Baby Sullivan | Week Nineteen

We have all been a little under the weather for what seems like weeks now. It finally hit me and I still have the sore throat to prove it. Marin is currently a snot factory and Sullivan is really congested. He definitely isn't a fan of the infamous nose sucker. Colds are always enjoyable to begin with and then you add in the fact that your children can not really blow their noses on their own and even more fun begins. 

But, here we are. Week nineteen. I'm ready for all of us to be healthy once more. I feel like once one of us finally kicks the bug, the others aren't too far behind. It's a constant cycle every year it feels like. I'm just trying to make sure everyone washes their hands like crazy lately and I'm diffusing essential oils like a madwoman. When you are a parent, you don't really get sick days. I walked around work on Sunday without much of a voice. We also sang songs at Marin's school today, lots of turkey themed tunes. I'm at that point in this cold where I get a tickle in my throat and can't seem to quit coughing. That definitely happened at music time this morning, but oh well. It is what it is. We also now have sang multiple versions of If You're Happy & You Know It but just with different lyrics. We sang about a chicken today too. One that laid an egg. Oh, preschool. You are fun. 

We still haven't started Sullivan on any solids yet. I need to bring the high chair up from the basement. I think part of me isn't quite ready for him to be growning up so fast. I also secretly am trying to keep my kitchen clean-ish for just a little while longer. Good bye, semi-clean floor...at least for a while. 

He's out growing many things already, way faster than his big sister did. Pretty soon, we will sell the beloved baby swing. His little feet are already dangling over the edge. I love that thing. It can either be just a bouncer that can moved anywhere or a swing. He's outgrown so many outfits. His adorable chunky thighs cannot fit in the Bumbo at all any more. We will need to switch him to a different car set fairly soon. Slow down, son. Slow down.

 

We also are in the process of buying another minivan. I feel like we are coming full circle all of a sudden again. A few years ago, we bought a mom van.  This was before we even had any children. We used it to haul all of our music gear to shows. The back seat of that van was hardly ever in the vehicle and mostly remained in our garage. A few years after that, we sold the van and bought a Dodge Journey.  That was my sad attempt to rid myself of the mom van. I love my Dodge Journey but now that we have two kids I'm realizing how much I miss the van....go figure. There's two things I miss the most....SLIDING DOORS and all of the space. Getting two children into car seats in our one car garage without sliding doors is a comical sight to be seen. We found an awesome 2015 Kia Sedona that we are hoping to purchase tomorrow morning. Fingers crossed and I will soon be rocking the mom van once more. This one is super nice and all black. I feel like that color ups the cool factor. I'll just keep telling myself that. 

Marin at week nineteen! 

It's the Weekend | Number Eight

This week has had it's ups and downs. Early Wednesday morning, around 2am, I woke up suddenly and started puking all over our bedroom. It was pretty horrific, especially being 6 months pregnant. We are still working on getting the stain out of our carpet and I'm pretty sure I ruined some of our bedding. Sad stuff. But, now I finally don't feel like I've been hit by a truck and am ready for a busy Easter weekend. My husband has been a gamer with me being sick and cleaned up after me without a complaint. He's pretty awesome.

One awesome thing about this week is that we had new kitchen appliances delivered. The ones we had in the house were old enough to drink a beer, if you know what I mean. The fact that they were still somewhat working it a miracle. We are getting a dishwasher too but it won't be here for another week or so. I can't wait to cook with my new oven and my fridge is so new and shiny. I'm nerding out as a homeowner at the moment. It makes our kitchen look so much better! We used our tax refund money this year to purchase them. 

Anyways, here are the places I've have been clicking around the internet this week. Some wellness stuff, some parenting articles, and of course some food.

A good reminder that health looks different for everyone. 

I always need ways to drink more water, especially while I'm growing a little human in my belly.

Marin hasn't really traveled with us a lot. I hope to change that. Here are some traveling tips for kiddos. 

If I didn't work for a church and Easter Sunday wasn't crazy, I would make this casserole. 

