Sunday Funday

As many of you already know, Fall Sundays in the Hustedt home are FOOTBALL days! Yesterday was no different, however, there was more football than usual. Page and Steve decided to create their own football game. Page started with TPing our living room with yellow streamers. It then turned into some sort of game where they threw their footballs into the pile of yellow streamers. Either way, they had a blast! Then, there's always just the good old "watching the game photos"! Enjoy the wonderful photos of the two of them having fun on Sunday Funday!!!

Fun Weekend

We had such a fun weekend this weekend. I was a little down on Friday night and Saturday morning... wanting a night out, but Steve surprised me with a great night in on Saturday! We spent the day together running errands and taking a nap (as most Saturdays go) and then I made a yummy Chicken Parmesan dinner. After we put Page to sleep (who he must have bribed because she went RIGHT to sleep) we sat outside on the front porch for a little while and then came in and played Monopoly on the Wii. Steve knows I LOVE board games and he LOATHES them, but we were able to meet in the middle by playing board games on a video game console! WIN-WIN!!! We had such a great time, just playing and joking around. What a great evening.

Today, Page slept in so we all got up together and I made a big breakfast for us all. Page decided she wanted to go out. She didn't want to stay in the house for a relaxing Sunday like Steve and I had planned. So, we turned it into fun. It's still MUCH too hot to do anything outside, so we decided to take Page to the Baby Mall (i.e. Babies R Us) and registered for Logen! Let me rephrase that. I registered for Logen and Steve and Page played in the toy section and picked out some toys for Logen. We all had a blast, though! I went a little crazy with the register gun. If it had a monkey on it... I scanned it! He's going to be a little monkey boy!

It made the weekend complete. It's all really starting to come together with Logen. It seems like this pregnancy is going by so fast. We bought our tickets for our Thanksgiving trip home last week and we are SO excited! Steve's mom is throwing us a baby shower the Saturday before Thanksgiving so we decided to go ahead and register at Babies R Us and Target. I can't wait. Page is really excited for her little brother to arrive. She's so cute, kissing my belly and always asking to make sure he's OK. She's going to be a VERY good big sister!

So, there is only one way to end this weekend right! We are watching the Bears Preseason game tonight. I know they played last night, but it's not televised here until tonight. We've been pretty good about making sure not to watch anything about it, but we did hear Brian Urlacher got hurt. :( Other than that... tonight is BEARS football! And all is good with the world!!!

Have a great week everyone!

Filled with Emotions

So, this blog is kind of just to wrap my head around news I received today. I know my thoughts are jumbled, just bear with me.

Today my 90 year old grandpa had surgery to stop some bleeding caused by his bladder cancer. Unfortunately, when they got in there, they couldn't do anything to stop the bleeding. This is after he was told a couple months ago that the cancer was spreading and there was little they could do in the way of more chemo or radiation. Today the doctors told my mom (who is an only child) that there was nothing more than can do. It could be days, weeks, months, or even a year. But the inevitable will happen soon. What hard news to hear about your Dad. I couldn't even imagine. It's hard enough to hear about a grandfather. The doctor suggested hospice to my mom. My grandma is obviously VERY against hospice, as she knows what that means. My mom is a nurse, and I think that's harder sometimes on her. Yes, she can talk to the doctors a little better, but sometimes it's easier not completely understanding what's happening. So, now the decision is where to go from here. When Grandpa woke up from surgery, he asked Mom what they did. She told him they couldn't fix it completely. He knew something was wrong when he went into the hospital with one catheter bag and now has four. Mom didn't tell him anymore. She wanted to give him today, and tomorrow she'll lay the harder news on him. He's a very stubborn man and hates to ask for help, so I know any kind of help, especially hospice will be hard for him.

I have one sister and brother who still live in the area and are able to help Mom if she needs it. I feel bad being so far away. All I could do was call Mom several times today to make sure she was OK. I'm doing OK. I've prepared myself for this. After going through this with Grandma and Grandpa Rolves, I kind of know how to respond a little better (at least for me). It's hard and it's sad, but what I'm really worried about is my Mom and Grandma. Grandpa has lived a very long, good life. While it will be VERY sad when he passes, he lived a good life. It's those that are left behind to mourn him that I worry about. All of my sisters are going to be back home in a couple weeks, so all five of us kids can be there for Mom and to help out in any way that we can. I know it will be hard to leave again, but we've been through it before. It doesn't get easier, but I learn to deal with it a little better.

I was talking to my sister today and I admitted having a hard time. With my Grandpa Rolves (Pop), Steve and I were still living in Springfield when he died. My sister, Becky, and I drove down on a weekend and went to the hospital to say our goodbyes to Pop. This was horrible. It was days before he passed. I will never forget that strong farmer, laying motionless in his hospital bed. More than that, I remember my Dad and his reaction to us girls telling his Dad goodbye. I don't know which was worse for me. It was one of the worst feelings ever. With Grandma Rolves, we left after Christmas on New Year's Day and she was at Mom and Dad's happy, but admitted she had a little cold, so she would only hug us goodbye. Later that week, we found out her little cold was actually brain cancer. She lived another 3 long months. That was the last time I saw her, happy and herself. I thank God for that last memory of her. I tell you all this because I don't know which was better, getting to say goodbye or a happy healthy memory. I am struggling with that decision in regards to Pa. I know that I have to go see him when we're home. It's selfish of me to make that decision for me. He needs to know that his family is there for him and those he will leave behind. I will just personally struggle with it.

All of this happening to Pa, like I said before, makes me worry about my Mom. She is a very strong woman, but I know she puts a lot on her shoulders. I worry about how she's holding up. I know nothing has happened yet, but when it does, everything will happen so fast. I hope he does live another year. That would be great, but it's not completely realistic.

It also makes me think about my own Dad's mortality. It makes me sick to even think about it. I'm such a Daddy's Girl. I can't even imagine my life without him. Just yesterday he called just to talk to Page. It was the sweetest thing ever! She loves her Papa SO much. I hope my Dad lives to 90 or older, too! I guess this all just makes me think about my life and how I should treasure every moment of every day. I hope to live into my 90s and have many children and grandchildren to care about me in my time of need.

OK, I think that's it for now. I just needed to get some of that off my chest to help me work through it. I hope this blog doesn't offend any of my family, as it was only meant to help me through this time. I know we'll all come together as a family when the time comes. That's what is important. Please keep my grandpa, grandma, Mom, and other family in your thoughts and prayers.

Canaan's Visit

Before I even start this blog, I want you to know that I seemed to have lost my camera. :( This is not a good thing. I either need to find it, or Steve promised I could have another Mother's Day present and get a new one. :)

That being said, we just ended a great visit with Steve's brother, Canaan! He arrived late Thursday night and just left a few minutes ago. We had a great time. Page and her Uncle Canaan have a very special relationship so it's always nice when they are together. Canaan had shaved all of his facial hair off, so Page was a little hesitant at first (that and us getting her up from nap too early) but eventually, she warmed up to Uncle Canaan and had a great time with him.

Over the weekend, we grilled out, went swimming in the pool, went to the Zoo, celebrated Mother's Day at South Mountain and out to dinner at Buca di Beppo, and LOTS of hanging out! We had so much fun and we will definitely miss him. Canaan got tons of great pictures and video on his new snazzy camera, so once he gets those to me, I will add them to the blog, but for now, you're just going to have to take my word for it that we had a great time.

Be careful driving back Canaan, and we will see you in July!!!!

What You've All Been Waiting For...

Here are some pictures of Page from the last few months! She is growing like a weed!

Pic. 1: Page and Aunt Vicki

Pic 2: Page playing outside

Pic 3: Steve and his new grill

Pic 4: My first "dip" in the pool

pic 5: Page and Uncle Jered at her first baseball game of the season - Uncle Jered caught her the ball!

More to come.....

I'M BACK!!!!

Ok, so my friend, Danielle, brought it to my attention that I haven't blogged since Thanksgiving! Wow! How embarrassing. So, I'm here to try it again and to try and actually keep up with it. It's been a busy few months, but now that things are calmed down a bit, I hope to keep up with blogging. I'll catch you a bit on the last few months. Sorry, this may be a long one!

Since my last post, many exciting things have been keeping us busy. We went back to IL for the Holidays and it was great. Page got to play with most of her cousins and aunts and uncles. She got spoiled to death, and loved every minute of it.

After the holidays, we returned back to AZ and back to work. Steve had a VERY hectic schedule and was travelling a lot. He had a lot of meetings and A LOT of stress. Page and I tried to keep the stress level down at home for Steve, and just tried to enjoy our time together when we had it. Thankfully, things are calming down for Steve at work and the stress level should decrease.

