Bless You Joyce Avery . . .

Today at work, an adorable little old lady came in and told me I look ready to explode! Is it weird that her comment made me blissfully happy? Someone thinks I look VERY pregnant. Bless that woman!

Tales of the Belly. . .

Everyone keeps asking for pictures of me and my belly. While it is definitely getting bigger I still am a little embarrassed that I am not showing more. (maybe our little guy is shy) When I tell people or when they ask if I am pregnant they always say "Oh but you are so tiny!" "Are you really that far along?" I am sure they are just trying to be nice. But I WANT to look like a pregnant lady!! oh well! I can feel him in there kicking around all the time, so at least I know that I am pregnant. Enjoy the pics of me and my growing belly!

Kiersten to the Rescue!

Thanks to IM Flash I am left without a husband at night most nights of the week until January. (Thanks for working so hard Scott! What a guy.) One night a couple of weeks ago, I was alone and having a pregnant hormonal day. Meaning I was hysterical for really no reason at all. Kiersten happened to be in town for Thanksgiving and luckily she was brave enough to come spend the night with me. She brought enchiladas (provided by Gwenya), we talked for a while, watched a chick flick, and hit the sack. The next day when Scott had woken up we went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was freezing, but we had a lot of fun!

The REAL High School Musical

For those of you who don't know Disney's High School Musical was filmed at my high school. Amazing right? or not. But anyway East High decided to produce their own High School Musical to be performed at the very place where the movie was filmed. The play received national recognition, not so much for the quality of the play (sorry Erik, it would have been WAY better if you were the lead!) but simply because of the location. Erik played a part in East High's production and we went to see him. I love watching him on stage. For those of you who think you know him, think again. This kid can sing and dance with the best of them. My grandpa was getting such a kick out if it. He loved it.

The Joy of Thanksgiving!

We spent our Thanksgiving in Park City at an incredible cabin that was generously loaned to us by a friend of Linda. The cabin itself was unbelievable and the view was breathtaking. It was so nice to have everybody together in one place again. We had lots of yummy cooking thanks to Linda's culinary skills and Clark's generosity. Amber had surgery the during the Thanksgiving break, but she got sick of just laying on the couch and offered to cut fruit for dinner. The problem was that sitting or standing wasn't an option. So we made her a bed on the counter!! Adri spent the week carrying around her "baby" (aka her blanket) while Sally played Sleeping Beauty. Adri learned how to give Grandma Linda a massage. I don't know who enjoyed it more. Michelle and I compared bellies while she was in town. She clearly wins the belly contest!

Help me with Baby Bedding!

So . . . I am struggling. I don't know what do do for my baby's room!! Please post a comment about the ones you like! Thanks!

Jeremy Comes To Cook!

A tradition is being formed. Jeremy has come the last two years in a row for my birthday to cook an incredible dinner! This year he brought Kody to help and enjoy the cooking party. We started the day at the Asian Markets, getting all kind of ingredients that I didn't understand. The little Japanese lady at the first store was impressed with Jeremy's knowledge and kept asking, "How you know? Where you learn?" It was great. Then it was off to "Emmo" (Emmigration Market) for the pork loin that Jeremy had on special order. Market Street Grill was our last shopping stop. We needed prawns, big ones. Sadly the ones they had were not quite satisfactory to the chef so we had to improvise. Once back in my mom's kitchen the party really got started. We learned how to make gnocchi. It is an Italian pasta made entirely out of potatoes! It was very fun to make. We also made Udon soup (a traditional Japanese workman's soup), magno salad with a lime cilantro avacado dressing, and a Japanese dessert that I can't remember the name of. Thanks Jerem! You are the best! But you already know that!

Once Last Girls Fling with Linda

Before Linda flew back to Texas all the girls got together at Gardner Village to enjoy the Halloween festivities and each other's company. We wandered around the shops, admired the trinkets and clothes, oohhed and aaahhed at the little kids costumes, checked out the funny witches and enjoyed a meal at Archibald's. It was so great to have Linda here for a few days. It felt like home. We were sad to see her leave but know the Texas boys need her too!

I have been tagged . . .

