Happy Valentine's Day.

My, oh my.
Yesterday was wonderful!
**I had to work today, so it was nice to pile a lot of fun into one day. ;)

Nathan stopped by in the morning.
I open the door to find flowers & coffee!
Aw. He knows the way to my heart. ;)

We got to chat with my mom and sisters a bit.
I also forced them to take photos outside with me.
I am glad they did. I'm not so sure that they are just yet.
It was very cold.



The afternoon called for lunch and a nap!
By late afternoon, the last bit of snow had fallen.
Always sad because that first day of snowfall is always so beautiful!

After all that, we went to visit with Jordan, Tyler, & the boys for a couple of hours.
It was filled with snow balls, laughter, popcorn, and a fierce game of Phase 10!!


**Disclaimer: If you have not played that card game, then DON'T! It makes you angry when someone is a couple phases ahead of you. I promise. It really will. I'm telling you all this for your own good. You can thank me later. 

Nathan & I then headed to our crappy theater in town to watch 'The Vow'.
You should all know that I did NOT shed any tears.
Well, any "visible" tears.
My eyes stayed watered through most of the movie, though.

PS: I had the one of the WORST shifts in the pharmacy tonight.

I didn't expect to see Nathan at all.

But, being the sweetest guy around, he surprises me with those lovely flowers and coffee (right up there)!

I am one lucky gal. ;) 

Happy Valentine's Day!

No matter how it was spent - with a boyfriend/girlfriend, spouse, friends, siblings, or parents - I hope it was filled with love. 

Oh ... & lots of hugs. ;)

Oh, the choices! :D

When I was in jr high and high school, I would hardly EVER wear a dress.
I did not like them at all.
Life is a funny thing, though.
The older I get, the more I realize this simple fact.
Because now I absolutely LOVE dresses!! :)
I would wear them all the time, during every season, if I could.
Sadly, I can't, but any time I get the chance to try one on, it makes me so happy!
Last weekend I got to go to Target and boy-oh-boy they had some cute dresses.
**seriously, they did. Go see. & then buy one, or maybe two. ;)


Ok, ok ... so I tried on these three:

& to be honest ...

I wanted ALL three of them. 

I really did. 

Cute, right?! -- not necessarily cheap though. 

$25 + tax a pop! Geez.

In the end, the price counts folks.

--> This is why vintage clothing found at consignment shops suit me better. ;)

I saw this dress on the rack and INSTANTLY fell in love. 

I'm serious.

Sparks flew, people.

It is simple and I loved it!!

However, there was only one left and it was a size large.

It didn't fit well, so it was a no-go! :(

So, then I tried on this lovely.

Aw. -- I tell ya, I didn't really think it was all that cute on the rack.

It was kinda like, "Ah. It might work. I'll give it a try."

I tired it on and guess what?

I loved it, of course. ;)

The color is so pretty & the polka dots were actually a lot of fun.

The ONLY reason I didn't choose this one was because I would have to wear a strapless bra with it.

I hate those things. :/

However, I guess I could have bought a cute cardigan to go over it.

A girl can never have too many cardigan's! ;)

Finally, after much debate with myself, I decided on this one:

I absolutely love the colors!

It is so much fun & definitely a dress for Spring time, folks.

**hint, hint ... meaning Spring needs to get here. Fast. -- or NOW! ;)

The best part about this dress was that it was comfortable!!

I didn't feel like I had to fix anything about it.

I wasn't too big or too tight! 

It was just about perfect for me. :)

I hope you all enjoyed my silly adventure in trying to find a dress. 

Now go drink some coffee, snuggle up in a blanket, and read a book before starting your day! I promise it will make you happy. :)

Happy, Happy Friday!

much love.

Photo Challenge V.1

I am a little obsessed with instagram.
(if you don't know what it is, and you have an iphone, then check it out here.
then download it & add me under the username 'theplaidsparrow'.)


This month they had a 'January Photo a Day' Challenge.
It looks like this:

I obviously had to take on the challenge!

Photos, instagram, friends ... who could say no to that??

Anyhoo, so I decided to break this up into two parts.

I'll start this post off with Days 1-15.

& at the end of the month I'll end with Days 16-31. 

 Day 1. Me.
(standing all awkward)

 Day 2. Breakfast.
(looks kinda gross, but i love coffee w/ biscuits & gravy)

Day 3. Something you adore.

(my owl ring. *love*)

 Day 4. Letterbox
(letters, photos, memories, and more)

Day 5. What I wore.

(this day was super warm outside, but i really wanted to wear all my scarves) ;)

Day 6. Makes you smile.

(planning trips down to dallas to see one of my best friends, kim)

Day 7. Favorite.

(nathan sent me flowers @ work!!!)

 Day 8. My sky.
(the view from my backyard)

Day 9. Daily Routine.

(almost every morning, folks)

 Day 10. Childhood.

(my FAVORITE photo of my mom & i. do you love how clueless I look, yet I have my "thumbs up" sign!?)

Day 11. Where I sleep.

(nothing too exciting here. simple. the way I like it.)

 Day 12. Close up.

(big eyes!)

 Day 13. In my bag.

(i could live in my purse.)

Day 14. What I'm reading. 

(books I'm finishing, starting, or rereading ... it is never ending!)

Day 15. Happiness.

(playing DK on the super nintendo with the guys!)

I really am having a blast doing this challenge. 

I may come up with my own for next month as well! 

Hope you enjoyed!

I'll be back in a few weeks with the rest. 

much love, colie