Getting Old & A Baby Shower

I'm getting old, now. 

I know, because I just had a birthday. It's not the number of candles that brought this fact home (24 is not such an impressive number) but the way I felt about it.  Every year I celebrate with gusto at least two or three times and make sure everyone knows about it. This year, however, it didn't seem that important. Sure, I had dinner with friends and a joint party on the weekend, and I had a lot of fun and felt very happy, but I just didn't feel like the "my" next to "birthday" was all that meaningful. Does that make sense?

The most important thing is always cake.  Especially when it's a blueberry cheesecake made by Kazuno!!

Like I said, I had a fantastic time, and I am so thankful that I have such awesome friends to celebrate with, it was just different. Better, in a way. Older. 

Or maybe just sleepier. 

I also know I am getting older because of facebook. I'd just started getting used to see wedding after friends' wedding on my newsfeed, when all of a sudden it's babies! 

Now, I LOVE babies. If you don't know that about me... well, you probably don't know me. So, this new online development gives me hours of oooooing and aaahing happiness, but it also makes me a little sad. My friends are having babies while I am on the other side of the world! Shouldn't they wait until I am there to hold their newborns?? 

Stephen and Corissa--I'm talking to you! I wanna meet your little girl!  :) 

Not all the babies are thousands of miles away, though! Luckily, my friend Kazuno and her husband Dameon just had a little one of their own! 

Meet Dion. 

Talk about CUTE!! 

When I found out that baby showers aren't very common in Japan, I decided that I would plan one for them! Unfortunately, I decided that a little late, and the shower had to be rescheduled when little Dion came early. :) I happily made a trip to the hospital to meet the little guy in lieu of having a party that weekend, and we rescheduled for this past weekend instead. 

Baby shower time! 

Since Kazuno is a cool surfer chick, and since it's summer in Okinawa (still), I went with a beach/ocean theme. 

Naturally, I had to have cupcakes to match.

 See the surfer?

Close-up.

 I even made a special "manly" cupcake for the new dad, Dameon. 

What's a baby shower without a little blood and gore?

 There was other food, too, of course. :) I had a lot of fun cooking for this party. I made baked mac & cheese, fancy crackers, grilled pepper quesedillas, and an apple vinagerette salad with roasted walnuts and bacon garnish.

 

 I learned an important lesson, though. Breast-feeding mommies shouldn't eat a lot of sweets or junk food. Oops! Kazuno was happy for an excuse to eat all the food that she'd been resisting, but I felt bad. Next baby, I will make sure to cook only healthy dishes, I promise!

Here are the new parents. No wonder they had such a darling baby. :)

My gift: a diaper cake. 

During the shower, we played three games. The first was a baby shower staple: "Don't Say Baby."

 I made enough origami diapers for each of the guests and attached some safety pins. If anyone said "baby" during the shower, someone else could take their pins. The person with the most pins won a prize. 

Winner in the middle. 

My awesome friends Sarra was a natural and she caught EVERYONE saying it (especially me). She also won the second game, which was to guess how many gold fish were in a jar. Two prizes, Sarra??  :) 

At least she didn't win the third game: The Baby (oops! lost a pin) Belly Game

The object of the game was to stuff the most balloons in your shirt. :) 

 Max won this one. He'd make an awful busty and lumpy pregnant woman, don't you think? 

Overall, I think the party was a success but the main attraction, of course, was baby Dion. :) 

 I am so glad the shower was delayed a few weeks. I think having the little guy there was the best part. :) 

My Birthday Celebration Abroad

Last year, my birthday arrived only shortly after I did. I'd made few aquaintances and even fewer friendships, so I was incredibly nervous about what the day would hold. However, the JET community pulled together for me and made it a truly memorable event. 

This year, my birthday rolled around pretty unexpectedly. The month of August was thoroughly chaotic. Between departing JET parties, arriving JET parties, and just-because parties, I didn't really think my birthday would or should get that much attention. However, the JET community (and friends) donned it's red cape of party-excellence and was there for me yet again. 

