Halloween Haunts

I love the fall! It is my favorite season, and the weather is finally beginning to change along with the leaves! Ezekiel and I have been enjoying the seasonal change. We have begun taking a morning walk each day. Two days a week we are walking on the Los Gatos Creek trail. On the other days I vary between going to a trail and walking around the neighborhood. He is great on our walks and just looks around or sleeps.

We have recently joined a couple of local playgroups, thanks to a recommendation by Cousin Andrea! These have allowed me to get out and about and meet other new moms. Of course, Ezekiel doesn't do much playing during our playdates yet, but he seems to enjoy staring at the other babies!

Of course we have had a couple of fun events lately! With the change of the leaves, we decided to take some pictures of Ezekiel in the leaves. Ethan raked up a big pile, and we threw him in.. o.k. we gently placed him in the leaves.
Ezekiel in the leaves with his pumpkin.

Ezekiel begins to sink into the leaves...


Next came Halloween, which was a lot of fun. On Friday, Halloween Eve, we went to Vargas and attended the school's Halloween Parade. My class was happy to meet the baby, and it was fun to see all of them dressed up in their costumes. Ezekiel went dressed as a frog. He was very cute in his little costume (the unbiased mother says) even though his hat was a little too big.Ezekiel's little frog costume

Ezekiel takes a walk around the parade.

On Saturday, we traveled to Modesto to see the rest of the family. We began by taking a trip to see Ezekiel's Great Grandpa MacCready. Grandpa and Louetta really enjoyed meeting the little man for the first time. Ezekiel was also lucky that his Grandma Jannie and Lee came to visit him also. We had a great time visiting with all of them.

4 Generations together!
Two Handsome Men!

After we left Grandpa Mac's we went to my parents' house. There, we had a variety of visitors ready to see our little pumpkin. We got him dressed in his froggie costume, and showed him off to his grandparents, his Great Grandma Gordin, aunts and uncles, and his cousins. Later, he changed into his second costume, an ice cream cone!

Ezekiel is finally awake to show off as a very handsome frog!

Kaylie and Sophia are checking out our little guy.

Great Grandma Gordin hold our little frog -- he lost his hat due to warm weather!

Our sweet little sundae, with a cherry on top!

Mom and Dad with their little frog.

All of the cousins together. Kaylie and Sophia were Little Red Riding Hood. Brian is the cow, and Garrett is the bottle of ketchup.

Grandma and Grandpa Gordin pose with the ice cream cone.

When we were young, my Grandma Hilts would always dress up the light pole outside her house as Oscar the Ghost for Halloween. Every year, Oscar had Halloween treats for us. My mom has continued that tradition. So, here is our little boy with Oscar.
All of the kids together.

Out trick or treating

We went to the home of the Helfers. When we were kids, we would always go trick or treating with them. Now, we are bringing our kids to their house...weird!


The moms with babes in arms.

Kristen and Stephen introduce the girls to the new Oscar. Last year, Oscar's mask was a bit too scary, so my mom went with a happy pumpkin face this year!

Brandon even dressed up this year! Here he is with his family.

Halloween was a lot of fun, and we had a great time dressing up the kids and taking them around the court.

This week, we had a visitor. My mom came up on Monday and Tuesday, and we had a good time going shopping and running errands. My mom helped out around the house, folding laundry, packing up the Halloween decorations, vacuuming, and even doing the grocery shopping. It was nice to have her here, not just for the help, but also for the socialization.

Ethan went back to work this week, so since my mom left early Wednesday morning, I have been having my first days alone at home with Zeke. So far, all is well. On Wednesday, we went for our hike on the trail, and we managed to get in about 4 miles. We hit the trail again yesterday for another 2 miles. We have also been out to visit with our play group pals. Yesterday, Ezekiel had a bit of a rough early evening. He still managed to go to bed around 10 pm, but it was pretty shaky from about 5-9. Nothing seemed to calm him unless he was being held and walked around. We managed to keep him entertained for brief spurts by taking him into the bathroom to listen to the fan, running the vacuum cleaner, bouncing him in the chair, etc. Truth be told, I think he had some tummy trouble, so it was just a matter of comforting him as best we could. Today, he seems to be feeling much better. He just finished his late lunch, and he is quietly sleeping on my chest as I type this message.

Yesterday was also his 4 week birthday! He has already changed so much. Last week, he started doing "sit-ups" with daddy. When Ethan tickles his tummy, he lifts his torso up like he is doing a sit-up. Although he has lifted his head since day one, he is finding it a lot easier to move it from side to side when he is on his tummy now. He loves to babble. He will contentedly sit in his bouncy chair and make silly noises for periods of time. He began smiling around week 2 when he would hear weird noises, but this week, he smiled back at Ethan for the first time. Lots of changes, I can barely keep up! We can't wait to see what happens next!