Birthday Festivities

Young Master Cooper turned 4 years old on February 6, and we hade a fun time celebrating!

The faculty here regularly get together for a Symposium, which sounds formal and educational, but really is just an excuse to gather in the faculty library and imbibe.  I scheduled a birthday symposium in honor of Cooper.  We provided cake (chocolate caterpillar cake or vanilla Toy Story cake), chocolate milk, and Toy Story stickers for everyone.

Some kind friends bought some presents, including this Fireman Sam firetruck.  Fireman Sam is a popular kids character here in England, and his truck is named Jupiter.  Coop slept with the truck in his bed that night.

On Cooper's actual birthday, we were in Edinburgh, Scotland with Alan's parents Jerry and Carol, and his nephew Jonathan.  I dressed Cooper in his "4" shirt (thank you Ellen and Grandma Marlene!), and gave him an "It's my Birthday" pin to wear.

He's not always cooperative for photos.  This was his birthday grumpy face.

After a day of sight seeing, we ended up in the restaurant/lounge of our hotel where we ordered chocolate cake to celebrate.

On the night of his birthday, he ended up with three presents in his bed (which I count as a success):  pirate pajamas from Alan and I, a jester hat from faculty friend Miss Donna, and a kitten hot water bottle (now named Kitten) from the Harlaxton principal and his wife Mr. Gordon and Miss Suzanne.

On Monday the 7th, we took cake to Puddleducks so Cooper could celebrate with his classmates there.

And then on Saturday the 12th, we scheduled a more traditional birthday party outing with the other Harlaxton kids.  More on that next...

St. Wulfram's Church

Grantham is home to St. Wulfram's Church, built in the early 1300s.  It's well-known for the 282-foot spire, which is the sixth highest in the country.

I got a kick out of the doors.  They look so huge and massive, and then a little people-sized door opens.  I felt a bit like a Keebler elf.

The inside was lovely:

Reredos (fancy screen or decorated wall behind the altar):

Lots of people were buried in the church yard and in the church building itself.  (I did not go through the doorway labeled "Crypt."  But I might next time.)  Alan and I got a kick out of the pirate skeleton face on this grave marker.

See the small round objects just above the windows and below the awning:

They're faces!!

It is said that the faces on the north side of the church (these) are making ugly faces to keep away bad spirits.  Regardless, I think they're adorable.

And some even made it inside the building, including a hippo:

We only spent about 30 minutes here (it was during our walking tour), so we didn't get to see all of the fabulous parts of this church.  It's home to the country's first public library!  And an organ from 1736.  And huge, amazing stained glass windows.  We'll have to go back before we leave...

Grantham's History

We took an historical walking tour of Grantham and learned a bit about some of the downtown buildings and the town's history.  I will freely admit that I have a difficult time wrapping my head around how old things are here.  Kansas just turned 150 (yay!).  This place has trashcans older than that.

Anyway, Grantham appears to have sprouted up in the sixth century, and as of 1086, it had 1300 residents.  It currently has about 40,000 people.  Some of its famous residents include Margaret Thatcher, who was born very near here, and Isaac Newton (pictured below), who went to school here in Grantham.

Grantham's Richard Hornsby and Sons developed the first diesel engine (1892) and the caterpillar track (1905), but through bad luck and/or bad business, patented and profited from neither of their inventions.  Grantham is also known for being the first place in the world to train female police officers (1914).

The is the town's Market Cross.  Our tour guide said that the steps of the cross are thought to be original, dating back to 1200-and-something.  The cross itself is actually new within the last 10 years.

But it's the area of town that holds the Grantham Market, which has been happening on Saturdays in Grantham for over 1000 years.  (No, that's not a typo.)  Various vendors set up booths outside to sell things -- rugs, clothes, meat, bread, books, toys, shoes, tons of produce.  We visited one Saturday and picked up some great bread and fruit (grapes, cherries, strawberries).

Apparently, Grantham also is home to England's only "living" pub sign:

The pub is called The Beehive, and that white box up in the tree is... you guessed it... a beehive.  There's been a bee hive there since 1830. 

This is Grantham House is the town's oldest house.  It was built in  1380.  The "new" part of the house (the back third) was added in 1574.

Today, the house is owned by the National Trust, a charity organization that preserves historic homes and buildings, and the house caretakers live there.

We also visited (though apparently didn't take any pictures of) the Angel and Royal Hotel, which is reportedly Britain's oldest inn, dating back to 1203.  Lots of famous visitors, including King John, King Richard III (who signed the death warrant for the Duke of Buckingham there), and Oliver Cromwell.

Sweet Cooper

Coop's doing such a great job here at Harlaxton.  He's adjusted really well, and he seems to enjoy this adventure.  It can't hurt that there are 170 college kids, all missing their younger siblings, and many quite enamored with Cooper.

So, in honor of the boy's 4th birthday yesterday (photos of the various celebrations to come at a later date), here's a post all about him!

Recall that before we left, Coop was in a costume phase.  So we, of course, brought them to England, along with a few regular clothes (though not many).  And the costumes are a hit.  Here's a sampling of some you might not have seen:

Someone gave Coop a Robin Hood hat.  (We're planning to visit Sherwood Forest sometime during the semester!)

I found this Superman t-shirt at a thrift store in town.  Add a towel and a clothespin, and *voila* the perfect costume for flying through the manor:

We walked outside one day as Superman, and you probably didn't know this, but the cape must go OUTSIDE of the coat.  And the coat cannot be zipped up or else people will not be able to see the Superman shirt.

Coop's Santa costume.  Not timely, but still cute.

Even cuter when he gets in the elevator and calls it the chimney.  Here, he's "laying a finger aside of his nose, and giving a nod, up the chimney he rose."

And here he is with his sack of toys:

 This is Blue, from the kids tv show Blues Clues.  Cooper, I mean Blue, is using his paw to leave a paw print on the wall -- that means it's a clue!

A new costume -- chain mail and a helmet!

I bought this one in the gift shop of a castle we toured.  At which point I came to fully realize that Cooper really is just a baby doll for me to play with and dress up in fun outfits.  Like a living Cabbage Patch Kid!

Just like at home, we're starting a nature collection on our dining room table:

A clump of dirt/grass, a couple of big leaves, five rocks (including a heart-shaped one that I picked up), three seed pods from a tree, a chunk of brick, a "family of pine cones," and a yellow flower.

Coop and I both needed haircuts recently, so we found Miss Lisa.  Coop did a great job.

(We bribed him with candy.)

The shuttle driver Zyggy is really sweet and kind to Coop and the other faculty kids.  He even let Coop drive the shuttle van!  (Good grief.)

Ok, this is going to be a really long story.  And it's probably one of those "had to be there" things.  But it's so sweet, so I'm going to tell it anyway.  Feel free to skip the next couple of paragraphs if you'd like.

Coop and I take the shuttle every day, so he's pretty used to the routine.  As we pull up to the castle, Zyggy usually asks if there are any students who want to get off at the Carriage House (the living quarters that aren't attached to the castle), and then he'll stop to let off anyone who lives there.

One day, as we approached the Carriage House, Cooper (on his own initiative) says "Is there anyone who wants to get out at the Carriage House?"  And you could tell that the students (who aren't as familiar with the shuttle routine) couldn't quite decide whether to giggle at Coop or to take him seriously.  Finally one guys says, "Um, actually... I would."

So Zyggy stops and lets him out, and then tells Coop that he's doing such a good job being in charge that maybe he should drive.  So we body-surf Cooper up to the front of the shuttle and he helps Zyggy drive it to the castle parking lot.  He loved it, though he did almost run into the principal's car.

