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Face it, babies are cute. What’s cuter than a baby? Um, how about a baby in a teeny-tiny halloween costume? Yes, oh yes. Although they’d probably rather show up for Halloween in their birthday suits, babies are set to be zippered and snapped into all sorts of outfits by cooing parents.

Searches on “baby girl costumes,” “unique baby costumes,” and “halloween baby costumes” are all scaring up a ton of searches. Which costumes are most popular among the parents picking out outfits for their infants? Well, we checked the searches on baby costumes and found an interesting mix among our top 20 searches…

A few closing costume notes…

—We were pleased to see the proliferation of the animal kingdom in baby costume searches. Although we hoped for monkeys to finish in the top spot, the sublime simians can walk proud with a fourth-place finish.

—Pop culture has made inroads in toddler costumes. Who knew that pasting sideburns on a bundle of joy was so popular? We were shocked to see Elvis hit the #3 spot.

—The Force is strong with parents. Princess Leia and Yoda (?!) both cracked the top 20. No Jabba the Hutt baby costumes though? Those adorable rolls of baby fat have to be put to work!

According to Search, autumn is upon us. Whether or not leaves are falling in your area, queries are rising this week on “autumn pictures” (+618%), “autumn leaves” (+28%), and “pictures of fall leaves” (+241%).

It may be tempting to gaze at the fall foliage, but given the slight drops in temperature, perhaps it’s time to stay inside and look for ”fall crafts” (+781%) instead. While you’re at it, create some fresh excuses to stay home for “new fall tv shows” (+364%). Just make sure you keep track of the “fall time change 2007” (+149%) so you don’t miss a second of the boob tube.

The change of season is a fascination of ours. Short of acquiring Seasonal Affective Disorder, we keep an obsessive eye out for the signs of change. Looks like you do too.

Rugby fans mark their supreme event every four years: the Rugby World Cup. Over the months of September and October this year, the International Rugby Board (IRB) is hosting the tournament in France, Wales, and Scotland. The guests? Teams and fans from 20 different countries.

Devotees of the sport have found plenty of ways to check in on their faves through the search box. Over the past week, searchers dialed up “rugby world cup results” (+517%) and “irb rugby world cup” (+152%), as well as “rugby world cup 2007,” “rugby world cup schedule,” “rugby shirt,” “rugby rules,” and plain old “rugby.” Men between 35 and 54 years old are by far the most interested in getting those game results. In fact, dudes in general are searching on the sport more than women. Yeah, no surprise to us either.

One of this year’s favorite teams is the New Zealand All Blacks, attempting to win the World Cup after a 20-year drought. Their intimidating haka, a Maori traditional dance that they perform before each game, is on every rugby fan’s list of sights to see. Even homebound followers are checking out “all blacks haka video,” “haka all blacks,” and “new zealand all blacks haka.” Will they succeed in bullying the other teams? Stay tuned through the tournament to see.

Now in heavy rotation, the commercial for Apple’s new iPod Nano has struck a chord with searchers. As the new colors of the squat ‘n’ skinny Nano flip by, the video of a cute chanteuse singing a simple tune has a sort of magical quality.

Queries on “ipod nano commercial song,” “ipod nano song,” and “ipod nano commercial” all jumped over 350% over this past weekend. Seems everyone wants to know who possesses the enchanting voice behind the raspy “1, 2, 3, 4.”

The woman in question is none other than indie darling Feist. Searches on the singer soared 165% yesterday and related queries on “leslie feist,” “feist lyrics,” and “feist videos” have blossomed.

As for the tune, queries on “1234,” “feist 1234 lyrics,” and “feist 1234” have all hit high notes. Folks unsure of the song’s title have resorted to searching on entire phrases from the tune. Queries on “1 2 3 4 tell me that you love me more” jumped 272% yesterday as curious couch potatoes tried to find out more about the mysterious Feist.

You really like her. Emmy execs, on the other hand, had second thoughts about the former flying nun.

Actually, Sally Field channeled her “Norma Rae” days in her rebellious acceptance speech for best actress in a drama series Sunday night. Her anti-war comments got cut from the broadcast, but the people had to know: Cumulative searches for “sally field,” “sally field emmy speech,” and “sally field censored“ sent her buzz profile soaring 1,000% percent, making her the hottest Search mover in the glitzy crowd.

As far as total number of searches, she squeezed in between the comely Katherine Heigl (whose mother discouraged her from preparing an acceptance speech) and Jaime Pressly (who thanked, among others, her lawyer).

Another big buzz came for Current TV (610%), the interactive channel that added to Al Gore’s award haul. Others getting some overdue love included Robert Duvall (461%) and the miniseries “Roots” (147%) for its 30th anniversary.

However, neither farewell accolades nor much buzz were heaped upon “The Sopranos.” The drama may have won best show, but the actor nominees were knocked off like mob hits. James Spader leapfrogged James Gandolfini in total buzz for his shocking outstanding actor/drama upset. In fact, the Buzz nearly embraced all category winners, but the HBO victor lagged behind loser “Grey’s Anatomy” by nearly three lengths.

Speaking of bumps, a multitude of searches for “christina aguilera pregnancy” bore fruit. Her counterpart and Emmy winner Tony Bennett got some respectable attention as well, although some were distracted by his blonde at his side. Tittering look-ups for “britney spears emmy“—allegedly for the singer to make up for her MTV VMA performance—turned out to be moot.

