Charlotte!

We are now in Charlotte for the summer. Brett is an intern for Bank of America for the next 10 weeks. He really likes it a lot. He is a learning consultant... I don't know exactly what he does, but he gets paid and likes it, so it is all good! We are living right downtown - well, they call it uptown here - so it is kinda like being in NYC, but there is not as much going on. The bank put us up in a great apartment that we like a lot. We have laundry and a bedroom, a regular bed, a walk in closet - it is heaven! Brett can walk to work, so that is nice. I am nannying for the summer. It is definitely something to keep me occupied. This weekend we decided to take a little road trip. We are hoping to take quite a few this summer. We went up into the Blue Ridge Mountains... and camped. I must really love Brett to have done that :). I am not a camper, but marriage is about compromise, so I have to do it once in a while. We didn't really camp I guess - we slept in our car at a KOA. We did have a campfire though. We woke up really early Saturday and went mountain biking - quite a feat for a pregant lady - to a lake and walked around downtown Asheville. We stayed with Brett's cousin Saturday night, went to church Sunday and then came home. It was a great trip. I guess compromise isn't so bad.... Our next trip is to a beach though. :)

Random

Here are some random pics from our trip

1. Christie and I went on a sister date with Lorraine and her little sis. We went and had tea... herbal, of course!

2. So, one of the things that we need to buy whenever we are not poor students anymore is luggage! Brett's bag fell apart in the airport and we had to tape it back together!

3. Alvera ( I don't know how to spell it) Street in LA.

Also for a random side note, Brett and I saw the musical Wicked in LA. It was AWESOME! Probably my favorite ever. I encourage all those who can to see it!

The Elder Whites are home!

After spending the last 2 years counting down the months, weeks, days and finally minutes, my 2 brothers returned in all their glory from thier missions. Brett and I got to visit his brother and sister in law and their 2 cute girls in Denver, then spent about 10 days in UT with the rest of the Andersen fam and got to CA 2 days before the big return. Michael came home on Monday the 21st. It was so fun to go to the airport with our signs and balloons and pick him up. I think that he was a little shell shocked to be home and we just spend the whole day just watching him and listening to him talk. It is like when there is a baby in the house - you can just watch it and be entertained... that is how Michael mus have felt. Then we got to do it all over agian on Wednesday for Danny! It was awesome to do the airport thing twice. It was amazing to see my brothers all grown up. I mean, they are very much the same, but there is a maturity and a spirituality that was not there before. It is pretty cool to see. Brett and I were in CA for 3 weeks, so we just hung out with the bros the whole time. We had a great time... I think they were a little tired of not doing much, but we had fun just hanging out.

We have an announcement to make....

Ok, so most of you know already, but we will make it offical with a post... we are having a baby! The offical due date is November 23, 2007 - so I am about 18 weeks along. However, when I went to the doctor in Charlotte for the first time, they didn't have my medical records and informed me that my due date is November 9th. I would love my due date to be the 9th, but my mom is pretty sure that they are wrong - and encouraged me to get a doctor that can do math - so Nov. 23rd it is! The first 6 weeks were great - then week 7 hit and I all of the sudden didn't like food anymore. It was the weirdest thing - I LOVE food - so when I couldn't even smell it, I knew that I was not just fake pregnant. I hated anyting that smelled like anything, too. When Brett would come in from school I would make him change his shower, change his clothes and brush his teeth before even coming close to me! OK, I didn't have him so all that, but I would have him change his clothes. For those of you who have been in NYC - it often smells bad, so those smells would come in with Brett. Anyway, I am doing much better now and again like food except for salad. I have posted some pictures of my belly - the first is at 16 weeks comparing my belly to my brother Michael's belly and the 2nd was today - so 18 weeks. I think that I have grown quite a bit in the last 2 weeks, but I still don't look pregnant. I just look fat. So, it will be nice when I am past this stage( at least I think so now - some 9 month pregnant ladies might inform me otherwise). In conclusion, Brett and I are very excited about our upcoming adventure and would love any parenting advice you can give!

It has been way too long!

And far too much has happened! So because so much has happened I am going to do 2 or three mini posts instead of one HUGE one because it will be eaiser to read... so get a snack, find a comfy place to sit and get ready to read... that is if you care enough to really do those things!

