It was Jake’s birthday this past week!! His first birthday as a dad!

For the past few years, Jake’s birthday has always been around UCLA Finals Week. In undergrad, this meant he was either studying for finals or taking a final on his birthday. Now, as a grad student, it means he’s either proctoring finals or grading them. We can’t wait for the day when his birthday is just a normal birthday! Unless he happens to land an academic position in a quarter system university…then maybe his birthdays will be tied to finals weeks forever. But this would be a small price to pay, because Jake’s dream is to be an academic.

We had a low-key celebration for Jake’s birthday. Presents, cake, and dinner. For dinner, we went out to eat (for the first time just the 3 of us) at one of those revolving sushi conveyer belt restaurants. Other than the wait to get in, it was fast, efficient, and delicious. The perfect type of setting for eating out with a baby.

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Other Highlights of the Week

We went to an “Unconventionally Festive Sweaters” Christmas party this past weekend– hosted by Jake’s aunt and uncle. We had a lot of fun hanging out with Jake’s family– eating, playing games, talking & catching up. It was our first time, since sleep training, staying out waaaaay past Baby R’s bedtime. We were a little nervous about how it would go…whether or not Baby R would have a meltdown and scream. She didn’t scream at the party but did cry the entire way home. Trying to change her into her PJ’s, once we got home, was like wrestling a bear. Lesson learned: change baby into PJ’s before leaving the party so the transition to bedtime, once you get home, goes a lot smoother. A lot of the advice we read online suggested doing that and now we know why. Overall, we would call the night out a success! It’s kinda liberating to know we’re able to stay out late (within reason) and don’t always have to rush home to make Baby R’s bedtime. We’re really glad we went to the party. It was fun!

We took Baby R to see Christmas lights!! There is this amazing neighborhood in Torrance, called Sleepy Hollow, and all the houses are decked out in the most elaborate decorations. We went with our new friends, who also have a baby around Baby R’s age. Baby R seemed to enjoy looking at the lights, but was definitely more interested in the people! She kept flashing smiles to everyone. She must have had fun because she was knocked out in her stroller on the walk back to the car. There’s something about having a baby that makes the Christmas season feel more festive.

Baby R has started army crawling! She’s crawling all around her room, going from one edge to the other! It’s so exciting!