Dave's car in the shop all day Monday and Tuesday to get his front brakes entirely redone (over $2K). Needless to say that I was not loving the idea. The boys and I prayed with humble hearts that night and we hoped for a good outcome, but none came. I looked EVERYWHERE - in, around, and under the messes. NOTHING. Dave came home late to me curled up on the couch in a fetal position, basically cowering at what life was throwing my way. Dave and I discussed our trip to the Bay Area to see Uncle Pete and decided right then that with all this craziness, it was probably in our best interest to forgo the road trip (since we really didn't have a car to do so anyway!). Also, Haefan had been feverish the few days prior and his cough was becoming more aggressive. We thought it one of many signs that now was not the time to see new baby Tommy. We prayed about it and felt much better with that decision. I was still so bummed and uneasy about the keys, but felt a huge weight lifted for not having to plan a road trip solo (Dave was leaving for San Jose on Thursday afternoon for a conference, so I was in charge of all packing, planning, and driving to the Bay).

Thursday morning I didn't want to get out of bed. I still felt horrible about how I have come to this shameful place in my life. SO disorganized. So overwhelmed. Dave got the kids ready for school while I took care of Haefan when lo and behold, J.J. walked in with my van keys! Right away I asked WHERE IN THE @$&% (no real expletives used!) DID YOU GET THOSE???? J.J. simply said that Daddy gave them to him. The story is that even though Dave and I looked everywhere, when Dave looked in some of the more obvious places that morning again, he found them. Hmmmm...I'm thinking this was the only way that we would have followed the Spirit in not going to the Bay Area. I'm not laughing, but isn't it funny how the Lord works?

I was just so grateful to have those keys back! I could live my normal life again. I'm not quite to the point of getting my rear in gear with organization, but my level of gratitude for many little things in life has skyrocketed north!

That day I knew Dave would be gone in the evening (yet again because of the two previous nights on call), so I really started to feel uneasy about Haefan's cough. I decided after picking Kaelan up from school that since we were going to be driving right by the peds office (and I didn't have their phone# on my cell), and that my handy-dandy peds on call (my brother and his wife, the pediatricians) were out of the country, I would just stop by and see if we could sneak in a visit. I should mention that our pediatrician here is AWESOME and also Dave's business partner's wife (and a member of our church!). We were lucky enough to be seen almost immediately (things don't even happen that quick when we have an early morning appt!) and the doc said that Haefan needed antibiotics for the puss in his ears (ear infections) and the possible beginnings of pneumonia he could be experiencing (his breathing deteriorated very quickly that day). They gave him a breathing treatment, gave me some prescriptions and then we were on our way. The poor kid couldn't breathe through his nose with all the snot nor through his mouth because of his chest congestion. He was miserable! And, of course, this could only be happening when Dave leaves town. I know running away doesn't solve anything; but it sure sounds like a good idea sometimes.

Things are better now. Haefan is still working his way through his illness. I'm still suffering from low self-worth. But I can see the light at the end of this proverbial tunnel.

Thankfully, Kaelan's celebration day for his birthday on Saturday was a success with wonderful weather and fun had by all. Even Fozzie got some love because he was dropped off at a doggy daycare for a fun day and a haircut! I'll post pics of him soon - but be warned that he looks silly, and almost downright weird. I don't think we'll be going back to that groomer :) The only drama that day was that it was so dang bright, I ended up with a mild migraine in the afternoon - even with wearing high-quality sunglasses.

Also, I FINALLY figured out how to mass-transfer pics from my Blackberry to the computer; so, although the pictures here aren't recent, they are new (unless you Facebook, then maybe they are not all not-so-new)!!!

I know that a lot that I mentioned doesn't make me come off as all-to-happy. So I wanted to end this by bearing my testimony of the faith and love I have in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and all of its teachings. I really feel that all things thrown our way (good or bad) are for our growth and experience, to teach ourselves, others, and most especially, our children how our Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us; and how His blessings are miracles in our lives. My experiences this week were just a snapshot of the many things that have been going on in my family's life; and what I've discovered is that when things are good, I feel good and am thankful for the blessings I have from those good things. On the other hand, when things are trying and/or difficult, I notice the blessings of the most simple and uncomplicated things around me - and I am STILL grateful for the many blessings I have. For instance, I couldn't have been blessed with a better family (extended and all!) and a better station in life (maybe I would like it a bit better if I were on vacation, heh heh). I am SO very lucky to know the fullness of the Gospel and have grown so much from it. I hope that if anything, you know that I have a firm testimony (that still needs some growing - or I wouldn't have trials, right?) of Christ and his sacrifice for me.