‘The Valley’ stars welcomed their only son in April 2021
Brittany Cartwright and Jax Taylor took a trip to the Milky Way for their son’s birthday.
On Saturday, April 12, the Vanderpump Rules alums reunited to celebrate their son Cruz‘s birthday. With the theme being “Reach Four the Stars,” the newly minted 4-year-old had a space-inspired party, complete with an astronaut costume, rockets, stars and more.
With the help of event designer Picnic and Petal, Cartwright, 36, transformed her backyard for the affair. Activities, which were planned by Kids Creation Lab, included a big white bouncy house and an area to build stuffed alien plushies. The three-tier cake made by Sprinkle Me Cakes and Treats brought a galactic flair to the dessert, featuring astronauts, stars and the moon.
“I always go all out when it comes to Cruz’s birthdays! I have a vision and then work with my amazing party planner, Picnic and Petal, to help execute all the fun details!” Cartwright tells PEOPLE. “We had all of our closest friends over, and my father and stepmother came into town too, which was special.”
“We enjoyed the beautiful day in my backyard by the pool,” she adds on the occasion. “Cruz loves to swim, so it was the perfect day. He had a great time. We just loved spending time with all our friends and family to celebrate such a special boy.”
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Echoing his ex-wife’s sentiments, Taylor, 45, tells PEOPLE his son’s 4th birthday party was “great,” while giving Cartwright praise for her hard work.
“Brittany did such a great job planning it all, like she always does,” he says. “I was on pizza duty. It was a nice time and I’m just so happy we were able to put everything aside for the day and be there for Cruz.”
The Valley stars welcomed their first and only child together, Cruz, on April 12, 2021, in Los Angeles. Since then, there have been many ups and downs in their relationship; however, the one thing that has remained a constant is their love for their son. During a recent exclusive interview with PEOPLE, where the proud boy mom revealed her son’s autism diagnosis, Cartwright reiterated her love for her “better half.”
“Our life is going to look a little bit different, but I feel like I was meant to be his mom,” she told PEOPLE. “He is my better half. He is my little partner in crime. He is everything to me, and even though he can’t talk, I know everything that he wants, everything that he needs. We’re just so synced, it’s incredible.”
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As for her own needs, the Vanderpump Rules alum — who announced her separation from Taylor in February 2024 and filed for divorce that August — said she’s trying to be better about putting them to the forefront.
“It’s been hard to take care of myself, honestly,” she admitted. “It is definitely hard for me to accept help. My friends are always like, ‘You need to have a little bit more time for yourself.’ I just feel like I need to be there 24/7. But’s that’s my new thing in 2025: I need to put myself first more. I need to focus on my health more. Going through this divorce and everything has really made me so much stronger. At the end of the day, everything I’m doing is because of my son.”
For Cartwright, seeing Cruz thrive, despite everything, makes it all worth it.
“I’m just so proud of everything about Cruz,” she said. “He is just the love of my life. He’s learning and growing every single day. With everything I have going on, I always try to stay positive. It can be hard sometimes — I have my ups and downs — but I just feel like I can be proud of myself that I’m staying strong for my son.”
