Thanks! (And butterflies abound / thinking of spring)

Thank you all for the birthday wishes via text, email, e-card and phone calls yesterday (my cell was buzzing all day long!). I can't wait to see some of you at my surprise party this Saturday. Oops, scratch that; I'm not supposed to know about that. ;)

I had a lovely day yesterday, thanks to my ever-lovely boyfriend B. I hope he reads this, despite the pictures looking "girly" (in which case he usually skims those posts). (It's okay, I understand, boyfriend.) :)

The bouquet above said "happy day" and "thank you" to me for some reason, but I suppose it's also very much a spring thing. With all the snow we've had, spring seems eons away so I'm not allowing myself to even think of it, but here's another spring-y, butterfly-y item to add a little happy eye candy to your day:

Pretty, no?

Bouquet from Martha Stewart Weddings; cake as seen on Style Me Pretty.

And while we're on the subject (I can't believe I'm letting myself think about spring - it'll be ages until we see/feel it!), this photo is just so cheery!:

Photo from Selina Lake via decor8

It makes me want to go out and buy a bright new umbrella for April's showers. (I'm all taken care of on the beautiful blooms front for now - my aunt sent gorgeous flowers for my birthday - woohoo! Thanks, AR!)

How about you? Have you tired of all this snow and started to think of sunny days? Are you ready to stop rocking turtlenecks and boots, and to break out the tanks and flops? I so am.

A sky full of colorful umbrellas

Installation by Ingo Maurer, photograph by Jesús Manuel Nieto Bobadilla, as found on Oh Brooke

I think I've become used to the bright sunny days we've been having as a result of the light bouncing off all the mounds of snow, because in comparison, today feels kind of gray. Thankfully, I came across this umbrella-laden photo and its cheery colors and composition are really brightening my afternoon.

The best part of this pic is that it's available to download - for free. Aren't the colors pretty? Wouldn't it be great in a kids' room? Or a bathroom? Or entryway? Anywhere, really. It's so fun and ethereal.

You can get it here, at 11x14 size, or you can download an edited version of the image (which is available bigger - and still free!) from Oh Brooke (who framed and matted it for her baby's room).

Print this baby out on your color printer and pop it in an Ikea frame and you have great, cheery art on the cheap. And who doesn't love almost-free art?