Farm Family Christmas

Christmas week started with the Farm Family Christmas at Aunt Kathy's house.  Grandkid picture:

Christmas BINGO!

 Coop met Baby Syl for the first time:

Reading a Lego book with cousins:

The Force Awakens cake, which actually seems oddly appropriate for celebrating Jesus's birthday:

In between Christmas celebrations...

Coop got his blue belt in karate:

Alan took Coop and his best friend Molly to see the new Star Wars movie!!

Wichita Christmas

Coop wearing Alan's hat at the church program:

Oh my word!  Coop was thrilled beyond belief!

Finished!

Fun and Games

Coop got on youtube to watch videos of how to fold an origami book:

His title:  The Big Time Machine:

Alan found Coop these rock 'em sock 'em robots!

My mom sent Coop a Lego Star Wars advent calendar.  He loves it!

More Christmas prep

Coop's annual ornament this year is a ball python with a Santa hat!

One Saturday, Coop and I went to the Lumberyard Arts Center to make gingerbread houses:

I opted for a truck:

The next morning, I found my truck with this note:

And we won this Darth Vader tree in a silent auction!

The tree skirt was the costume, the mask was the "star," and the cape draped down the back:

And after the Baldwin City festival of lights parade, we saw Santa!

Also, some Christmas cookie decorating with friends:

Christmas Decorations

As soon as Thanksgiving was over, Coop and I dug out the Christmas decorations.  Tree:

The Christmas village made an appearance again after a couple of years' hiatus:

Surely there's nothing that can go wrong here:

Oh no!  A giant serpent in Christmas village!

Two new additions.  A Dollar General:

And the Walton's 5-10 store:

Coop put up a small red Christmas tree in his reading nook so his room could be festive too:

November

Jacket-pocket clean-out day so I can watch the jacket.  Mercy.

A Sunday morning at Daddy's house:

At the Raintree Thanksgiving Feast:

We had parent-teacher conferences in November, and they went beautifully!  Alan and I were most impressed with the math Cooper is doing.  Good grief!

Games and fun

Alan bought Coop this fabulous Pie Face game.  We had a blast!

Coop also decided he wanted to take apart my kitchen timer to see how it works.  Seems like a fun experiment to me:

Our friends Gus and Eleanor came over to stay one evening.  Coop found old musical instruments in the basement.  Eleanor had fun "playing" my flute:

And Coop seemed particularly enamored with Alan's old viola:

Coop and I drove to Arkansas for a birthday party for his friends Henry and Caroline.  While we were there, Coop played a fierce game of checkers with his friend Henry:

And then fell asleep in the car on the drive home:

Chicago -- the main attraction!

At the Art Institute:

Looking at one of the Thorne Rooms:

Check out the image in the mirror!

With a portrait of Narcissa Thorne, who created the rooms:

Making a drawing of an object in the room:

Back at the airport:

Souvenirs:

(Yes, a Star Trek book.  No, I have no idea why that was his chosen memento from the art institute, other than he's now into Star Trek.)

Reading the book about the Thorne Miniature Rooms on the plane ride home.

Success!