In March, my brother, Jered, decided to make his first visit to Arizona. He was on Spring Break from college and decided that a little Spring Training Baseball was what he wanted to do. Page LOVED having him around and so did Steve and I. Unfortunately, Steve was working that weekend, but we made the best of it! We all went to the Phoenix Zoo on Phoenix's first warm, sunny day of the year. It was great. The next day we had tickets to watch the Chicago Cubs play the Chicago White Sox in their Spring Training game. Unfortunately, IT RAINED! I know, it never rains in Arizona... except when we don't want it to. So, we ended up renting a ton of movies and having a movie/video game night. It was a lot of fun. The next day, we were able to buy different tickets to watch the Cubs play the Oakland A's. It was a great time. Steve had to work in the morning, but he met us there and Uncle Jered even caught a foul ball and gave it to Page! She was in Heaven (and he was, too)! The following day, Steve and I were back at work so Jered decided that instead of sitting around and playing with the Daycare kids, he'd go watch another Spring Training game. This time, he caught himself a ball. What are the odds?

Jered left and we haven't visitors since, but it's been nice enjoying the spring days at home together. Page and I enjoy playing outside in the warm sunlight and Steve enjoys grilling with his new grill! The Daycare is going great. I even hired an assistant yesterday to help out on days when I have too many kids and for our summer vacations! We have some exciting plans coming up in the next few months, so watch for our DisneyLand trip, Tad's Wedding, and our summer trip back to IL. I think I'll it at that for now. I'll try to get some recent pictures on here, too! Enjoy!

Tis the Season

Page didn't like sitting still for a minute during the parade

Here she is playing with the road sign... she played with it for a long time.. Steve supervised

Here is Page and me at the Parade. We had a great time!

Page and Aunt Lydia at the parade. Page made her rounds.

My first turkey EVER... it was pretty yummy, too!

Page at South Mountain... Doesn't she look like an angel with the light hitting her..

Page is leading Steve around the mountain

What a cool new seat she found... if only she didn't keep trying to jump out!

Page, Maison, and Taylor enjoying the snow!

Page and Maison in the snow!

Page enjoying the snow at Glendale Glitters - yes they brought in real

snow for the kids to play in - it was great!

Page and her Aunt Lydia at Glendale Glitters

Page and Daddy on the shuttle bus coming back from Glendale Glitters... She's such a cheeser!

Here is the house finished with all the decorations! Page loved it!

Wow... it's been a while since I've been on here. Alot has happened in the last couple of weeks. First of all... Miss Tricia's Daycare is FULL!!!! WOOHOO!!!!! I actually had to turn someone away today! What a great feeling! Then, Steve's sister, Lydia, and her family, Paul, Maison, and Taylor, came out to celebrate Thanksgiving with us. We had a great time spending the holiday with family. We went to the ONLY Thanksgiving Day parade in AZ, in Fountain Hills, again this year. We then came back to the house and I cooked and labored in the kitchen all day. The dinner was yummy and a success. I even made my first turkey. I may be biased, but it was delicious! On Friday, we took the Burrows to South Mountain. They all enjoyed the view and we got many pictures while we were there. That evening, we attended Glendale Glitters. This is a weekend festival that has been going on for 16 years here in Glendale. We went on opening night and attended the Grand Lighting Ceremony. It was a lot of fun and Page loved it! Even though Page loved the Shuttle bus that took us to and from the fair, her favorite part was the lights. We left with her asking for lights and trees... How could we disappoint her? After Steve brought Lydia and her family to the airport at 4:30 in the morning, we later decorated the house! Page was thrilled when we took her outside for the grand lighting of our house. She loves the tree and the lights outside. We love this time of the year and we can't wait to get to spend it together and with our families. We leave for IL in 15 days!!!!

I'm trying...

