I realize this is a somewhat belated post, but this past weekend was just tremendous, and exactly the sort of thing I should be posting about. Plus, this post has a secret. Read on.

On Friday morning Cooper had a visit from my parents (henceforth known as Grandma and Don Diego de la Vega, apparently). He’s probably too tiny to really comprehend who they are, but he likes for them to hold him, so it’s all good.

The day continued relatively uneventfully until evening, when Chris’ parents were supposed to come by and bring us some dinner. However, first to arrive was actually her brother David, surprising us by making it back from Grand Junction to join us for dinner.

Or so we thought.

The real surprise came a few seconds later when Chris’ realized that along with David were her niece Amelia and her sister Heather, freshly arrived from Austin! We’d been told that they ‘might’ make it out for Thanksgiving, but David conspired to have Cooper meet the rest of his family a little bit sooner. It was a really wonderful surprise and gift.

Sunday brought our final ‘shower,’ a really nice little party at Chris’ cousin’s house. Cooper got to meet all manner of new people, relatives and friends alike… although ‘meet’ might be a generous description. The car ride put him to sleep, he woke up for a quick feeding and then was right back out. Truly his father’s son. But it was still a really nice time, and in addition to a lot of congratulations and well-wishes, we were bolstered with 6-9 month size clothing, which no doubt he’ll be wearing in another few weeks.

We also got received a lovely gift from an old friend; a collection of photos of myself and my parents from when I was itty-bitty. While I maintain that I really don’t have any concrete memories of my childhood before about 5 years old, there’s an undeniable nostalgia in looking at these photos. Thank you, Roger.

And remember when I said this post had a secret? Well, here it is. That photo up there, the baby with the red balaclava on?

Not Cooper. Me.

Anyhow, after the party, Chris’ family came by to visit and relax until it was time for Heather and Amelia’s to head off for their flight. Amelia even got to hold Cooper for a while, which was remarkably sweet. It was really nice to see both of them – even though I really didn’t have much of a chance to visit with her, Amelia really seems to be growing into a very sharp and witty young lady. It’s a shame they live so far away (hint hint). In a few years she’d be such a wonderful babysitter…

All in all, a lovely weekend, and a few pictures to share. Probably some more, should any of the relatives send them along (nudge nudge).