Declan Hercules & Keevah Nyx House: Declan Hercules: Atlanta, a Pink Toga Party, and The Great Pumpkin is coming!

The Great Pumpkin is coming! It's coming! It's coming! ...but not to it's coming to Mexico instead of Napa! We are going to Mexico to celebrate Dia de los Muertos next week. I've been learning all about Mexican culture. We have put up an Altar and an "ofrenda" in our house, and I can't wait to see all the traditions in person. All of that is for next blog post, but we still have had a busy month doing all our normal Fall & Halloween things here.

Our newly installed Altar or "family wall" - Each row represents one generation. Keevah and I are in the middle in the second-to-last row - with all our cousins alongside us. The dude at the tippy-top is my maternal great-great-great-great--great-grandfather, Benjamin Colton.

Me and Keevah with Miss Laura in front of our Altar for Dia de los Muertos

We started the month with a quick trip to Atlanta for Mama's annual ENT Academy meeting. We spent the weekend with Dada's childhood friend, Mr. Noah and his family. Dada and Mr. Noah met when they were about my age and have been bestest of friends since then! He has a little boy, Benjamin, and hopefully we will be friends forever too! I got to see Olympic Park, with the cool fountains and Ferris Wheel too. We had a bit of a crazy departure, spending all day at the airport due to TWO separate engine failures (one of which occurred upon takeoff!!!), and eventually returning to Mama's hotel to spend an extra night in Atlanta! Dada couldn't compliment me enough cause I was so brave and so patient the whole day!

Noah, Emily, Mama and Dada; then Olivia, Elizabeth, Benjamin, and Me

Me and Benjamin (age 7) recreating a photo of Dada and Mr. Noah from over 30 years ago!

Dada & Mr. Noah circa 1986

Me with Dada, and Mr. Noah with Benjamin

Olympic Park in Atlanta

With Mama and Auntie Kristi (she's ENT too!) at Olympic Park

The restaurant in Atlanta had a putting green!

At dinner with Mama, Dada and Mama's colleagues

Thomas Jefferson!

While I was in Atlanta with Mama and Dada, Keevah Nyx spent the weekend with Gee & Grandpa. She loved the park - all set up with tons of bouncy houses!

Keevah and Gee at Smedberg Park (family relative on Gee's side)

Bouncy House fun!

Pumpkin castle!

Feeding the duckies with Grandpa (or Papa, since Keevah refuses to call him Grandpa!)

Keevah with Pinky Bear. Mama got Pinky as a gift when she was one DAY old!

We returned from Atlanta just in time to get organized for Mama's toga party. We threw the party to celebrate the end of her Breast Cancer journey, and have been planning for many months! Everything was perfect - the twinkle lights in the trees, the Greek columns, yummy Greek food, awesome costumes, music, and so many of our friends and family. Everyone had to include something in their costume to promote breast cancer awareness. I spent the night tending to our roaring firepit, and running around with my friend Haines (until we eventually crashed to watch a movie).

Mama as the Greek Goddess Aceso - Goddess of the Healing Process

My whole family (with our little pink items on our costumes as a nod to Breast Cancer awareness)

Mama with Gee

Granddad & Boppy

Hercules!!!

Nyx - Goddess of Night, who gives birth to the Dawn

Mama with more friends - including some who flew in from Minneapolis

Mama with Dr. Steve and Dr. Lois - her ENT partners

Mama's hospital colleagues

So many great friends!

Dada with Dr. Jessy; I couldn't leave the party to go to bed, so I fell asleep right in the middle of the action

Though we aren't going to be in the US for Halloween, there was Trick or Treating at BOTH my school (called Trunk or Treat because everyone decorated their car trunks!) and in the shops in downtown Napa. So, we got to get all dressed up in costume after all! I went as Harry Potter (again!), and Sissy went as the Great Pumpkin. She's wearing a costume that Gee made for Mama when Mama was about 5 years old! It still looks great, and Keevah loved it!

Downtown Napa

Uncle Ben & Mama circa 1982

Napa Riverfront

With Gee & Grandpa

At Mt. George's (my school) Trunk or Treat evening

Cute little pumpkin

Harry Potter mixing potions

It's hard to eat a donut with NO hands!

Keevah found her old costume and had to try it on! It fit shockingly well...just a bit short!

Keevah Halloween 2016

This weekend, Gee & Grandpa are in Napa since Mama is on call and Dada is in Havana for a "boys trip". We got to carve pumpkins with them! I started with a ridiculously complicated skeleton holding a sword, and eventually settled on the classic jack-o-lantern! Keevah wanted a kitty cat, so Mama carved one for her...complete with a spooky spider!