Commercial Debut

Who would have ever thought that moving to New York would kick start my acting career! I did my first commerical a few weeks ago and I think it is pretty good - I just might get an award for it :). OK really, my cousin who works at an optical shop knew I wasn't doing anything that day so she roped me in to help out her boss. How could I pass up being on a commercial on citysearch.com! Just don't blink when you watch it... you might miss my magical preformance!http://http://newyork.citysearch.com/profile/7087966/new_york_ny/devonshire_optical.html

The White Family Visit

So, the moment I had been waiting for has come and gone! My family got to come out to New York for their very first time! New York did not give them a very warm welcome... literally. It was about 35-45 degrees the whole time they were here. But, they borrowed warmer coats (those Californians!) and made the best of it. Actually, my dad only brought a little sweater thing to wear - he just toughed it out. We had a great time. We went and got pizza at Grimaldi's, went to a Yankees game and a few shows, walked around and ate and ate! In classic White family style - we were in on Monday night to have FHE... or to watch 24... with family :). On Easter Sunday, all 6 of us, plus the sister missionaires ( that makes 8 of us ) crammed into our little apartment for dinner. There was not much walking around going on - as the chairs pretty much took up all the space. It is an Easter we will never forget - that is for sure. It was so fun to have them around - but luckily we will not be here forever because I don't think my family was too impressed with the "Greatest City in the World". To each his own... It was hard to see them go, but in exciting news - we will only be in the city ourselves for 2ish more weeks! YAY! I am really looking forward to the break! Brett and I are going to spend about 10 days in UT and then a glorious 2.5 weeks in Cali after my bros get home from their missions. It will be great! Then off to NC for more adventures... will we ever settle down...

Fun in the Florida Sun!

So, Brett and I got to have the classic spring break experience! We went to Florida! It was so fun! We went down to West Palm Beach with some friends of ours. Brett left with everyone else on Wednesday and I left Thursday. It was perfect timing because there was a HUGE storm in New York the night that I left. We were afraid we were going to get stuck in Florida... that would have been a bummer:). We had a great time. We basically ate (a lot) and hung out at the beach. It was about 70-80 degrees while we were there. A little more chilly than I like for the beach, but it was a lot better than being in below freezing weather. One of the nights we went to Ruth Chris steak house. It was a mojor treat. I am not a steak fan, but this was GO-OOD! I had an 8 oz. steak and I ate every bite. I think the trick is they cook it in butter! It was also fun because one of the couples has a darling baby girl that was so fun to be around for the weekend. We always tell this couple that we hope we are not disappointed with our children because their little girl is so cute! I am sure we will think our children are cute, too :). Anyway, the point is we had a wonderful time and I am sick of winter... maybe we'll fly back to Florida and just pretend like we got stuck there!

It's the little things!

So, big surprises are great - I really like big surprises. But I think it is the little things that really make me smile. For example, after school today I went to the store to pick up some things for dinner. I really wanted to get some junior mints, which are my current candy of choice. But, I talked myself out of it, thinking that I didn't really need to buy them or eat them. So, I didn't. I was second guessing myself when I went down to get on the subway. They have candy stands in all the stations - so I checked to see if they had junior mints - and they did. But once again, I talked myself out of getting them. A little bummed, I got on the train and came home. However, when I walked into our apartment there is none other than a HUGE box of junior mints on the counter! My sweetie pie husband bought a box for me! I was so excited! So, I thought a little bit about how the little things really do matter the most. They keep marriages and friendships happy and can cheer up strangers. Who ever knew a box of junior mints could make me think so much?

We're Back!

So, after a great Christmas break we are back in NYC. We had such a great time in California and Utah. The pictures are of our day trip to Balboa Island. We went there with Tyler and Christie and rode bikes up the boardwalk. It was a lot of fun! I love December in California! You can still do things like go to the beach and ride bikes. I guess it is pretty cold there now - which is weird. And sad because I love oranges... ( you'd have to watch the news to get that comment).

We took the red eye back to Manhattan and got in around 5:30 am. As soon as we stepped out of the airport the vacation was over. We had car service men grabbing our bags and trying to get us to pay $70 for a car ride. Yeah right! Maybe we looked look like tourists, but we are New Yorkers ( I cringe a little as I type that). Cabs are only $45 back into the city... just so you know when you come and visit. So, we got a cab, drove home and I started my new job at 7:30 that morning. I love it! I am teaching at a private school. It is amazing! I have been working there for 8 days and I am still smiling! What a blessing. Another welcome back surprise was that we have bed bugs in out closet ( luckily not in our bed - so should we call them closet bugs?). We were using a blanket from the closet and got bites all over. So we washed it and the exterminators are coming - but that is just gross, huh. One of the joys of living here.

Last bit of news... Brett is so smart! He finished his first semester at Columbia with a 3.96. 4 As and an A-! Einstein better watch out :). So, now we are back at it again. We'll see what this semester holds.