Baby Sullivan | Week Forty Nine, Vacation, & Father's Day

This post is going to be a hodgepodge of many things because that is a true reflection of this past week of our lives, kind of all over the place. This past week was a good one in many ways and I write these words today with a thankful and full to the brim heart. I am so grateful for all of the people that I get to do life with. I tend to get so caught up in the day to day of changing diapers or working in Quickbooks that sometimes I forget to step back and realize that our life is seriously great. Our family is great.

Sullivan is now forty nine weeks old. We are starting to plan for his first birthday bash. He was born on July 3rd and will always pretty much share festivities with Independence Day, kind of like those kids that have birthdays at Christmas time. We were originally going to try and celebrate Sully on the fourth of July but decided to divide the two days instead, especially for his first birthday. This is a big day, one that I know he won't really remember but nonetheless I want it to be his special day. The fact that we will have a one year old son in a few short weeks is mind blowing. I hardly have any photos of him this week because we were on vacation or I was working...

Half way through this past week, Ryan started vacation. I worked Monday through Wednesday instead of my normal Tuesday through Thursday schedule. He started vacation by cutting off all of his hair. He's been growing is out for three years now. He is so handsome, man bun or no man bun. 

On Thursday, we took the kids over to the Hollen's house for two nights of slumber parties and we headed up into the mountains for some time away. We booked two nights in Blackhawk, CO. Thursday evening, we went to a concert at the best venue on the planet, i.e. Red Rocks. My favorite songwriter and musician of all time was playing and as always he didn't disappoint. Seeing Ryan Adams at Red Rocks was a bucket list concert for me and now I finally can say I have experienced it. Red Rocks is amazing but also makes me realize how out of shape I am. It's a lot of walking. Seriously pathetic but the show was amazing and the weather was amazing. Living in Colorado is pretty awesome. 

We spent the next two days in Blackhawk. We were able to actually sleep in. I don't remember the last time I really was able to do that. We had a slow breakfast in our room on the first morning. After that we had a couples massage and it was so amazing. Our friends met us up there later that day and we spent the rest of our time a the slot machines and blackjack tables. I still cannot believe it but I won pretty big on the slot machines! Like $800 on a slot machine!!! We pretty much were able to cover our trip and the money we brought with us. I enjoyed our time up there so much and it was nice to spend it with each other and with our friends. Winning some money definitely didn't hurt either. 

We came back home and picked up our kiddos. I missed them a lot while we were gone. Yes, vacation is super awesome, but not being around your kiddos kind of sucks. I kept watching the videos that the Hollen's were sending to us. They lived it up at the grandparent's house with plenty of pool time, park time, and pumpkin scones. They both took great naps after we picked them up because I'm sure they had the best time. They were wiped out. 

Today is Sunday and normally we would be at church but we decided to have a slow morning as a family since Ryan is still on vacation and I am not leading worship at church today. We woke up, gave Ryan his gift, and made pancakes with bacon and blueberries on the side. It was delicious. 

I have to give a shout out to Ryan on the Father's Day...Happy Father's Day! You are our rock and an amazing father to our children. I cannot imagine being on this journey through parenthood without you. Watching you as a father to our children has been one of the best gifts of my life. We love you very much! 

And last but certainly not least...Happy Father's Day to my dad! You taught me how to work hard in life and be there for my family no matter what. You have always been there for me, full of guidance and support through some of my darkest times and my brightest times. You have believed in me as a musician and songwriter and I know you will always be one of my biggest fans. Happy Father's Day, Dad! Thank you for being such an awesome dad and grandfather. I love you. 

Here's Marin at Week Forty Nine! 

Happy Anniversay | Nine Years

Nine years ago on this very day, I married Ryan Hollen. We have been together for a decade now and it makes my head spin a bit when I think about how fast the past few years have gone. Swiftly. I blink and a decade has come and gone. A decade!