As for the show itself, the Emmys could beat its own rating lows last year, and perhaps similarly its Buzz. In an example of searches you don’t want to get, day-after inquiries on who won popped up more than 1,800%. Worse, searches for nominees were nearly a third lower than last year—which could mean people didn’t care enough going into that long night. Maybe Sally should’ve run the show instead of Seacrest.

All around the country people are losing their homes at alarming rates, but one place in particular has been singled out as the “foreclosure capital,” Stockton, California.

Stockton—whose motto is “Stockton’s Great! Take a Look!”—has been looking at a rash of foreclosure signs. Stockton’s history as a gold rush town is appropriate given the fact that nearly half of the country’s foreclosures are due to speculators.

We’re not here to pick on Stockton, but “foreclosure“ is in the top 2,000 searches in the Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto metro. With just a slight bump (+10%) in the amount of searches over the past week, are Stocktonians unconcerned with the fate of their neighbors?

Don’t let the percentages fool you, “foreclosures” are a hot topic, and in Sacramento-Stockton it’s hotter than anywhere else in the nation. Other metros concerned with homes on the auction block include Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, and the San Francisco Bay Area.

For a look at how “foreclosures” searches work out in the 50 states, take a look at the map below.

New York Fashion Week swept to another stiletto-studded close. Once again, it left Manhattan littered with overwrought assistant editors, empty Diet Coke cans, and ferocious buzz about fashion designer Marc Jacobs.

Jacobs is considered the king of American cool, and he’s got the buzz (and the complaints) to prove it. The show started two hours late. The clothes were “a freak show“—or “amazing.” The designer, who had recently emerged from rehab, was spotted knocking back alcohol—or not. And bad-for-him ex-boyfriend Jason Preston appeared on the master’s arm at the after-party.

Demand for “marc jacobs” more than doubled in Search. Lookups spiked for his handbags and his second-tier line, Marc by Marc Jacobs. Even the treacherous but little known Preston registered an uplift.

In Yahoo! News, where fashion-related queries are even less about purses and more about paparazzi, searchers wanted stories on the catwalk (”marc jacobs spring 2008“), dirt on who was sitting in the front row (”posh spice marc jacobs“), and the low-down on the seemingly too-small shoes the models had on their feet (”marc jacobs heels“).

Gossip or not, if just a handful of the stylistas searching for “marc jacobs” make an online purchase, this is one American designer who’s guaranteed a long and prosperous reign in fashion—and Buzz.

Halloween used to be all about kids putting on a sheet and mainlining sugar. However, October 31 has taken a decidedly adult turn in recent years and grown-ups are the ones donning costumes and getting their groove on. Some of those middle-aged folks see Halloween as a chance to unleash a side of themselves that remains repressed the other 364 days of the year.

We’re talking about the increased interest in “sexy costumes.” Searches on sexy get-ups are up 35% over the past week and related queries on “sexy plus size costumes,” “sexy halloween costumes,” and “sexy halloween costume ideas” are also on the rise. What naughty outfits will you see around the punch bowl this Halloween? Well, we tracked down the top 20 sexy costume searches for a peek behind the curtain…

Two more scandalous notes on sexy costume Search activity…

—The top 20 is populated with many of the usual costume themes with a sexy twist. Pirates, angels, vampires, and the like. But we were proud to see women and men in uniform represented with cops, firefighters, and military brass on our list.

—The more interesting ideas come from costume searches that didn’t quite have the search volume to crack the list. There are a few furry fans interested in “sexy plush bunny costumes” and a handful of folks searching on “sexy sherlock holmes costumes.” My dear, Watson!

The name Creative Arts Emmys seems redundant. Isn’t TV inherently creative? We get the point—the Creative Arts is the feel-good moniker for honoring those mostly behind the scenes. Aside from token news coverage, the evening of accolades doesn’t get much attention, and no primetime love beyond the E! cable channel. Except when godlessness and genitalia become involved.

The somnolent buzz for “creative arts emmys“ woke up thanks to the blasphemous acceptance speech of Kathy Griffin. On stage, the ribald redhead disavowed any connection between her victory for “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List“ and certain religious figures, and then declared her newly-won Emmy a false idol.

Searchers roared with queries on “kathy griffin emmy speech” and “kathy griffin jesus.” The incident also stirred memories of other estrangements, as people took a new look into the circumstances of “kathy griffin divorce.” The Catholic League has condemned the speech, which will be partially censored during the E! broadcast. So far however, the redhead has escaped any smoting.

There’s also been renewed interest in Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg’s naughty tune about a male body part in a box. The boys seem willing and able to perform the winning ditty this Sunday, but for now it’s all talk. The awards ceremony may want to consider carefully, given low ratings last year. If Three 6 Mafia can pimp the Oscars ceremony, the Emmys shouldn’t look a gift horse in the, er, mouth.

A dead bird rarely inspires tears, but Alex the talking parrot was no ordinary animal. The squawking talker was the world’s first and only “bird genius,” able to identify shapes, numbers, colors, foods, and express annoyance with researchers. Heck, he probably could have won at least a thousand bucks on “Jeopardy.”

Alas, the 31-year-old bird passed away before he got the chance. Once news of his unexpected death hit the Web, searches from aggrieved parrot-heads flew skyward. Queries on “alex the talking parrot” jumped an astounding 347% and “alex the parrot video” and “african grey parrot” both experienced fluttery bursts of popularity.

The cynic may read this and think: “Wow, dead bird, bummer.” But one only has to read about Alex’s final conversation with scientist Irene Pepperberg to understand what was lost. Dr. Pepperberg, going through her usual evening routine, said to Alex: “You be good, I love you. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Alex responded: “You’ll be in tomorrow.”