Mother's Day Week

Mum with her 3 boys circa 1972 in Columbus, Ohio. GSL in middle wearing a shirt that an older girl, Kitty Maiche, commented on the school bus as making him look 'sexy'. Not having an iPhone handy to google,
 GSL inquired to Mum what 'sexy' meant....GSL had a new favorite shirt.

With the Princess of Cambridge giving birth to a beautiful baby girl a few days ago, I thought it  fortuitous that those sublimely lovely pics of Kate leaving hospital with her daughter, Charlotte, swathed in blankies to begin Mother's Day week in the United States with our big day being this Sunday, May 10th.  I think the word 'lovely' describes the highest form of feminine beauty and in my view, a young woman is never more beautiful than when she has recently had a child.  A new mother may feel her figure is not at it's best but nothing can diminish the beauty of a mother cuddling her newborn son or daughter. As I mentioned over at Faux Fuchsia's earlier today, Will & Kate are easily my favorite young couple and have brought two beautiful children into this world.  They are a powerful reminder that we need to do good for them...and other children.

Grandma & Grandpa Cooper from Mansfield, Ohio circa 1992 about 2-3 years before they died.
They were both school teachers and their first date was to the Cleveland Ballet...not Grandpa's idea.
They were both the finest sort of people you'd ever want to meet.

With Mother's Day week beginning on American shores, I wanted to honor my matrilineal line this week. While I've always been immediately recognizable as my mother's son, I am very much in the mold of my father's side but taking more after my paternal grandfather and other ancestors more than my own father.  My mother's side were the archetypical Midwesterners from Ohio that went to church every Sunday, sang in the choir, and were deeply grateful for having the good fortune of providing a comfortable home and hopeful future for their children.

Mum at far left. My Grandmother was a graduate of the Oberlin Music Conservatory (now Oberlin College) and taught piano her whole life in addition to being a school teacher and Music Director of her church. My mother played the piano and flute and was in the Duke University Concert Band. I am certain Grandma made this dress as likely every girl's mother did in this group.
My mother also loves to sew and made her GSL a Scottish kilt...which unfortunately a swarm of moths made a short meal of
a few years back when in storage.

In my upcoming children's book series, my pen name is William J. Cooper after my mother's family and our book series will have a philanthropic mission we are calling The Cooper Fund.  After over 4 years of trying to find a suitable illustrator who was available, our first sketches were sent over last week and we liked what we saw.

A sketch for page 1 of Book 1 of a book series I am doing under the pen name William J. Cooper and titled:
The Adventures of Nipsy and Timzy.