Here it goes:
1. I simply adore my husband - I can't imagine my life without him. He is my everything and I fall more and more in love with him each day. Cheesy but true.
2. I am secretly jealous of pregnant women with big bellies who experience strange pregnancy symptoms (like cravings or swelling) - I feel like I have been a pretty boring pregnant lady. More emotional than my usual self but nothing too exciting.
3. Currently, I am totally engrossed by the Twilight book series - Yes, those are the young adult vampire books. It may sound silly, but they are really addicting.
4. I love the fall - I love everything about it. I love the chill in the air that begs me to put on a comfy pair of sweats and indulge in hot chocolate on the weekends. I love the colors and the smells. I love the atmosphere of the changing holidays - Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas.
5. I absolutely love football - Call me strange, but I love to watch football! I love curling up on the couch with family and/or friends and getting all worked up about the game. It completely relaxes me. I feel like I can let go of everything else when I am watching football. I love to get lost in the game.
6. I can't wait to be a mom - It is terrifying, yet exhilarating at the same time. Some days I feel like I am crazy for trying to be a mom, and other days I can't wait to start this new phase of life. I am excited and terrified for the challenges that are ahead.

So now it is my turn to tag my fellow bloggers! I choose. . . Megan, Capree, Bexi, Nick and Elisa, Tara and Owen, and Katie May. Now you guys have to post 6 facts or habits about yourselves. Then at the end of your post, tag 6 other people and post their names, and then go to their blog and leave a comment letting them know they have been tagged and ask them to go to your blog for the rules! HA!

Belly Progress . . .

I am now twenty weeks pregnant!! How did this happen!! I can't believe how fast the time has flown by! My belly is starting to stick out a little more. I still just look thick around the middle though. The most exciting news is that I have been able to feel our little guy moving around the last week or so. It took me a while to recognize the sensation as the baby moving. It is a strange combination of a tiny finger poking me, and bubbles inside me. I love it. It is so reassuring to feel him moving! There really is a baby boy in there! After our ultrasound Scott and I went out to buy something for our little guy. We bought him a race car blanket, some blue onesies, and a blue hat and sock set! I am so excited we are having a boy.

Bruderer Reunion!!

It was thrilling to be able to spend a little time with Clark and Linda and the rest of the kids. We have missed being able to be together all the time. Although the circumstances weren't entirely planned, or reason to celebrate, (We love you Adam!) we loved being able to be in the same room with each other again. By the time this picture was taken, it was a little late and we were a little loopy. Oh well, it was fun to laugh together!

OUCH! for Amber!

Amber sacrificed her mouth for the sake of research a couple weekends ago. She had her wisdom teeth pulled, but just on one side, they thought it would be fun for her to go through this twice! Her cheek looked extra swollen, but I think that was mostly because we could she her normal cheek vs. the surgically altered one. (For the record, that is ice strapped to her face and a cold cloth on her head to help with the nausea.) April and I got to play nurse all weekend with Amber. It was great. Actually very relaxing. All three of us have been working really hard lately and it just felt incredible and relieving to have an excuse to veg all weekend long. Thanks for getting your wisdom teeth pulled so that we could have a veg out weekend. I am looking forward to round two!

The Final Results Are In!!!!!

It was so amazing to finally see this adorable little boy in my tummy!! There really is a little one in there! He was rolling around like crazy but we got a real good shot of "HIM." Throughout my pregnancy I have really felt like it was going to be a boy, but you never know. The first time I saw him on the monitor I said, "Look! There HE is! Oh wait! I still don't know!" Shortly after that he proved to me that he was in fact a he. It was so reassuring to see him, and know that there really is a little one in there. It was even better to know that everything looked good, normal, and healthy. His heartbeat was strong, his spine was intact and straight, kidneys looked good, bones were there! In the top picture it looks like he is sucking his thumb. We have an ultrasound shot of my brother that is almost identical! They videotaped the whole ultrasound for me so I can watch it on the days that I am doubtful that there really is something in my tummy!

Pumkin Patch!

I think everyone should go to a pumpkin patch and pick out their own pumpkins! There is a huge pumpkin patch on 90th South on my way home from work. Last month I noticed that the once barren field was FULL of pumpkins! And there were tons of people wandering through them with wheelbarrows! So that was Scott and I's date night the other night (Isn't he so handsome! I am so lucky!). We went to the pumpkin patch and picked out our very own pumpkins. It was much more exciting than grabbing one out of the bins at the grocery store! I can't wait to take baby boo with us next year. I decided that this is going to be our new Halloween tradition. I love this time of year!

Conference Weekend

Jason came up to our place and went to Priesthood Session with Scott on Saturday night. They took a trip to a luxurious drive through called Carl's Jr. foll0wing the meeting. Sunday morning the Utah Bruderer clan met up at April's for some delicious French Toast and to watch the Sunday Sessions. It was so nice to be with family and veg out. We all took naps in between sessions. Very relaxing. After the last Sunday session we had a soup buffet which was delicious. Being pregnant and having an unsatisfiable hunger at the moment I had some of everything! To top the night off we played a rousing game of scum! Scott and Jason were clad in matching lounging clothes and looked very macho! I made the girls take a "belly picture"with me for my pregnancy journal. I told them to suck in to show how "pregnant" I am. (So maybe I am sticking it out a little!) Silly I know!

