Baby’s First Christmas in the Sun

Where do I begin?!  A bustling, bright, sunny + HOT Xmas week in SoCal with baby!

Jeff arrived a week ago + baby was so happy to be reunited with his dad after 3 weeks of separation.

Langdon + I decided to celebrate dad’s arrival with a trip to the beach!  A most gorgeous day!!!!  Heaven!  Jeff + I love to go to El Matador Beach north of Malibu.  It has a lot of character with it’s rocky outcrops, it’s dog friendly + not usually that overcrowded because lots of people don’t like to climb up + down the steep incline/decline + stairs.

Jeff found us a shady little nook tucked into the rocky cliffside.

Langdon was not so excited about the feeling of sand + had a mild look of disgust + discontent on his face.  OCD baby???

This baby has been teething something fierce again + was feeling very needy at the beach so we held him on our laps as he ate his snack.

The view from our little seaside haven.

It was entertaining watching Langdon use all his senses to discover all the new smells, sights + objects!  Another mildly disgusted expression as he examines a pod of seaweed with conflicted emotions.  “I love you/I hate you seaweed.”.

Oh glorious day!!!!  Langdon is always entranced by the sound of the ocean + movement of the waves.  He gets all zoned out, mellow + zen.

But at the same time he respects + fears the ocean.  Here he is getting all steely-eyed samurai warrior saying, “Come + bring me your fury, ocean…..I shall hold fast.”.

And then he was like, “Nevermindnevermindnevermind!!!  Mommy!!!!”.  Poor lamb.

Pictures of fat baby feet in sand will never get old.  NEVER I TELL YOU!!!!  Ohhhh it was the most amazing feeling to walk barefoot on the warm Southern California sand again!!!!  Therapy for my feet!

The most perfect day at the beach!!!!  I can’t wait for Langdon to get a little older + then we can wander around the tide pools + discover!

Christmas came too fast again this year!!!!  Our Christmas elf shouting, “RAAAAAAAAR!!!!  GODZILLA!!!!!”.

The most presents this house has probably seen since I was a kid.  80% of the presents were for the baby of course!  So thankful to all my friends + family!!!!

Bongos from Santa!!!!  This boy looooves music + drumming!!!  Weeeeeee!!!!  Wrapping paper!  Must!  Rip!!!!

The household was a flurry of music, excitement, paper, bows + general chaos, as is de rigueur for the Nishinos!

After presents Jeff, baby, Princess Auntie + I went on a Christmas hike to our beloved Cheseboro Park, which shall now be a family tradition!  Not a cloud in the sky!!!!!  Take that, Canada!!!!

Do you like Jeff’s Magnum P.I. short shorts with the cowboy boots?  Yeah, I knew you would.

A coyote!  I’ve seen at least one every time that I’ve ever hiked Cheseboro.  He was a healthy, well fed sucker!

Langdon took a nap as we hiked, + when he returned home he was so excited to see grandma again!

A little bit of tidying up before dinner….I’m so lucky because this baby loves to swiffer + vacuum.

Christmas dinner was a perfectly cooked rib roast, asparagus, baby potatoes + more!  Langdon loves his protein, so I cut an unseasoned portion of mine on the grain + cooked it in a pan until well done.  HE WAS CRAZY FOR IT!!!!!

It’s so fun to share meals with the baby.  I am so glad we were turned on to baby led solids instead of purees!  Langdon sits at the head of the table, of course, because he is a Boss Baby…

This week we also paid our respects to Langdon’s great grandma + grandpa.

And today we took a field trip into downtown to Grand Central Market.

The market is located on Broadway + 3rd St.  It has been a downtown Los Angeles landmark since 1917.  When I lived in Little Tokyo before the move to Canada, Grand Central Market catered to the locals in the nearby neighborhoods.  3 years later we came back to a more hipster, fashionable, foodie explosion!  Take Eggslut – there was a ridiculous line that NOTHING is worth waiting that long for!!!

Don’t worry, a lot of the older vendors are still going on strong!  I had the most delicious carnitas tacos!!!  And while you’re waiting in line to order, the butcher hands out mini carnitas tacos while you wait!!!!  DELICIOSO!!!!  Oh yeah + I almost forgot to mention we struck up a conversation with these two guys while waiting in line for tacos:

The dialogue started when they shared their thoughts about the merits of babywearing.  I didn’t realize tattooed clowns (it’s not makeup folks, he was covered in tattoos!) were into attachment parenting but Langdon + I are super psyched about it!  They were the sweetest guys!

We met up with some of my dear friends for lunch to catch up on lost time.

Jeff in front of an amazing mural with some gourmet ice cream from McConnell’s Fine Ice Cream.  Cardamom Gingersnap!!!!

A sweet, enthusiastic girl offered to take a picture of the three of us.

The family together again for the holidays!  While we may have a slightly unconventional family lifestyle, we are trying to make it work!!!  With all the traveling + long work hours I’m so lucky that at least Canada + the US are right next door!!!!  Plus I am SOOOOOO thankful to be back in California with my mom, dad + big sister.  Ever since my return to Los Angeles 3 weeks ago, only until now do I feel like a normal human being again.  They entertain Langdon, watch out for him, + sometimes feed him + put him to sleep.  I feel like after 8 months, now I truly can enjoy my son, where previously I was so burnt out that I didn’t full heartedly laugh with him + enjoy the moment.  I was a zombie faking it + trying to get by each day.  Anyway I hope everyone had an awesome holiday + 2015 is just around the corner!  Stay tuned – we will be joining some of our Canuck family members in Joshua Tree for New Years!!!!  Desert fun!!!