 He was the person I wasn’t looking for when we met. Meeting another guy, a potential love interest, was very low on my list of priorities at the time. I was broken and broken hearted but there he was being introduced to me in a local coffee shop, the very coffee shop we would have our wedding reception a little more than a year later. I had only been back in Colorado a grand total of about four days. I had a camera in my hand and a bruised and broken spirit from the season I had just moved away from. We were surrounded by friends, music, and coffee. My happy place. A mutual friend introduced us and my life has never been the same. Somehow, in the depths of my soul, I knew that one day I would marry this bearded man, and I did. I’m so glad I did. 

Happy Anniversay, Babe! I look forward to many more years of winding down on the couch and having dinner after long days at work, once the kiddos have had tubby time and are tucked away in bed for the evening. I look forward to many more years of building a home with you, one project at a time. I look forward to many more years of going to see movies and getting to actually go have date nights. I look forward to many more years of little getaway trips, going to concerts, and just going out for breakfast every once in a while. I look forward to the day to day, the laundry folding and the emptying of the dishwasher. I look forward to playing more music, in whatever capacity that we can in the different seasons of our lives. 

I’m so glad I was at that coffee shop that day, all those years ago. I’m so glad I said “I do” in front of our friends and family nine years ago. Ryan, you are my person forever and always. I love you! Thank you for taking care of me and our kids so well. 

My Person

Last night's anniversary dinner. 

I woke up this morning and today is like most days. The kiddo is starting to stir in her bubble gum pink room and the husband is snoring next to me. My first thoughts, especially now that I am pregnant, is that I need to go to the restroom. My next thoughts are about coffee and the anticipation of some quiet time before the rest of my world fully wakes up and our day starts once more. 

Today is different though than most of our days. Today is special. Today we are celebrating eight years of marriage. 8 years of wedded bliss. 8 years. I do wish we were waking up on a tropical beach somewhere and I was wearing a bikini and there was a margarita in my hand. But, instead, we wake to a home full of toddler toys and bedhead, waffles with peanut butter, a strong cup of coffee. We wake to a world with a dinosaur nursery that is just waiting for its new occupant to arrive. We wake to a world where I can't see my ankles anymore and my bladder has rebelled against me. We wake to a world where we will both go about our day working hard for our jobs, take a trip to the grocery store, prepare meals for the kiddo, and pray that nap time is long. 

I like waking up here. 

I was thinking about the past 8 years of our lives and how much has happened and how much has changed. We aren't the bright eye and bushy-tailed young-ins anymore. We've now lived in our home for 7 years. We've changed many things about our home....painted some walls, new floors, new appliances, new roof, new furnace and ac. We've lived with roommates when we needed the money. We've brought home a new baby from the hospital and will soon do that again. We've had so many band practices over the years and now I am left trying to hold onto those memories. 

I just can't help but realize that I have found my person. My only person. Ryan loves me for me and all of my weird ways. He puts up with my obsessive vacuuming and how I am constantly working on some home project. He mows the lawn even when I know it's the last thing he wants to do. He helps empty the dishwasher because I might hate that even more than folding and putting away laundry. We have played lots of gigs together and sang many songs together. He gets it. He gets me. 

Even when life is predictable and each day seems to blend into the next, my person is always there. We are in this together and I wouldn't have it any other way. When we met 9 years ago, I was not looking for him. He was not looking for me. But God brought us together just the same. Our worlds suddenly collided and we haven't looked back since. In brokenness and heartache, we found each other. We found our people. 

I truly wouldn't change anything from the past 8 years of our lives. I am looking forward to many more. When you find your person, hold on to them tight. You will make it through the hard times. There will be plenty of good times as well. It will all be worth it. 

Happy Anniversary, to my very favorite person. 

The Great Road Trip | Days 7 & 8

The last two days of our trip were pretty predictable. We were driving and driving......and driving. Overall, from our little home to Portland, it takes about 20 hours to get there or back. I've only driven it straight through a few times in my life and I'm fine with not trying to accomplish that feat yet again. I'm getting to old for stuff like that. All nighters and driving in the dark? No thanks. My eyes just can't handle that like they used to. (I sound old...)

Saturday morning we packed up our bags and hit the road. Our half way goal is always Twin Falls, ID. Saturday was like most days on the road except for one little thing.....It was our 6 year wedding anniversary. 6 years. I found it pretty fitting to be out on the open road the day we celebrate 6 years of marriage together. There's just something about being in a car together, just driving. You can read about our past anniversaries here, here, here. Looks like I failed to blog about it for a few of years.

These past 6 years have been incredible. I am very blessed to have a wonderful marriage. We own our home. We get to do life as parents and raise Marin. We are able to provide for each other and support one another. I cannot imagine waking up every morning and not living life with Ryan.

On our trip, we spoke of what we want the next year to look like. I am very goal-oriented, so conversations like that always get my brain going. We talked about when we would want to start trying to have another child. We talked about jobs. We talked about playing music again and how much we miss it. We talked about health. I want to be able to do life with this amazing man for a very long time.

Over the past few years, we have celebrated our anniversary with pie. It seemed only fitting to find the local Shari's and partake in a tradition while we were on the road. I had the Sour Cream Lemon pie and Ryan has the Smores pie. Add a cup of coffee and I'm set.

The rest of the trip consisted of driving, driving, and driving. We stopped at many questionable gas stations. We ate too much junk. I totally nerded out and started reading the Outlander series. I know...I know....It was very good to pull into our driveway and finally arrive home. Picking up Marin from the Grandparent's house was something we had been looking forward to all week. Marin is making sure that we don't go anywhere for a while. Next time, she's coming with us.

It is good to be back and to slowly get back into the swing of things. I need vacations like this. It helps me focus on all of the other areas of my life. Next vacation though...I want a lot less driving and a lot more beach.

5 Years & Counting

Five years ago at this time, I believe I waking up from a night of not very much sleep, walking down the stairs of my parent's old house, and waiting for my bridesmaids to arrive so we could drink mimosas and figure out what to do with my hair. I was praying that my wedding dress would zip. I was wondering what Ryan's face would look like when he saw me for the first time. I wasn't thinking about putting on sunscreen, but boy, I should have. I was nervous about saying the vows we had written ourselves because I knew I would cry. I did cry. It was worth it.

Five years ago today, I married my best friend. It amazes me that we have already been married for half of a decade. We now have a child. We own a house. We have worked at our places of employment for 5 years and 7 years. We have created some roots here. I wouldn't want to do that with anyone else.

I love the nights where we have a Chinese takeout picnic on our basement floor while watching Ryan's ever growing blu-ray collection. I love ending our evenings once the baby is in bed, watching Friend's episodes and winding down for the day. I love that when Ryan gets home from work and I've been with the baby all day, he knows that I need a break due to probably my frazzled look and lets me go relax and take a bath. I love that we can write and play music together, even though since we have become parents, that has been a little far away from us. That will change. I love preparing for playing the shows, figuring out the lines, singing the harmonies. I love the thrill of getting to the venue, setting up our equipment, and walking up to the stage to do something that we love together. I love taking photos together of other people's special occasions. I love that he lets me go on my never-ending house decorating tangents. I love that he makes me feel beautiful even though my body has changed so much in the past few months, stretch marks and added weight and all. I love that we have both been there to tuck Marin in for the night and he always kisses her good night. I love that he knows how to relax but also knows how to work hard and help support our little family. I love that we still have date nights and we get see so many movies together. I love that we get to lead worship together and have our little one grow up in the church. I love that for our anniversary, we are going to drive to Denver for donuts. I love that.

I love that I get to live this life with such an amazing man. I couldn't imagine it without him.

Happy 5 years and counting, my love.