A Surprise Update and the Usual

Tuff and I are expecting!  We are just over 12 weeks along now (picture is from 10 weeks, five days), placing our due date at March 24th.  I apologize to those of you I had to lie to upon being asked if I was pregnant or anything related.  We wanted to keep it a secret until now.  And we want to be surprised and not find out the gender.  We are very excited!

Now to our usual news.  Tuff has been doing a great job at work learning the CFL system with all its rule differences.  He is currently playing at cornerback and safety on practice squad.  We hope he gets a chance at punt returner and possibly wide receiver but so far no reps.  Mostly we hope he gets a chance on active roster.


(picture from Edmonton Sun)

Here are a few articles I found that local Edmonton papers wrote:

http://www.edmontonsun.com/2011/08/30/esks-get-tuff?utm_source=addThis&utm_medium=addthis_button_gmail&utm_campaign=Esks+get+Tuff+%7C+Football+%7C+Sports+%7C+Edmonton+Sun#.TmI5ZDhhKJ4.gmail

http://www.montrealgazette.com/sports/Eskimos+sign+Tuff+recruit/5330431/story.html

One of the articles mentions that Tuff brought with him fur lined boots because he made the mistake of thinking Canada was a year round tundra.  Actually Tuff was completely joking but they didn't get it.

Watch the Eskimos play this Friday versus the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on espn3.com at 7:30pm ET (live) or on NFL network at 3am ET!  Hopefully you have Tivo for the second option.

Slow August with Some Changes

Hi Friends.  A few changes have taken place recently.  First our dear friends, the Edwards moved to Houston, Texas August 5th.  The Braly's threw a going away party.  It was very emotional, as the Edwards have made an impact in all our lives.



Kyndal and Kristen made adorable Texas themed decorations for the going away party.

Tuff and I finally got around to taking our annual anniversary picture.  Our anniversary was June 28th so we are a few months behind.  This picture was taken using our self timer right outside our apartment.  It was a beautiful summer day.

The weeds are back!  But now they are in the form of grass.  We always wanted a yard.  Haha.

Finally Tuff is on his way to the CFL (Canadian Football League) tomorrow.  He will be an Edmonton Eskimo.  You will be able to listen to games for free through each affiliate's web site, esks.com.  You can also watch on espn3.com.  Also NFL Network broadcasts two CFL games a week, so you might be able to watch a tape delay if they are broadcasting the Eskimos that week.  We do not know any details yet on what positions he will play, if he will play right away, etc but I will definitely let you know as I find out.  Also we are not sure what he is doing for a cell phone plan so for now just stick to emails (tuffandmary@gmail.com).  For now I will be staying in Pittsburgh, as his season ends fairly soon with the last regular season game on November 4th. 

And just for fun:  A few weeks ago Tuff received a spectacular gift from the Steelers for winning the AFC Championship last season.

Thanks to all for the continued prayers and support!

4th of July Was How Long Ago?

Wow I cannot believe where the time has gone.  It really feels like we just got back from our vacation to Minnesota and Las Vegas, which was June 27th! 

For the 4th of July we did a few things.  First we traveled to Wheeling, West Virginia to see our dear friends Mike and Leslie and Mike's family. 

Trying hats on at Cherokee Gift Shop and Boot!

Showing our patriotism and posing by the flag.

We spent the entire day by the pool and had a blast.

Mike and Leslie bought a disposable underwater camera.  They had an underwater tea party but needed to be further from the camera to get everyone in the frame.

Tuff diving into pool.  The air bubble coming out of his nose looks funny.

The next day we hung out with a great group of friends and the theme of the day was corn hole (I call it bean bag toss). 

Andy, Tuff, Mitch and Brad making up new rules to corn hole.

Now they are discussing that they should throw all four bean bags at once.

Here is a link to the boys playing extreme corn hole:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYysrcdgSik
A festive cake for the 4th.

Getting ready to enjoy the BBQ.  I think this was one of about ten BBQ's in July!  How about you?

Also in July we purchased bean bag bocce.  We thought this would be perfect considering we don't have a yard and you can play with these on any surface.

 

It was fun while it lasted but it only lasted one game.  We returned them and got a replacement set, which also lasted only one game.  Oh well. 

Fun night at the Wright's house.  The ladies adoringly watched as the men played bean bag bocce.  Baby Noah in the background sleeping.

We also walked to the Three Rivers Regatta downtown Pittsburgh, a large three day event including fireworks, speed boat racing and other crazy fun that is all free.

A 20' sand castle constructed during the regatta. 

Tuff loved these Hawaiian drummers.

Just some of the boats gathered around downtown for the weekend's events, including Zac Brown Band and Kenny Chesney.

Tuff is still working hard to stay in shape.  The other day Tuff and Dan sprinted up Troy Hill several times for a workout. 

 Here is a video of them in action:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krotRAFAIik

Finally the lockout is anticipated to end soon, which I won't update you about but I will update you on Tuff's status.  Currently he is unsigned so when we know anything we will let you know.

Senior Pic Remake
Please scroll down to view the senior pic and the senior pic remake.

  

Baby Harlow on her own!  Her mom was quick to recognize the senior pic and provided this photo.