Happy Halloween!

Fly on Shit and Elvis

Italian man and Cow

Golfer and Solar System (this was St. Leger's favorite costume of Kelly's)

Clockwork Orange and Baby's Momma

Boxer and Vampire

Amy Winehouse

Brett Michaels

Marilyn Monroe and Greasy Bowler

Gone, But Not Forgotten

We love you Zoey

Early this morning, one of the best dogs I have known passed away. Nick and Mandy were the best dog parents and did everything and anything for this dog. Zoey was a lucky girl to have them and we will all miss her very much. I know it sounds silly but Zoey was Otis's best friend and they had so many good times over the years. Roey was a great dog and won't be forgotten. We love you.

Gouls and Goblins From Halloween's Past

This week in honor of Halloween I will be posting some pictures from year's past. Halloween is one of Buzz and mine's favorite holidays. I think we are both about three years old in these pics.

Buzz looks like he was quite the handful. I on the other hand look like a peaceful, polite child. I wonder what our kid will be like...

Meet Greta: The soon to be middle child.

Otis would like everyone to know that he is appalled by the goings-ons in the Refvik household. He himself never acted in such a manner as a young dog.

Greta takes up the whole bed and refused to lie still. Otis is forced to leave the comfort of his bed due to these disturbances.

When Greta is barking too much she is sprayed with the water bottle but she has learned to befriend the water that is supposed to be a punishment.

She destroyed my favorite winter coat in multiple places. I still tried to wear it but I became engulfed by a sea of down feathers.

Finally, she recently added to her shoe toll and has claimed the lives of at least ten pairs of MY shoes. Buzz's shoes amazingly remain unharmed.

Raegan's 1st Birthday

We went to Raegan Park's 1st birthday party in Lombard on Sunday. It was in a cozy log cabin and there was a pumpkin theme.

The Ferengul Family

The Campbell Family
The girls
The Refviks

Luke as Elvis

*My camera ran out of batteries before I could get a pic of the Gormsen family.

The Yucks

Warning:
I have no picture to post. I am about to complain. I've got the pregnancy yucks. It just came on about a week ago. Dull constant headache, generally nauseous feeling, diarrhea, fatigue, crabby...People tell me this will go away in the second trimester but I feel like I won't make it there. I'm being dramatic but it sucks. I have to be pretty on with my kids all day and I feel like a pile of poop. Also, I'm craving chicken and hot dogs like nobody's business. Today while getting my hair done I could smell chicken strips coming from the back of the salon. I actually thought for a second, if I ate those, no one would have to know.

I have started going back and reading some old blog entries from my friends and I am happy to see that Jess Campbell felt pretty crummy in the beginning too. Thank god for blogs. There, that feels better!

On a lighter note, I'm craving mainly fruits. This is highly unusual because I have the sweet tooth of a chunky kid at Halloween.

Tag Days

Meet Dallas. This handsome boy accompanied me to Tag Days on Saturday. He is a three-year old lab/pointer mix. Tag Days is a twice-yearly event at Anderson Animal Shelter. Volunteers sign up for shifts at a variety of Jewel stores in the surrounding areas. We take two-hour shifts, bring a dog and panhandle for money. It's really awkward but I'm pretty good at talking to strangers and it's for much-needed money for the shelter.
Last year I collected in Elgin and made an embarrassing 35 bucks. This year I decided to try St. Charles and made an amazing $192.41. I was so happy. Some people were even giving twenties. A few observations from the day:

• The poorest-looking people give the best donations. They also have great stories to tell about dogs they've known.
• The people in my own age group (thirties!) that drive nice cars and are well-dressed can't be bothered to donate anything. Jerks.
• Most people are suckers for a dog and this dog was a hit.
• Dogs are not allowed in Jewel. Even when chaperoned by the bank manager.
  

All in all it was a great day...that is until I had to return this poor guy to his run at the shelter. He enjoyed being out and since he wasn't my dog, we shared some french fries on the way home. If anyone is looking for a dog, Dallas is a great one!

A Day in the Life of Otis

All I wanted to do was get a picture of the two dogs in their matching Halloween collars. Next thing you know a shark came out of nowhere and chomped on poor, noble Otis. Greta is causing him to grey prematurely.

Somebody's excited!

For those of you that don't know, this is Buzz's mother, Jeanie. This will be her first grandchild and she has been dying for this. We were finally able to tell her last night. Her response was a bit dramatic. She whipped her glasses off and jumped on me and began kissing/choking me. She spent the next twenty minutes between tears and screams. She has already booked our future child for a trip to Disney when he/she is three. JUST THE TWO OF THEM.

I know this woman (who will be reading this blog) is going to be a wonderful grandma but I think I am a little afraid right now. She even said that she will be growing a vegetable garden to make food for the baby! Jeanie didn't disappoint with her reaction and we are excited for her to be a grandma. Just remember Jeanie, whatever you say gets posted on the blog. Just kidding, kind of.

It's official!

We had our first ultrasound appointment on Friday, October 10th. We were both really nervous to say the least. The second I stuck that giant thing inside me the ultrasound lady said, "There's your baby." I guess it didn't seem real until then. I love this picture because she described it as the baby holding a balloon (it's actually the yolk - whatever that is).
We planned to tell our parents that night and tried to schedule something with them under the farce of bringing wedding pictures over. My dad was working overtime and Buzz's mom wasn't free. So we told my parents that night and were to tell Buzz's mom and dad Saturday. Jeanie was busy Saturday too so now we are going to tell her tonight. We are so excited to see her reaction. This will be her and Dan's first grandchild.
My dad said that the real miracle is that my sister didn't tell them I was pregnant. We have our next ultrasound on November 8th. This is where we'll hear the heartbeat.