Wow... this last week has been a rough one. With all of the stuff with Steve's sister, Christi, and now I find out my Grandpa is in the hospital and his cancer tumor has grown. I'm usually the person who would take these opportunities to feel sorry for myself. I'm trying a different approach now. Steve has been telling me for years to be more positive and let the negativity go. So, that's what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to be strong for Steve and for his family. I'm trying to be strong for my Mom and my family. I'm trying to be strong for Page and for myself. Things were doing OK... I was succeeding most of the time, but it just seems to keep getting harder. I'm trying to make a change and God isn't allowing me practice, he's throwing me in. I guess I should be thankful for that. There are SO many things to be thankful for right now. My daycare is finally full, which means we should be financially set for a little while; I've had a great week with the daycare kids; my daycare parents are awesome and I couldn't ask for any better; I get to stay home with my daughter - what I've always wanted to do; I have a couple more days/nights to spend with Steve before he leaves on his business trip; Christi is alive and we have a second chance to help her; my Grandpa is 87 years old and has lived a full and enriched life; and so much more. I'm trying to focus on all of that. I have such amazing family and friends who supports me and my family and everything that we are dealing with. I am very lucky and have so much to be thankful for this year. It helps to get these feelings and thoughts out of my head. It helps me to really think about all I have. Even though there are some tough times right now... and even very tough times, we are lucky to have what we have and should not take that for granted and utilize every day that God gives us as a gift to help and serve others. I need to stay strong and stay positive. I have to remind myself of my oldest and most favorite quote: "God won't give me anything that I can't handle." I can handle this. I will get through this and I will be the support that my family needs. I am blessed to be a part of such an amazing family and extended family. I am proud to be both a Rolves and a Hustedt. I know I am biased, but I think they are two of the best families anyone could ask for. So please, continue with the prayers and please understand if I have a momentary lapse of positivity, but I am trying... I will keep trying... God is good.

Getting Closer

Well, the time is almost here. Next week is Thanksgiving and then we move into the Christmas holiday! We will be leaving for home one month from tomorrow. We are so excited. The events with Steve's sister this past week have really made us realize and appreciate all we have and how much we have to be thankful for. We can't wait to spend Thanksgiving together like last year and then move into Christmas!!! We have our Black Friday tradtion that we are all looking forward to. Every year on Black Friday, we avoid the stores at all costs!!!! But, we do put up our Christmas tree, all of our decorations, and give Page her Black Friday gift (it's an ornament). She gets to put her new "gift" on the tree first and then we decorate and have fun together all while listening to Christmas music. We can't wait. I think Page will really enjoy it this year as she is older and can relate to more. Then, starts the baking season. The brownies, the cookies, the candies... yum yum.... We'll be sure to take LOTS of pictures and plenty of video to share with everyone. This is our favorite time of year and just knowing that it is quickly approaching brings joy to my heart!

What a great day

As many of you probably already know... I know my husband knows.... I can be a pretty negative person sometimes. So, with that said, I wanted to make sure everyone knew how great of a day I had. Nothing special happened. Today was day 2 of 3 of my full days with the daycare this week. This isn't a regular thing, I'm usually only full 2 days a week, but I'm definately not complaining. Today, one of my regular Tuesday and Thursday girls, came with her older (5) sister for the day while Mom worked in Maricopa (a city about 40 miles south of Glendale). Anyway, the 5 year old attends Pre-K on Tuesdays and Thursdays while Allison is here. Today, Madison (the 5 year old) brought her homework along from Pre-K. She was so excited to work on it and she was so smart. When she was done working, she wanted to keep going. I made some worksheets for her and we worked together on them. She was so excited when she learned how to do soemthing new. I loved it! I guess I didn't realize how much I missed teaching. But then I thought about it and remembered... I still get to teach these wonderful, innocent kids that I work with everyday. I get to teach them before they end up hating learning and while it's still fun. I have the best job in the world.

Also, Allison and Madison's mom brought me an unopened complete set of Your Baby Can Read. She had a couple at her house and thought we might enjoy them. The kids loved it! Page was amazing. She was already interacting with it and amazing me with how much she could do. I am an advocate for the program now... after only one day. I can't wait for Steve to get home from work so Page can show off her new skills. I am so thankful for getting the opportunity to stay home and raise my beautiful daughter, and still get to do what I love... teach! Thanks to all of my friends and family for their continuous and amazing support and love!!!

Thanksgiving Visitors

We just found out that Steve's sister, Lydia, and her family may be making the trip from OK to AZ for Thanksgiving. What a nice surprise that would be. We always miss spending Thanksgiving with our family, but with only a couple days off work, it just doesn't make sense to make the drive... and we're trying to save money for our December trip, so flights are out of the question. So, we hope it works out and that we will be celebrating Thanksgiving with family. If not, we understand and will have fun like we did last year. We are always happy to have family and friends visit. If you know of some time off and you're wanting to visit... let us know!

The Holiday Season is here - so much to do!