Baby Furniture!!

Hooray! Baby furniture for free! Almost. We need to repaint it. This is the baby furniture my brother and sister and I used when we were babies, and my aunt used it for her last two girls. It is in great shape considering it has been through 5 babies! I am so grateful to have it and happy to see that it isn't as dated as I remember! Poor Scott has another project on his hands! We find out in eight days if we have a little boy or little girl! Oh I just can't wait!! Here is a sideways picture for those of you nagging me for one! I know I don't look pregnant yet, as my cousin Tara calls it I am in the thick fat stage. The stage where there is definitely a difference in my body but you can't really tell if I am pregnant or just getting fat.

Lunch at IKEA

Scott and I were having yet another IKEA excursion last weekend. ( It is a regular adventure when you are trying to furnish a house on a budget!) And like every trip we passed by the cafe. I had just made a comment that I was starving (pregnant!) so we should go somewhere after. Scott is not a fan of the cafe because they have "weird food." Suddenly he yells, "They have chicken fingers!" That sealed the deal. We had our first date at the IKEA restaurant. We were very pleasantly surprised with the quality of the food and the price just made it all the better. We splurged and split a giant piece of cake for dessert. We used the little kid forks because they are way more fun than boring metal ones! YUM!

Brenda and Zack Take the Plunge!!

Zack and Brenda's wedding was beautiful. It was at the Springville Museum of Art, very appropriate for the art kids. This was the first wedding I have been to at the SMA and I am a fan. Brenda did design her own dress, but dared not damage the fabric by her own hand. It was gorgeous and perfect for Brenda. Their wedding photographer(s) consisted of the BYU photo program. It was awesome. Pretty much everyone in Zack's year was there with a camera in hand! There was a joyous reunion between me and Gaby!! Oh how good it was to see her after being away so long. I must say that New York has changed our little midwest Gaby. She is now full blooded Manhattan. She looks incredible and oh so chic!! I can't wait until our next reunion. Hopefully in March some time! (hint hint)

15 Weeks

Well, I figure that it is about time for a pregnancy update. I am now 15 weeks pregnant. I really am beginning to show a little. But Scott and I are really the only ones who can tell (except for sneaky Angela at my work! She busted me this week as being pregnant!). Last week at my second prenatal appointment Scott and I got to hear the baby's heartbeat! That was amazing! I was so glad that Scott was there with me! The heartbeat sounded like a strange techno ocean wave. Scott kept trying to mimic the sound the whole way home. He got pretty good too. My next appointment is in three weeks and hopefully we will find out if we are having a boy or girl. So get your bets in soon! Luckily by now my morning sickness has gone away. No more strange tummy business. Now I am just left with headaches and exhaustion. But it will be worth it in the end!

A Trip to the Fair!

Scott really wanted to go to the fair this year. So we made a date night out of it! We had so much fun! We wandered through a very "different" photography exhibit, watched kids fish at a pond that was no bigger than a kiddie pool (I didn't see anyone catch anything), watched a wild turkey race, ate corndogs, perused the merchandise and visited all the livestock! I think everyone should go to the fair just for the fun of it!

Battle With The Wall Shelf

Being first time home owners, Scott and I learning how to do things by ourselves for the first time. This is even harder considering Clark isn't here to bail us out. For example we were trying to install a shelf in our laundry room and had a little run in with the drywall screw. It got stuck in the wall. Go figure! The only problem was that it wasn't in there right. So we had to pull it out. Those things are tough! It took us about a half an hour! (Pardon the just got back from running look)

Megsie Comes to Town

Megan came for a visit! Hooray!! While she was here we had an awesome BBQ / Bridal Shower. Boys and girls were invited! Good food, great company, funny games, and lots of laughs. One glorious evening when she was here we went out to dinner with Capernicus and some other friends. We had a lovely dinner at Mazza and then went for some Luna's Italian Ice. We were enjoying the pleasant evening air when the crazy wind / rain storm hit very suddenly and very dramatically! Clothes racks from sidewalk sales toppled, umbrellas took off, potted plants flew off tables, signs fells over, etc, etc. Sadly Capree was caught with some debris in her eye. And yes the white specks in the photos are debris not strange flash effects.

A Walk Around the Lake!

When Scott and I have a day off and finally have an evening to share with each other we like to go on walks around the lake in our neighborhood. So I thought I would share a few of those fun moments. We are so lucky to be where we are. The lake is two blocks West of us and the temple is two blocks East. It makes for very nice walks. We also like to explore the neighborhood because it changes every day. Houses are going up so fast here it is quite unbelievable!

I Swear It Is True!!

So I found this cartoon today and think it adequately describes my current state of mind and body.

The Dangers of Work

So I came into the studio early on Tuesday to get a head start. Nobody was there yet so the studio was nice and quiet. I walked into the back room of the studio to put my lunch in the fridge. I noticed some brochures on the floor and thought, "Hmm that is odd." Then I looked over to discover that during the night our entire shelving unit had collapsed and dumped its contents onto the desk with the computers!! Oh Boy!! Needless to say the place was a disaster. Miraculously we were able to restore order in about 4 hours in spite of the intermittent power outages!

A Sofa, A Loveseat and Chairs . . . Oh My!!

We finally have furniture!! Yeah!! I can sit down at our table now and have a meal with other people and then sit in our living room on actual couches instead of laying on the floor! The joy is overwhelming!!

Baby Package

Grandma and Grandpa Bruderer sent us and our future baby a love gift!! It was such a lovely surprise to find a big package in our mailbox from Texas! We got two amazing baby books to read to our little ones and teach them all of the animal sounds that grandma wants them to learn. Included in the package was a pair of awesome maternity pants for me! And yes I have worn them already, I wore them for a whole day and they are amazingly comfortable! Thanks grandparents!

Park City

Scott wanted to get away for our 3rd anniversary. So we went up to Park City for a night. We explored the outlet malls for a while. Then we crashed in our hotel room for a few hours. We had dinner at Park City Pizza and Noodle. We walked main street for a while and peeked into the cool galleries up there. I found a fellow mother to be during our wanderings and stopped for a picture. We ended the night with ice cream at Cows and a movie. It was a lot of fun. It was just too bad I was having a really bad run in with morning sickness. So sadly I just laid there most of the time. But my good husband was just excited to be with me.

Hike to the Y

In all the years that Scott and I were in Provo we had never hiked to the Y. So the lot of us decided to make an adventure of it. Kara, Amber, Scott and I made the long trek uphill. It was a lot farther and a lot steeper than I thought it would be. But it was so fun to have all of us together. The actual Y on the hill is gigantic!! HUGE!! I have no idea how they did it! It looks like the surface of the moon. We did our hike at night at with flashlights. We sat up on the Y trying to find different locations across the valley. It was a lot of fun until we found huge spiders crawling around!!! Time to go!

IHOP!

The Bruderer kids all got together to celebrate everyone being in one place! April just got back from Europe and Michelle and the girls were still here before going back to Vegas. So we all got together for some yummy breakfast. The others didn't know but Scott and I handed out our fun little cards to everyone at the table. Everyone opened them and then launched into high pitched screams! It was so fun! Hooray for having a baby!!

The Secret Is Out . . .

A baby Bruderer is on the way!! (well another baby bruderer, congrats to Steve and Michelle as well!) I am due on March 10, 2008!! Which makes me about 11 weeks pregnant. I haven't been very sick up until the last week or so. I have really learned what morning sickness is. No puking, but the constant stomach ache and nausea are really starting to get to me. Scott has been such a trooper the last week. He has been faithfully waiting on me hand and foot. What a guy! I completely crash on the weekends. I am still working full time and plan to keep working through my pregnancy as my health permits. I haven't announced it to my work yet. I am still working up the courage. I had my first OBGYN appointment last Monday. I got to see our little baby inside me and watch it's heart beat. It was amazing. It started to make it real that there really is life inside me. I am so excited to be a mom!

Nieces!!

While Steve was away at boot camp in Alabama, Michelle and the girls stayed in Bountiful with Michelle's parents. Lucky for us they were pretty close for a while, so we got asked to babysit last week! So fun!! We went to the park, played lots of dress up, had mac and cheese, played the piano, threw rocks in the lake, and horsey. We are sad they are gone to Vegas now, but are happy that they get to be with daddy again!

Goodbye Provo. . .

So Megan and I challenged each other to photograph our walks home from work (like 6 months ago), and I finally did it. After my last visit to FOV Editions I walked home with my camera. Here is what it looks like!

We are Grown Ups!!

We did it! We bought a house! And we love it. We closed on June 27th and moved in the on the first of July! (which is why there has been a lapse in blog updates!) It is a townhouse in Daybreak. Our street has the lake on one end and the new Oquirrah Temple at the other end. We have a larger front yard than most because it is part of the walking park that leads from the lake to the temple. It has three floors (we lucked out because it was already finished so we got more house than if we had to build it), four bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths, kitchen, laundry, patio, garage, family and living room! I will post pictures of the rooms as the boxes go away and furniture replaces them. We kind of feel like we are camping. We got a lot of furniture from Clark and Linda since they are moving to Texas (thanks again guys!), but we hardly owned any ourselves. So we have a baby grand piano, a bookcase I put together, a kitchen table (no chairs), two stools, a love sac, a desk from ikea, tv, and a bedroom set. So if you come over in the near future you will probably be sitting on the floor! But we love it. I can't even tell you how amazing it is to be able to do laundry at my own house!! No more dragging it all over! I just have to walk downstairs!! Brilliant! (our house is the one in the middle!)

Lake Powell Bruderer Style!

How could a trip to Lake Powell be bad, really? This year we had almost everyone there (Kara was on a senior trip and Adam was working. We missed them). We also had a fun-loving guest join us! My sister Kiersten!! Hooray! Kiersten and I sucessfully dragged Clark and Linda out of bed around 6:00 am. We tried to sleep in, but our grandpa has us trained that as soon as it is light you ski. Amber, Tom, Jason, and Scott were our wakeboarding experts. Scott also mastered the knee board. April, Davis, Kiersten, Linda, Clark and I headed up the slalom skiiers. We celebrated Father's Day at Powell this year. Happy Father's Day to Clark, Steve, and someday Scott! We did an excursion to Cathedral Canyon and Rainbow Bridge. We got to a section of Cathedral canyon that was really narrow. We managed to get the boat through and we found a cool swimming hole on the other side. Kiersten, Linda and I decided to push the boat back out!! Somehow this trip ended pirate themed again. Big surprise, seeing as I married the King of the Pirates. Davis was our most faithful pirate. Otherwise known as Capt. Cut and Jump. We played in lots of pirate games, including: Pirate of the Island, and Pirate's Dice. After somebody had an impressive run they received an "AAARRRRRGGGHH" with a pirate hook hand from the crew on board. Scott had some fun with facial hair. He started with a full beard and worked his way down to a sole patch by the end of the trip. We also got to test out an air chair while we were down there. It was hilarious to watch! The trip was full of good food, lots of sun, and laughs until our last day. That is when two engines died and Linda, Kiersten and I had to brave the channel during peak hours to go to the marina to get gas. Oh man. The water almost tore our boat apart and left us with sea legs for two days!

A New Job!!!

Today I, Britta, got a job offer to be the studio manager for Silver Pelican Photography! Hooray!! This is as close to a dream job as it gets for me! I will be making appointments / calendaring, taking care of customers, viewing appointments, wedding consultations, sales, phones, advertising, studio management, front-desk, re-touching, and associate photographer. I will be able to have my hand in almost everything that goes on there! I am so excited!! As an associate photographer I will be first in line on shoots after the full time photographers! And I will receive a commission off of the shoots and print orders I am involved in! Silver Pelican Photography is located in Salt Lake in Foothill Village! Check out their website: www.silverpelicanphotography.com. Hopefully I will be on there very soon!!!

Paparazzi?

Well Capree and I quit our day jobs and decided to commit our best creative efforts towards pursuing Hollywood Celebrities!!! Psych!! We heard about this shoot for a "movie premiere" that needed people to pose as paparazzi. It was paying $30 an hour so why not, right? And we didn't have to actually shoot. There was no film in our cameras! They just wanted the visual effect of the flash and the "impression" that we were taking pictures! HA! We were under the impression that we were either posing as paparazzi for an actual movie premier or that we were extras in a scene for a movie involving a movie premier with paparazzi. Once we arrived on location however we we totally confused. Only one other paparazzi member had an SLR with external flash (which was in the requirements for the shoot). The others had little point and shoot digitals! We were told that we needed to yell at the people coming into the party like they were celebrities and we were paparazzi. Hilarious! Then we realized that it was a Hollywood / movie premier themed party! And who was throwing the party was very unclear. All we could tell was that there were a lot of senior citizens and a lot of alcohol. So the first thing we assumed was that the sweet senior citizens were getting scammed out of their money. But that guess was also very wrong. Capree and I googled the company name the next day and found out that the host company made external bladder bags for those who no longer had control of their bladders or bowels!! AWESOME!!! Talk about a photo adventure!!

The Last of the Trio!

Ben was the last of the amigos (but certainly not the least) to find an excellent woman to stand by his side. We were so glad we could be there with them to celebrate.We will miss you! Of course Ben and Scott had to trade jackets at some point in the evening. Nice. Now we just have to convince Ben and Nick to come back to Utah so that we can get our three houses all in a row!!! Ben and Lexi are heading to Chicago and Nick and Alisa are heading to Austin, Texas. Good luck guys!