i don't get churchy here too often, but.

“If all the sick for whom we pray were healed, if all the righteous were protected and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled and the basic principle of the gospel, free agency, would be ended. No man would have to live by faith.

“Should all prayers be immediately answered according to our selfish desires and our limited understanding, then there would be little or no suffering, sorrow, disappointment, or even death, and if these were not, there would also be no joy, success, resurrection, nor eternal life and godhood.

“Being human, we would expel from our lives physical pain and mental anguish and assure ourselves of continual ease and comfort, but if we were to close the doors upon sorrow and distress, we might be excluding our greatest friends and benefactors. Suffering can make saints of people as they learn patience, long-suffering, and self-mastery.”

- Spencer W. Kimball

Faith Precedes the Miracle

my favorite lines:

"... no man would have to live by faith."

oh boy, oh boy... how would that be? things would be handed to us without the anticipation and without a possibility of change. LET'S JUST SAY i didn't get the opp to pray for my cancer-diseased mom, believing her body could be healed. what if her fate was sealed and the outcome was set? 

i shudder thinking about it. terrible and horrible! thank goodness for the chance we have to pray, have faith, and learn lessons from our lives while we wrestle through the test of faith.

"... selfish desires and our limited understanding..."

remind me of this when i lament about my current circumstance. remind me so often...

thank goodness for the happenstance - or maybe it's a lightening strike from above, shaking me, placing it right before my eyes - to remind me of what i've already learned a gazillion times over... but need to be reminded of again, in my hour of need.

i am not above bribery.

i'm not even ashamed to admit it - i'm a big fan of bribery.

i use it all the time.

like tonight, when someone from our dinner party didn't want to go to the restaurant the rest of us wanted to go to. instead of picking up dinner at the restaurant next door {what's the fun in that?}, i leaned in and begged, "if you eat with the rest of us, i'll buy you a prize!" 

i mean, i took a little more convincing.... "i'm a good prize giver - you know i am..."

so there we sat, as a family table of five, as happy as can be.

i bribed olive with pennies - pennies! - for cleaning up her toys and sitting in the cart while shopped at target.  i can stand to lighten my wallet by a few pennies... but in olive's mind, money is money and money is shiny and money buys things... so the toys were put away and the girl sat in the cart.  win win for me.  might be problem later on in life when the lasting effects of expecting instant cash rewards are realized.  sorry if that's the case, andi.

i bribe my co-workers all the time for doing the manly chores in my life, like changing the headlight in my car, loading and unloading heavy things, yada.

but today - it backfired.

major.

i was in a co-worker's office, discussing something important i'm sure, when another guy came in to join our conversation.  they realized they needed the company car i had reserved for tomorrow. they were going to ogden, i was going to 5 miles down the street.  i said, jokingly, "what's it worth to you?"

my clever co-worker, thinking he could compete in my own bribery game said, in the most compelling i've-got-to-make-this-good voice "if you help me out, i'll give you a sur-priiiise......."

and then it went silent for just long enough.
that's when the new guy felt like an intruder in the convo.

i mean, that just sounds dirty.

it's a prize.  not a sur-priiiiiize.

i'm a good prize giver.... but not that good.

who what where when why wednesday.

q:

what are your holiday weekend plans?

a:

turning a house into a home.

pin.

andi + spencer are new homeowners {yay! congratulations! hip, hip! welcome to mortgage-hood!} and i'm heading their way to transform their blank canvas into something sweet and homey.

i think my timing is perfect - all the big furniture pieces have been moved in, the stuff that makes a girl sweat has been taken care of... but hanging frames + all out decorating spaces awaits!

there's something about having a person - another, like minded eyeball - that makes pounding a nail into your very own wall a little less scary.  i think it took me six months of home ownership before i committed to hanging a frame.  it's my job to expedite that process in the marshall home.

it'll be a labor day in the true sense of the word... but laboring with friends is hardly labor at all.  i imagine the ipod will be running sweet tunes throughout the house... there will be a constant flow of diet coke running through our veins.... lots of trips to target... and at the end of the day, we'll all settle down to watch a crappy movie {we seriously have the worst luck with movies, the marshalls + i} and i'll paint "parkles" on olive's little toddler fingers.

and by golly, if this is the last weekend to wear white, i'll do all my work in white - head to toe!

what will you be doing this weekend?

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a new addition

i would like you to meet my new friend!!  just scroll down and look on the right to find my new baby....SMOKEY!
since i can't have cow with me here in kuwait, smokey is going to take his place...but just for now.  she's a very good girl!  she loves to play with her toy and eat canned kitty food. 
isn't she cute???!!!

inspiration boarding.

yesterday i had to ask bestie jen how far along she was - as in "how many weeks pregnant are you?"

i don't keep track of that kind of stuff unless it's documented in a blog next to a piece of fruit or an ear of corn or a side profile photo carrying a mini chalkboard scratched with a sweet number scrolled upon it.

and bestie jen is neither the ear of corn girl nor the mini chalkboard kind.

my best friend is growing a girl baby and we talk about it 47 times a day... but i can't keep track of the days.

i should sign up for her "this week in your uterus" emails i know so many pregnant women sign up for so i can keep track.

most of our time is spent tackling the "fun" stuff - the nursery and the party.

fun = midnight text messages "i'm having second thoughts on the color of the paint for the closet doors.  talk me off my ledge tomorrow, will you?"

to which i reply "sure thing. we paint swatch on thursday.  until then... keep growing your ear of corn like you do so well."

my highest priority, though, is the shower.

it's going to be big, y'all.

besides being wildly popular and, like, everyone's favorite friend, my best friend married into the tightest knit family i've ever known.

so the party's not only going to be big as in 'awesome' but big as in 'if you're reading this, you're probably on the invite list'

and in true aubry style, i must out-do myself for my best friend's baby making celebration.

my mind's still cranking away with ideas and plans, but to keep up with the direction it's taking - follow my baby shower mood board on pinterest.  and then pray with me for ice cream eating weather in mid october.

not shown: the onsie making station. and the blingy pacifier chain station.

april fools, yeah right.

the big reveal

now that i have had my newest tattoo for a month and a half, i will finally show you what it looks like. 
i just kept forgetting to take a picture of it.  haha.
anyway, here it is.  i love it!

you guys....

help me out.

help susan out.

help the unborn child of my best friend out.

enter this giveaway.

and, ideally, if you win, give bestie jen's baby a childhood of footwear.

super hip footwear, people.

i mean, it will save me from springing the cash on the mocs i was going to buy her for her baby shower.

thanks, yo.

she's learning!

yesterday i posted that i missed my cow boy.  mom commented on my post and it was really funny.  what she wrote was funny but i also think that it sounds like something i would write so i wanted to share it with you:

He's being pretty crazy right now, Em. A little on the wild side. And I don't want you to think we aren't taking care of him, but today Dad was outside sanding and when he stopped he heard this little "meow" behind him. He turned around and thought "that cat looks alot like Cow!" And guess what, it WAS Cow!!!! So, he casually walked over and picked him up and got lots of loving. I guess he forgot to latch the door and Cow opened it on his own. What a smart little kitty. Thought you might get a little laugh out of it. Ttys. Love Mom xoxoxo and Cow xoxoxo 

isn't my mama funny??  and isn't my dad a good cat catcher??  and isn't my cow a smart boy?!  

i think SO!

working hard

no no, i'm not actually working yet (not much anyway) but i AM working hard at becoming more american/helping these guys become more canadian:

cause who doesn't want to hang out with these two?! COME ON!  anyone who would do this with us at the mall, passes the test. 

in order to make our relationship work, i am starting a canadian/american dictionary.  some of these terms may be familiar, others may not....we'll see...

canadians say:  necklAce.  americans say:  neckless.
canadians say:  pawsta.  americans say: pAsta.
canadians say:  out.  americans say:   OWt.
canadians say:  pop.  americans say: soda.
canadians say:  sOrry.  americans say:  sAri.

i'll keep you posted on any other words i learn.  :) you're welcome!

the first time i craved the changing of the season.

... happened when i saw this look.

i've got the red top, the teal legs.

must find a navy skirt and a yellow belt.

hello, color blocking!

sessun via collected blog.

Mirror, Mirror on the wall....

I'm sooooooo excited for the two Snow White movies that are scheduled to be released in 2012. You have no idea..!! I heard that they're both very different movies and am very curious to see how so. Although you can get a bit of an idea by the photos that have so far been released.

- Snow White and the Huntsman

Kristen Stewart as Snow White.

Chris Hemsworth as the Huntsman.

                                 Charlize Theron as the Evil Queen.

Summary: "In a twist to the fairy tale, the Huntsman ordered to take Snow White into the woods to be killed winds up becoming her protector and mentor in a quest to vanquish the Evil Queen."

- The Brothers Grimm: Snow White

Lily Collins as Snow White.

So far that's the only photo I've been able to find. Julia Roberts is to play the Evil Queen in this version, which makes me very curious and intrigued.

Summary: "A dark twist on the classic fairy tale, in which Snow White and the seven dwarfs look to reclaim their destroyed kingdom."

I just hope both movies don't go down the same path as the disappointing remake of Little Red Riding Hood that came out last March of 2011...

This movie had such GREAT potential, but really fell flat on it's face. And I'm pretty sure anyone who saw this would agree. I hated that they pretty much did a Twilight version of Red Riding Hood. It should have been more dark, more gothic. It should have been more scary, more like a horror film. It should have been more realistic, as far as setting and costumes go. I hated that you could clearly see Red Riding Hood's (played by actress Amanda Seyfried) mom (Virginia Madsen) was wearing makeup and even possibly false eyelashes. I didn't know that existed in the medieval times. They shouldn't have had any makeup on. They should have done it more in that Braveheart kind of way, haha. I also hated the actors they used as the triangle love interest / Twilight. They looked so fake, like they were in halloween costumes or something. It just wasn't believable. It's too bad cause some of the imagery from the film was so breathtaking and would give you a better impression (or expectations) on what the movie would be like. I think the best part was the creepy grandmother (actress Julie Christie.)

Little Red at Granny's house...

Also just to clarify, I'm a fan of the Twilight books and movies, lol.

Check out these cute Snow White Apple cupcakes!!

Hmmm, this might be an idea for a theme party....

xoxoxo...

i miss my boy!

 

i want to hug him.  and kiss him.  and love him.  and cuddle him.  and play with him.  and love him. and kiss him.  and hug him.

a TOTES awesome day!

today was a good day i tell ya! 

• first we met colleen at her school and got to see her classroom.  it might be the size of her shoe.  but its going to be cute!  


• then we went to my apartment (my actual apartment, not linds and phils).  we had scrambled eggs and toast for lunch cause that's all the food i have.


• next up, a pit stop at linds and phils to drop off our bags then off to the scientific centre!  there we met up with alex and ian (who had an unusually long walk to get there in 40 degree heat) and visited the aquarium!  we saw lots of cool fish, some penguins, and even some sharks! oh and we had a delightful beverage at starbucks too.


• after working very hard to get a cab home, we made homemade pizza and had a pizza party!  it was DELISH! 


• top that all off with a quick game of catch phrase (ian, phil, and i won!!) and lots of laughs!  

i told you.  it was a good day!  wanna see???