I'd like to bake these avocado brownies in my new oven this week too. 

Did you know that kids that use touchscreen devices sleep less at night? Not great. 

We are also supposedly all parenting wrong. Who knew. 

Have a great weekend! 

Weekly Lovelies: Currently Clicking #11

Every week, I gather links of all of the places I have been perusing in the great, grand internet. There are plenty of people out there doing big things and small things. Some of these are practical, some are inspiring. This week, my love for sushi shows. DIY would take over my life and my home if I allowed it to. I feel the need to really focus on taking care of myself and setting some fitness goals. To add to that, I still think about good food ALL OF THE TIME. 

1. I think I need these Avocado Sushi Bites in my life. I also just realized that I still haven't had sushi since I had the baby. What?! That needs to change ASAP. 
2. I love how this Stained Wood Wall DIY totally changes a space. The price tag for the project isn't too bad either. I would love to a wall like this in our office. 
3. I have a sewing machine that needs some loving', but here are 15 No-Sew Fabric Projects for the Home. 
4. I received a FITBIT for Christmas and I am just now getting ready to start using it. I am excited. Here is one gals experience with the FITBIT. I think this is just what I need to really get moving again. Here's another review and another.  
5. I sometimes toy with the idea of going Paleo. This dish is right up my alley: Chicken Enchilada Bake. Yum. 

Doterra Essential Oils 101 Class

This Friday, May 2nd, I will be having my first Doterra Oils Class at my house at 7pm. If you are at all curious about Doterra Oils and how they can benefit you and your family's health, please attend! Attendees will receive a Wild Orange oil and the newest edition of Living Magazine.

Are you interested? These oils have helped my family so much and I want to share them with you!

Since I don't feel the need to post my personal address out on my blog for all of the world to see, to RSVP or to find out what my address is, please leave a comment on this blog and I will contact you. Or, feel free to email me at bailyhollendoterra@gmail.com.

Sane Mama: 10 Ideas for Keeping Mom Healthy

Over my maternity leave, I wanted to make a point to really take good care of myself. Becoming a parent causes you to shift your focus completely to caring for child, which is how it needs to be. But, if we aren't careful, we can become completely frazzled and not healthy. I think keeping a mama sane is important. My family is still my number one focus all day, everyday, but making sure I'm not going to come apart at the seams due to lack of sleep and lack of showers, is still important. It's the little things that help too. One day at a time. One workout at a time. One relaxing bath at a time. When I feel good about myself and I feel healthy, I am at the top of my game and can better support my family. 

These are just a few of things I've done over the past few weeks to keep me sane. They are simple. They don't take a ton of time but have great returns in the end. A lot of these are probably predictable, but when they aren't in my life, I am a mess. 

1. Drinking tea. This tea has been a favorite since I am nursing. I tend to want to drink buckets of coffee and this keeps me grounded and far less caffeinated. 

2. Exercise. I try to squeeze in any workout I can get, whether it be a DVD (which I seem to collect far too many of), a workout off Hulu, or putting my sneakers on and taking the baby for a walk. I need to work my muscles. I need to get out into the fresh air and out of my pajama pants. Sometimes I am only able to fit in 15 minutes, but the fact that I did anything is an accomplishment. Some of my current workout DVD faves are: this, this, and this.

3. Healthy eating. Nourishing my body. I try to make one salad a day. I've been loosely following Weight Watchers again, which has a calculation for breast feeding mamas, which is nice. I can tell when I'm not eating enough or if I'm eating too much crap. I need energy. I feed our little baby a lot. Same with water. I always have a water bottle somewhere near me because hydration is super important. I currently add some Doterra oils to my water too, like Grapefruit, Wild Orange, or Lemon. I seem to drink a lot more water that way.

My favorite salad currently has 50/50 Spinach and Arugula, 1/2 of an avocado, feta cheese, strawberries, cucumbers, lemon pepper chicken, and a little bit of red wine vinaigrette. So good!

4. