Happy Halloween!

Zack was a transformer--along with his two buddies, Boden and Emiliano. Yes, it was planned.

Kelly "strongly encouraged" me to dress up to answer the door. And she just happened to have an extra costume. Zack got lots of loot and we had lots of trick-or-treaters. Poor Georgia wasn't so excited about all the door bell ringing and visitors.

Jack-o-lanterns

If nothing else, today was a good day to carve pumpkins. Zack drew the face on his and helped cut it put. I went for a simple cyclops. Kelly and Rob still have to do theirs.

Sleepover

Eyeball cake pops

Thanks, Aunt Kelly!

Dreaming

Zack had crawled into our bed at some point last night. I was getting ready for work this morning when he woke up.

Mommy, Mommy!
Yes?
I was dreaming there were jellyfish in my bathtub! [he sounded bemused]
Really? Was that a good dream or a weird dream?
A good dream!
Were you playing with the jellyfish?
Nooooo [said in an "are you out of your mind, Mom?" tone of voice]

Snoozin'

And then they went searching for frogs...

First fish

Zack had an awesome time on his first real fishing trip today. He and Rob went with Dom and Sean. Not only was it his first real trip, but he also caught the most fish (two) and the biggest fish.

Margaret and I went to a sheep and wool festival while they were fishing. When we got home, Zack was just about bursting out of his skin wanting to show me his fish. He was so excited!

Scarecrow preparation

Rainy day in Connecticut

October Storm

Building a house

He was working on building a(n Andrew Goldsworthy-style) house this afternoon. He must have worked on it for close to an hour, with such concentration. And he informed Georgia that she had to be careful of all the beautiful stuff. He narrated wonderful, fantastical stories the entire time, of going over bridges, sailing in boats, and traveling. It was a joy to experience.

He also took time to pose for the cameras.

Time for a haircut

Can I brag?

Zack drew this picture of himself. Then he cut it out. I was pretty impressed by the fine motor skills required, and by his determination to do it himself. In fact, I didn't even realize what he was up to until he showed it to me. He was just sitting quietly at his table, working away.

His artistic abilities have really blossomed lately, and he spends a lot of time at his table, coloring and creating.

Billy Goat Trail, Great Falls, MD

Conversation.

This was a recent conversation between Zack and I one morning as we were getting ready. As you'll see, he's a man with a plan.

Mommy, we need to buy a froggy.

Oh?

We do. A real one.

What are you going to do with a frog?

I'll hold it a little bit. And I'll step on bugs and give them to the frog to eat. And I'll keep him in a basket (note: by this he meant his bug cage).

But frogs like to be in water.

I'll give him a little bit of water so he can drink it, but not too much.

I see. Where are we going to buy this frog?

Well, we're NOT going to buy it at CVS.



Duly noted. And just for the record, I was NOT able to contain my laughter.

Surprises

I love how I now regularly find pictures on my phone that I never knew existed.

Good weekend.

We had a good weekend. The weather was just absolutely GORGEOUS! We all went to the playground on Saturday morning and ended up running into one of Zack's friends from school and his family, which was a lovely treat. It was so cute to see the two boys run into each other (literally), then pause a second to realize who they'd just run into. Then off they went!

Rob and I went out to celebrate our 12th anniversary and had a lovely dinner. While we were doing that, our little boy was at his very first sleepover and it went perfectly. It was only at our neighbor's, across the street, so it was a good first try in the event that he decided the whole thing was a bad idea. Rob and I were sort of expecting a call, but none came. He had a blast and was on his best behavior.Rob and I, and even Kelly, were thinking it was very strange not to have him around. Not that we reallly missed him---more like we were forgetting something pretty important. But we were definately proud of our big boy.

Georgia and I got a couple fabulous hikes in over at the trail. She is definately excited about the cooler weather.

We ended the weekend with some perfectly grilled tuna, courtesy of Rob. Zack was a big help all around on Sunday--helping me make cookies, setting the table, putting his toys away. A great way to end one weekn and start the next.

Teeth

This cool dude went to the dentist this morning. Rob said he was awesome.

And so THIS begins...

Last night Zack and I met friends at a local crepe place for dinner. This place is a little hole in the wall, nothing fancy--the kitchen is right there, as is the door to the bathroom. He and his buddy had a great time watching them make the crepes, and the woman working there thought they were adorable.

We were about half way finished with our crepes when Zack asks, in a voice for all to hear,"Why is the pancake maker going pee-pee?"