DUKEY gets neutered!!

This Wednesday, Dukey got neutered!

And

When I picked him up that evening he was still pretty out of it, his eyes were so glassy, and I could tell he was still pretty drugged up!

We decided that because we know our Dukey very well that we needed to get him a cone so he would leave his stitches alone or we would be at the vet daily!

He's not a fan of the cone, which by the way I have decided to call it his bonnet! To me it looks like he is wearing a weird looking bonnet, haha! The bonnet causes him to run into everything and makes it very difficult for him to find that perfect spot to go to the bathroom!

As much as I hate that he has to wear this bonnet, I do think he looks pretty cute and it is funny to watch him maneuver around with it on!

Naughty Biff

So this past Wednesday, Duke got neutered and was gone all day so Biff got the run of the apartment! I got back from work and sat down to check my email when all of a sudden I hear something outside on the porch, I look out there and there is Biff stuck under the patio wall! I of course freaked out because we are on the 2nd floor and if he would of fallen, ahhh I don't even want to think about it! The worst part is that I never would of thought to look outside for him!

So after about 10 minutes I was able to get him unstuck! I then fed him 3 worms, gave him a bath, and decided since I would be home to let him explore and see if he would try to escape again!

Sure enough, he went right back to the patio screen door and I caught it all on camera!

Trying to find the passageway to outside!

Found it!!!

And he's out!!

Now not only do we have to puppy proof our house, but turtle proof it as well!

You might be wondering WHY we have a whole in our screen?

Well, that would be because Duke has knocked the screen door out multiple times and put a hole in it when he is chasing and trying to get the flies outside on the patio!

My Parents Come to San Antonio

My parents came to visit us for 5 days and it was AWESOME!! It was so GREAT to see them! It had been almost 2 months since we have seen them last, so needless to say it was nice to talk to them in person rather then just on the phone! At first, it did feel a little weird having them stay at our place instead of us staying by them, but that wore off quickly and it was a nice feeling to know that we are now able to have them stay with us!

Joey unfortunately worked a lot, left very early in the morning and got home around 7 almost every night, and had to work on Saturday too! Which was hard I think for my dad because they get along so well! I also felt terrible for Joey because he so badly wanted to spend time with them! But we always waited to eat dinner with him, had the evenings with him, and had all day Sunday with him!

My parents and I though went down to the Riverwalk, did the boat cruise, of course had some margaritas, saw the Alamo, went down to the pool, and hung out with Dukey and took him for walks/runs! My dad and Joey also went to the gym together, which was nice bonding time for them and smoked cigars together after my mom and I went to bed! On Sunday, we went to Sea World and then watched the Packer game against the Vikings with our friends from Wisconsin too! It was a great time and I hope they enjoyed it as much as we did!

I can't put into words just how wonderful it was to see them, spend time with them, and show them where we are living and what we do everyday! It is nice to talk to them now, along with Joey's parents because they are able to picture what we are telling them now!

Thanks to both our parents for coming and visiting! It was so very special to us! And just always know you are always welcomed at the Ross household wherever that may be!

11.5 years ago I met Joey,

who became a great friend

For 9 years we were friends,

through many ups and downs,

friends we definitely stayed!

On December 31st of 2006, New Years Eve; that all changed!

Friends we stayed, but just became so much more!

After a year and 3 months of dating,

Saturday, April 26 of 2008---Joey proposed to me!!!

Yes we had been talking about getting married a lot, but he completely surprised me with how & when he did it!

It was a night I will never forget!

We did not have a certain day that we wanted to get married, it just so happened that the hall and the church were both open on November 1st, so that was the day we chose!

November 1st, 2008

I became Mrs. Joseph Ross!

After 27 years of being GERK, I was now Melissa GERK Ross!

For 6 months I planned and planned for this exciting day & it all came together to be a perfect day for us! I think the most memorable part of the day for me was definitely the church part, which is funny because it was the part I was the most nervous about! But I loved walking down the isle with my dad, I felt so incredibly special! Then seeing Joey's face when he saw me for the first time, still brings tears to my eyes! It was such a special moment! I feel so incredibly blessed to have experienced this and that I get to share the rest of my life with my soul mate!

Our 1st year of marriage has been filled with adventure

AND

I can only hope that we have many many more adventures together!

Where did this year go???

Hard to believe that in 2 weeks tomorrow, Joey and I will have been married for 1 year!! AHHHHHH!!!!!!

What a crazy year, so much has happened, and wow did it go fast!
AND

I still think that I am the luckiest girl ever to of snagged Joey!!

This is for you Mom

So my mom has been asking for me to take some updated pictures of our place now that we are more settled! I finally am doing it, even though in 2 weeks mom you will be here and can see it first hand! But I know that this will be nice for others who will not get to come visit us this time around! We are pretty much all settled or as settled as we are going to get while we are here for another 2 months before we head north 2 hours to Fort Hood!

It's been awhile...what have we been up too??

So it has definitely been awhile since I have written on here! Things have been pretty crazy.

The past 2 weeks included: me sick all week equals a trip to the doctor & emergency room; and Dukey getting really sick equals us having to take him to the pet emergency hospital and his vet the next day, where he spent the day being observed and getting him hydrated with an IV!

The highlights of the past 2 weeks are:

- Duke and I were at the dog park one morning where we met Sydney (a Great Dane) and Candace (mom) from Appleton WI. The dogs were playing and so Candace and I started talking and realized we were both from WI. We decided to exchange numbers and planned on getting together that coming weekend! Which we did-we went out to dinner and went to a hockey game! It was a lot of fun! We also got together for the Packer game. The dogs had a blast together! Duke was tired for days after!

He is HUGE!!! And he's not full grown yet!

Dukey in a time-out! Way to crazy!

Other highlights:
-My headache finally went away after having it for over a week!
-Lots of Joey & Duke time!
-Joey's friend Jared coming for a night-it was a fun & very relaxing nice!
-Getting a healthy Duke back after a very long day & half
-LASTLY...I GOT A JOB!! It is coaching soccer to pre-schoolers. During the week I go to 5 different daycares and teach kids how to play soccer! So far so good! Great to be able to contribute again and feel like I have a purpose!