Around Cambridge

We spent about half a day walking around Cambridge.  Whenever we do things like that with Cooper, I'm reminded how simple his enjoyment is and how little I should stress about planning all the right things and seeing all the best places.

Here, for example, Coop spent about 5 minutes talking to this duck.  The duck quacked back.  Sounded like a very pleasant conversation:

The Cambridge city markets.  Lots of vendors selling all sorts of things---cheese, clothes, books, England souvenirs, rugs, produce.

We stopped in The Eagle pub, which opened in 1667.  During WWII, airman from the Royal Air Force and the US Air Force congregated here and left graffiti all over the bar walls and ceiling.  Then in 1953, Francis Crick and James Watson announced (right in the middle of lunchtime, apparently) that they had "discovered the secret of life"---they had come up with the idea of the double helix DNA structure.

An important place.  We used the potty there.

Whipped cream AND marshmallows!

We also spent about an hour on a punting tour.  It's a flat-bottomed boat where the driver (chauffeur, he called himself) stands on the back of the boat and uses a long pole to push off the river bottom to drive and steer the boat.  You can see this type of boat down just beneath this bridge:

The tour was fantastic.  The Cam River runs along the back side of seven colleges in Cambridge, so we got a little history on those places.  And there are fabulous bridges.  This is the Bridge of Sighs, said to resemble the Bridge of Sighs in Venice.  Or at least the Queen said so, and who are we to argue...

Another duck friend:

Many of the university museums in Cambridge have free admission, so we ducked into a couple, including the Zoology museum and the Museum of Earth Sciences.  Coop was pleased.

All in all, a successful day.

Kings College Chapel

Kings College was founded by King Henry VI in 1441.  It's one of 31 colleges in the Cambridge University system.

And it has a fantastic chapel.  Though "chapel" seems too small a word for this place:

Construction on the chapel was started in 1446, and it took over a century to complete.

"We request that visitors not walk on the grass."

Oops.  Apparently only Senior Members of the College are allowed to walk on the grass.  Ducks also walk on the grass, but they have been dubbed "Honorary Senior Members" so that the college wouldn't have to change its rule.  Not so sure about Coop's status as a Senior Member (or a duck, for that matter).

Inside the chapel:

The dark oak screen in the middle of the photo houses the organ, which was a gift from Henry VIII sometime between 1533 and 1536.

And check out this ceiling.  It's the largest fan vault (the name for this style of Gothic architecture ceiling) in the world.

This painting is "The Adoration of the Magi," painted in 1634 by Rubens.  Above it is the "Great East Window," depicting the passion and crucifixion of Christ.

Cooper reading the Psalms.

The day we visited the chapel, this choir and orchestra was practicing for an upcoming concert.  What a treat to be able to sit and listen to them for a while.  Even Coop was mesmerized.

Cambridge American Cemetery

On our way to Cambridge one Saturday, we stopped at the Cambridge American Cemetery, the resting place for over 3800 American servicemen and women who died in World War II.  The United States maintains 24 American cemeteries in 15 different countries, but this is the only WWII American cemetery in the United Kingdom.  It was really moving.

This is the mosaic inside the memorial chapel:

The outside of the castle

We spent a couple of hours one morning wandering around outside the castle.  Here's the front of it.  (Can you see Alan and Coop down in front of the door?)

It may look familiar -- it was the setting for the 1999 movie The Haunting.

And a view of the gate, from the front of the castle.

Lots of lion statutes around:

This is the side of the castle.  The low part with white windows to the bottom right of the photo is the Conservatory.

(Cooper took this piture, which is why we're blurring and a bit off-kilter.)

This is the Gate House.  It spans the drive leading up to the castle, and it actually has two apartments in it.

From the other side of the Gate House, looking up the long drive to the castle:

And the Carriage House, which was once a home for horses, but is now extra living space for students and faculty.

Coop and I making the trek back up to the castle.

And a picture from a different day, when the sun was shining and the lawn was frosted over a bit: