After the Draft

How is everyone? We miss you all. Spring is in high gear in Pittsburgh and the trees and flowers are blooming everywhere. The Steelers did not draft any safeties but they did pick up a few free agents post draft making a current total of seven safeties. By regular season they will drop this number down to four or five.


Tuff got a new helmet this year so we brought his old one to our small group study for 'show and tell'. In the picture below, Skylar is trying the helmet on.

On Tuesday evening we went to our first Pirates game. They hardly have anyone in the stands because they currently are not the hottest team in the league. We had a lot of fun though because we got to sit in a suite and watch the Penguins play in the playoffs on TV.


In the suite at the Pirates game they feed us a lot, including my favorite, dessert.


Tuff's good friend Casey is getting married! We are so excited for him. To celebrate the engagement I brought back an old photo of Casey and Tuff enjoying a scooter ride together.

Nothing else going on but I did just get a haircut with bangs!

As always I will keep you updated on the latest.

He is Risen!

This Easter was a blessing, as Easter always is. We had fun coloring eggs, attending great church services, and a little golf. Pittsburgh weather these last few weeks has been amazing, with temperatures consistently in the 70's and 80's.

Tuff's workouts are going good. Currently his work weeks consists of lifting and running Mondays through Fridays. April 19th is their first mini camp. Then shortly after that OTA's (organized team activities) start. During that time they work on football drills and build their skills.

Below are a few photos of fun dying Easter eggs. The girls painted them gold.


Tuff and the boys traditionally dyed the Easter eggs.



Tuff at work, spotting a teammate (photo from Steelers website)


Tuff after work


Tuff and some of his friends from work stopped golfing for a moment and posed by one of several tree carvings at Birdsfoot Golf Course, north of Pittsburgh.


Then I made the tree come alive!


Tuff is back to making big divots. Ok not really, but we could not resist the photo opportunity when we saw that chunk of earth laying there.


On one of his days off, Tuff joined a teammate to go fishing with some Steelers fans.


We joined a small group through our church and are hoping to get involved more as events and volunteer needs come up. Other than that we are going on almost a month trying to get Tuff's scooter started. We have tried everything including siphoning the gas.


Finally, how could I forget that its my Mom's birthday today! She is 60 years young. It is also Phillip's birthday (Tuff's sister Jeri Lyn's husband). Also, Derek and Mari Hasselberg (my brother and sister-in-law) had identical twin boys April 6th. Happy Birthday all of you.

Back in Pittsburgh

March third we traveled back to Tuff's hometown of Colstrip to stay with his family for a few more days, then onward to Minnesota for a few days with my family.

My best friend Rachel was visiting her parents in Staples the same time we were coming through so we were blessed to see each other. Below my nephews Beck and Finn and niece Bo posed for a picture with Tuff and Rachel's son Eli.


The Grove Family (Jeremy, Rachel and Eli)


We got together with Rachel's family (my second parents) at Tower Pizza, the main go-to eatery in Staples.

Eventually we made the drive to Milwaukee, Wisconsin and flew out of Milwaukee airport to Kalispell, Montana for the Whitefish Winter Classic, a fundraiser that raises money for transportation and lodging for sick children traveling to bigger hospitals. Montana does not have a children's hospital or any major hospitals so when a child is very sick, their family usually travels to Denver or Seattle. Doug Betters, former Miami Dolphin, started the Winter Classic 25 years ago. He invites about a dozen NFL players to participate in the Classic as celebrities to help raise the necessary funds.

Last summer I made a post about an RV getting stuck trying to go to the baggage area of the airport...well it happened again, only this time a semi. What was he thinking?


Flying into Kalispell, Montana


On Friday as part of the Winter Classic, the players ride to the top of Whitefish Mountain Ski Resort and sign autographs and interact with anyone entering the lodge.


After signing autographs, the University of Montana group posed for a picture. Each of the guys below played football for the Griz and now play in the NFL.


The Winter Classic also put on a Play 60 event, an NFL initiative to get kids moving at least 60 minutes a day.


Dodge ball


The photo below made the Daily Inter Lake paper. Its Tuff holding a four year-old as a shield while playing dodge ball at the Play 60 event. Tuff throuroughly enjoys playing with kids and he doesn't tire out like most adults.


The final night of the Winter Classic


We flew back to Milwaukee at 9:00pm Sunday evening and drove through the night back to Pittsburgh so Tuff could make his 9:00am team meeting. Off-season work-outs officially started.

A special thanks to all who we visited over the last few months. Thank you for a place to stay (or offering a place to stay) and for working with our unscheduled schedule. With your hospitality and love our off-season was very blessed.