Photo by Sarra

I feel pretty guilty even admitting this, but even though I didn't think much would happen, for the past two years, I've had, not one, but TWO birthday parties. 

Last year, I had a yakiniku dinner on the day of my birthday and a beach BBQ party that friday. Both events were well attended by JETs I had met, had befriended, or who became my friends that night.  I felt so special and so loved, even though I was new to the island. 

This year, I had a cafe dinner on the day of my birthday and a salsa dance party the following weekend. These birthday  parties were attended by many JETs who I've grown close to over the year, some who had just arrived on the island, and a handful of local people who have become close friends, as well. 

Photos by Kate

I know that sounds completely selfish, but.... well, actually, it kind of is.  I LOVE birthdays.

 I love mine, and I love other people's. 

I would celebrate all week long if I thought I could get away with it. :) 

During this, my 23rd birthday, I learned that there is something to be said for being consistent.

When I lived in Kirkland, I wanted to go to a different restaurant or a new coffee shop every time. That didn't always happen, but it was my goal. I thrived on novelty.  But now, everything is novel. All the time. The language, the culture, the people, the locations. So, when I find a place that I love, I go there again, and again, and again. I've become a "regular regular," and, boy, do I see the benefit of that now!

Photo by Kazuno. 

Photo also by Kazuno, but from Kate's camera. :)

For the night of my birthday, I asked the owners of my favorite cafe, which I have talked about so many times it's ridiculous, if I could host a party there.  Kazuno-san and I have chatted many times since I started coming to her cafe once a week, so she said she would save me a table, stay open past closing, and even bake a cake! 

That night, nine people came when I had only expected five! I was so blessed and happy, but a little worried about what I had told Kazuno-san. She, however, was fine with the last minute change and gracefully made space for all of us. It turns out that she hadn't just saved me a table, but had reserved the whole cafe for us! Furthermore, she baked not just any cake but an incredibly delicious chocolatey cake of joy! Yes, JOY!

On top of all of that, she gave me a gift: 

this gorgeous mug made by a local artist. 

Photo by Kate

I am so grateful to Kazuno and her mom for creating such a lovely, relaxing, joyful evening for my celebration. Also, for all of my friends who came at the last minute. From my Okinawan neighbor, Taeko-san, to Kate, Yang, and Max, to my coworkers and my driving buddy, to Jules, who spent her last evening in Okinawa  buying me a present and driving to my party. That girl is a saint.

(more than are pictured here) Photo by Sarra

If I am not at Cafe KUGAFU, you can probably find me at the location for my second birthday party: Bomba Latina. I first stumbled into this salsa venue/mexican restaurant on a quiet Sunday night. There were few patrons, but the owner and server danced with me and my friend until the wee hours of the night. After that, I was hooked. I'd been to a few other salsa clubs in the city, but this one had a totally different atmosphere and I knew it was a place I could come back to week after week. So, I have. The owner, Teddy, is an entertaining guy and a great dancer. He is always friendly and knows me by name. 

When I approached Teddy about having a big bash at his bar, he said, "YES!" and even agreed to host a short lesson for free.  So I sent out the requisite F

acebook invite and, once again, was shocked at the turn out. There were definitely more than twenty people there! 

 Not only did Teddy hook me up with a venue and a free lesson, he also bought me a cake! 

And Sarra cooked one as well!!

That's a total of THREE birthday cakes, people. That's unprecedented! 

This is was the night of dancing I could only dream of, usually. Everyone was enthusiastic and willing to dance with me, even if they didn't know how and had never danced salsa before in their lives! I didn't sit out a single song that I didn't want to, and laughed and grinned more than I had in months (and that's saying something). As the night went on, the numbers dwindled down, but I didn't leave until my coworker dragged me out, kicking, at 4 a.m. I could have danced all night. 

From America, a ton of people blessed me with their well-wishes, too. I got more emails and posts than I can possibly reply to in one sitting. I am especially glad I got to talk to my dear family on skype. I love you guys. :) 

So, this year, I know that I'm blessed I have met so many people to celebrate with. I look forward to each of their birthdays, so that I can return the favor. :) 

Long live birthdays!