So, October is in the past now. Only 25 more days until Thanksgiving. Today, while I let the girls (Page and Maia) play outside and sidewalk chalk, I will be taking down the Halloween decorations and putting up the Thanksgiving decorations. As of right now, it will be another low key Thanksgiving for the AZ Hustedts (unless someone wants to visit us!) We will probably do the same as last year, wake up EARLY, grab a quick granola bar out the door and drive the hour (hour and a halfish) to Fountain Hills for the ONLY Thanksgiving parade in AZ. Let's hope it doesn't rain this year! Page had fun last year, but didn't really get it. I think she'll have alot more fun this year. Then, we'll make the drive back home, have a nice yummy brunch and watch the Christmas Parades on TV. Steve and Page will hang out in the Living Room and I will begin making WAY too much food for the three of us! The holidays are our favorite time of year. We can't wait.

There seems to be so much that still needs to be dine by then. It would be great if I were full by Christmas, but that just might be a Christmas miracle. I do have two little babies starting in January and March, so those will help in the new year! Then I will be full! Steve is still working alot and will be gone some more this month. We need to work on helping him relax and enjoy the time he is home and prepare for our wonderful holidays here and of course... our trip back home. Right now, it looks like we are either leaving on Thursday, December 17 or Friday, December 18. It all depends on Steve's work schedule. We'd like to make it home for the Rolves Christmas at Mom and Dad's this year, but we'll have to see how that works out! So, thus begins a very busy time of year. We can't wait to spend Thanksgiving here in AZ - low key and then spending the other holidays at home with all of our friends and family!

Family Time

Daddy and Page sidewalk chalking Steve is trying to draw pictures for Page.

Page sidewalk chalking.

She's so cute.

Page coloring next to her name so we know how did it!

Pure Bliss!

She loves to color

Well, Fall has finally hit Arizona. The weather is great and our little outdoor baby loves being outside. We take our nightly walks around the neighborhood and the park, but Page still begs for more. She is quite the artist, so we've recently taken up driveway coloring. Page has tons of fun and it allows for some great family time. So, enjoy the wonderful pictures of Page's masterpieces and just Page in general!

Pumpkin Time

Here I am helping Page carry her new pumpkin!

I love this picture. She looks so content hanging out in the straw!

Again... such a cute picture. It reminds me of the farm!

Papa, you need to get one of these!

She's having so much fun!

She loved the straw bales. She's a little farm girl, just like her Mommy

Happy Family

Page and me in the cow tire

Page showing her Daddy how to drive the tractor

"Trust me, Daddy. Papa showed me how to work this thing!"

"Just let me do it!"

Page refusing to look at the camera

WEEEEEEE.... I love slides

Page loves petting goats

What's up with that face?

Which one... which one?

Steve, Page, and I visited a Pumpkin farm today. It was Page and Steve's first time ever. I tried to share my memories of childhood of going to pick pumpins and the fun we had has kids at pumpkin patches. It couldn't even match the fun we had today. Page was tired and "a little" grumpy. Steve tried to convince me that letting Page nap and then go might have been a good idea, but my excitement won out and we went before nap time. She was a little grumpy, but you can't tell from the pictures. She had a great time. However, that is why she is not looking at camera in any of the shots. Page loved the animals (especially the goats). She even saw a cow, that scared the heck out of her when it came right over to her and mooed in her face. Shhhh... don't tell Papa! She did however, LOVE the tractor. She had fun showing Daddy all the parts of the tractor and how it works. She told him that Papa taught her how to drive the tractor, so she would show him. :) It was VERY cute. Page also enjoyed the corn box. This is a large sandbox filled with corn kernals. Papa really needs to get one of these, it could have been hours of fun for Page. I'm sure her cousins would love it, too. Anyway, as you can see through the pictures, even though Page was a little grumpy at times, she had a great time and I think Page and Steve's first visit to a Pumpkin Patch was a great one. We may just have to go back again when she's in a better mood for some more pictures. Here are some of the adventures of Page.

Beaming with Pride

Let me brag about my honey! Steve is out of town at a Conference for work. It is the United Methodist Communicator's Conference - a world wide event held in Nashville, TN every year. Steve (or someone from his team) has been attending this conference for the last three years, since Steve has been here. The first year, they won 2 awards. Last year they won four awards. I just talked to Steve and they won 6 awards this year!!!! One of the articles that he wrote (and was the winner of one of the 6 awards) was directly quoted by the Secretary during a Conference address. How exciting. I am so proud of Steve and his team. Keep in mind that when Steve got this job three years ago, he was the youngest Director of Communications in the United Methodist Church by almost 20 years. He has accomplished so much and made huge strides not only for himself but for the Desert Southwest Conference as well. He is nationally known and has been invited all over the nation to do seminars on communication and much more. Steve is doing amazing things and I'm so proud to be by his side during this all.