Thank you, John Lennon.

This morning, as I do almost every morning, received my Charlie mail.
You don't know what Charlie mail is??
Aw. Well, don't fret.
Head over here & see what it is all about!
You could be a 'Charlie' too! :)


Anyhoo, so I opened my mail and was so happy to find this photo + quote:

Of course, I have seen it before.
I've read the quote from the famous John Lennon...
& yet I forget something so simple. 


My life isn't perfect, but it is mine.
I work with what I have and try my best to change the things that bring me down.
Life is good.
It is even better when you live it happy.
So live it happy, friends. 


much love,
xoxo.

Lovelies.

Woozers!

Look how short my hair was back in October.

It is always longer when it is straight, but geez. 

That is super short, yo.

I now realize that my hair has grown a lot in the past 7 months.

But ... a bit faster would be nice.

Anyways, it seems like every post I'm talking about my hair.

Sorry. I just can't help it.

So, yesterday I worked all day and didn't get a chance to post a few links to my favorites this past week.

I figured before getting ready to head to my friends birthday lunch that I'd share some with you.

Enjoy!

Amber is the sweetest ... & oh-so adorable with her hubby!

How can you not just say "AWW.." over this?? :D

I am really loving DottieAdele!!

Sometimes I can relate to this feeling about blogging.


I love it ALL!!

Ladies, when Molly found the "Hey, Christian girl" quotes by some very handsome celebrities, I laughed so hard. They are the best! Srsly. Greatness!


I adore Kendi, her fashion, and this post. :)


Can we please talk about how adorbs Haley's new hair cut is??! I LOVE it!


I am over-the-moon excited that Mandy shared a new app for photos. Yikes! I am about to download it now!!


Christina shared the sweetest photos & story of her grandparents. 
Love is the most beautiful thing.


& I am loving this blog I came across, through luck of Instagram! ;)


This weekend will be spent working. :/ Boo.
I do hope you all have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, though!
Soak up the sun, eat lots of yummy food, relax by the water, and be happy with God has given you!
much love.
xoxo

Help? ... maybe.

I'm seriously ridiculous when I get on Instagram.

No joke.

I could just snap photos all day, of anything and everything.

I. just. can't. stop.

& it happens often on my days off!

Help me. Please?? ;)

1. Gotye. :) 2. My little sisters & I while talking to my brother & his family on Skype! 3. plaid, curly hair, and a whole lot of silliness. 4. Reading 5. Reading some more.... 6. Looking @ my old, woren out shoes that I love. 7. A trip with friends a couple weeks back, which consisted of coffee, shopping, and a movie!! & a bunch of laughs. :) 8. Writing w/ my nerdy glasses. 9. Lunch. 10. Good morning! 11. I finished the book!!! :D 12. Bored. 13. Plaid + glasses + curly hair. 14. My view while soaking up the sun!!

Well, that about covers the past couple weeks of my life, minus work.

Boring? Yes. 

Ah. This is what old age is bringing me. ;)

I don't mind, though.

Happy Wednesday, friends.

much love.

xoxo

PS. If you don't already follow me, you can find me on Instagram under: theplaidsparrow

Ruts are no fun.

[instagram: theplaidsparrow]

Hey there. 

Could I be honest with you for just a moment?

Yes. 

Ok.

 Here it goes:

My life is a mess.

I do not have it all together, despite how it may seem on this little blog of mine at times.

I am just as broken, lost, flawed, and imperfect as everyone else. 

I beat myself down more than anyone I know.

I run from people who mean the most to me, because I feel like I can conquer my struggles alone.

I guess I don't want to drag them through the dirt, so to speak.

Some days, I am so happy and bubbly on the outside, but feel so hurt and sad on the inside.

I become overwhelmed with stress & worry. 

I don't like it.

Who would?

But I feel those things...

not everyday, but more often than I'd like. 

In spite of all that, I know that I have hope.

I have been given a promise by my sweet Father.

I am learning to love myself more through His love and grace.

I'm learning patience.

In all that I am also searching for healing.

It's taking a bit longer than I'd hoped, but I'm getting there.

Slowly, but surely.

Life really is a beautiful gift.

PS. Through this season, God is blessing me with wonderful friendships.

It has given me great encouragement just to know such strong & caring women.

For that, I would really love to hear what is going on in your lives.

Whether that be commenting below or shooting me an email.

& no matter how small it may seem, I'd love to hear about it!

as always, much love.

xoxo.

the random thoughts of my life.

- Instagram-ed for the first day in a week yesterday. (breaks my heart)

- Got through an extremely stressful week last week

- Praying for direction, patience, and understanding

- Wishing so badly that I could just hop on a plane and travel the world!

- Missing my Dallas friends, oh-so much.

- Watched all the Scream movies. Had nightmares that someone was trying to kill me. Dumb decision. I know.

- Trying desperately NOT to cut my hair. (When it is at the "in between" stages, I just want to chop it off!!)

- The weather has been a bit chilly. It is making me miss the warm weather we were having around here. I suppose I didn't realize how grateful I should have been while we had it!

- Went to the gym the other day! I felt fantastic afterwards. :) I hope I continue doing so.

- Spicy Ranch Dressing is the BEST!!

- Coral & Mint fingernail polish is the cutest colors for spring.

- I remember how I read non-stop growing up. I wish I still did. I don't make the time anymore. :(

- I still LOVE coffee. (**prove below)

- I am getting four days off of work. It has been glorious so far.

- Zooey Deschanel and I should definitely be friends, along with Michelle Williams, Emma Stone, and Jennifer Lawrence. :)

- I want another tattoo. Srsly. Soon. I am thinking for my birthday next month!?

- Loving the fact that there are so many lovely women (and men) out there with encouraging, funny, and inspiring blogs.

- I dream about one day waking up and I being british. :)

- I have never liked my hands. They look old and wrinkled to me. :/

- I am looking forward to a fun roadtrip with friends this coming Saturday. It is much needed.

- I am going on a hike this morning and hoping I don't feel sore tomorrow.
- Bethany is coming home from Haiti in about 2 weeks, and I CAN'T WAIT TO MEET HER!! :D Srsly. I am pretty sure we are going to be great friends.
- I love Jesus. I'm glad he is my best friend.

That's it for now.
Nothing too exciting, but thanks for reading.
much love to you all!!
Happy Friday.

PS. If you haven't entered to win the giveaway for the $25 Forever 21 gift card, then you should.
Right here!
Today is the last day, btw.
Good luck!

Dust in our eyes.

Today Nathan & I had the day off of work. 

On top of that the girls had a three day weekend because of 'Good Friday'. 

I honestly wish that I were back in school just so that I could get random days off.

Wouldn't that be lovely?! ;)

(Though this particular "good friday" isn't just random, but I hope you know what I mean!!)

Anyways ... I realized more than ever today that I portray a very "motherly" personality. 

It's kind of insane. It makes me feel like I am "less fun" than others because I am constantly concerned with their well being. 

I have heard so many stories of people dying from four-wheeler wrecks. 

Nathan definitely loves riding four-wheelers and has a blast, which is GREAT!

I am just so worried that everyone is going to hurt themselves, so I am constantly aware of everything that could possibly go wrong. 

Ugh. I get annoyed with myself sometimes.

I wish I could just enjoy things and trust that everything will turn out fine. 

Plus, the dirt roads sent dust flying EVERYWHERE ... and into our eyes it went.

But all in all it was an adventure and without an adventure, life would be a little less interesting. ;)

Despite all of my worrisome ways, today was a really good. :)

These are the reasons why:

1. I got to sleep in ... and it was actually after 8am!! (Applause would be much appreciated at this time.)

2. I spent all afternoon with my boyfriend & sisters.

3. We all got to eat some mexican food.

4. All of us brought my mom home a sweet kitten. (PS. She started crying, you guys! Seriously. It was cray! She was beyond happy.)

5. I received a very LARGE Starbucks coffee bag from Nathan's mom for Easter! She knows the way to my heart. I was doubled over with happiness. :D

6. My family and Nathan spent the rest of our night watching 'Scream 3' because my sisters really wanted to see it. (which is NOT as scary as it was when I was in 8th grade all those years ago!!! **Also it has far too much cussing for me, I'm afraid.)

I hope you had a very "GOOD" Friday!

Easter is literally just around the corner. 

I look forward to hearing what wonderful things your weekend brings you all!

much love, friends.

xoxo

PS. Sorry for the low quality photos. I was working only with an iPhone and didn't do anything special to the photos this time. Plus, Nathan took a few ... so ... ;) jk. He did a great job. The trip really needed to be instagram-ed, but maybe next time!

Giveaway

GOOD MORNING!!! :)

I got to sleep in today.

For me, that means 8am. ;) ha.

Sad, I know, but all those years waking up for college early just seemed to stick.

I know Mondays aren't always the best since it is usually back the grind for most people.

However, I do hope that this giveaway will start off your week on the RIGHT track. :)

So, I am making it simple, especially it being my first giveaway.

I thought all week about what I wanted to do.

I know how much I love this store:

:D:D

So, why not giveaway one of these:

So, my sweet friends ... if you are interested in a $25 gift card, then you should definitely be apart of this little giveaway.

I'll be honest with you all...

I might be a tad bit jealous because I would love to purchase another cute dress from Forever 21. ;)

However, I am oh-so happy to give you all the chance to buy one for yourself (or a shirt, or a pair of jeans, or some pretty jewerly... just whatever you can't live without!)

I just have two rules for this giveaway:

1. You need to be a follower of my blog.

2. I want to know what you are most looking forward to for this spring season!! :)

That's it!

The winner will be announced next Friday, April 13th (whoa. creepy. I just realized that will be Friday the 13th!!)

Happy, happy Monday!!

much love.

xoxo

PS. You have no idea how hard it was not to say: "...and may the odds be EVER in your favor!"

I'm still stuck on The Hunger Games, after watching it twice now.

I was able to refrain myself, though. ;)

Tumblr Thursday

I thought it was about time for another one! ;)
All photos found via my tumblr. 
**Credit is always given, if requested!


Enjoy, friends!

Smile.

& have the happiest Thursday.

xoxo

Hello, there!

Happy, Happy Wednesday!

I hope you all have a beautiful day.

xoxo

PS. I love getting moring emails from Charlie.

They inspire, encourage, and bring a smile to my face.

Please check out it out here.

Then get added to the mailing list.

Your mornings will be brighter. I promise.

:)

Happenings.

Lately:

- I am trying to work towards my goal of losing 35 pounds. 

-In that process, I'm letting go of sweets ... slowly. :/

-Wishing there was more time in each day to do more of the things I love.

-So happy to have my brother, sister-in-law, and nephews back home. It has been wonderful having them here. :)

-Stressing over finances (same ole, same ole)

-Happy that I get to dress up for work this Saturday, but sad to have to miss church on Sunday!

-I watched 'Moneyball' & 'Reel Steel' this week. Very different movies. I enjoyed them both.

**PS. No matter how you feel about Brad Pitt, I still believe he is a phenomenal actor. & Jonah Hill's performance was awesome. 

-Working on my posture because I'm pretty sure I stay slumped over far too much.

-Dyed my hair all black. (It pretty much looks the same, though)

-After today, I wish I had bought rain boots. 

**I ALWAYS say that when it rains. Do I ever go buy any? Obviously not! :/

-Reminding myself to find the good in others, even when it isn't always evident. 

-Trying to read about 6 different books at the moment.

-Finding new & interesting sites + blogs this week. :)

-I miss watching Top Gear, the UK version, so bad!!

-Thinking we need a Chick-fil-a, then deciding on breakfast wouldn't be so hard!

-AND ... waiting patiently, but on the edge of my seat, for the release of 'The Hunger Games'! Aw. I'm beyond excited & praying that all the actors hold true to each character. So, of course, I had to leave you with the official music video for Safe & Sound by Taylor Swift ft. The Civil Wars!!!

Lovely, right?! :)

Its strange because I used to not be a huge Taylor Swift fan. I just didn't think she was that great of a singer. However, there is such a genuine quality about her that I can't help but like.

She has definitely grown on me.

I'm so happy she did this song and included some of my favorite people!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thursday. 

much love.

xoxo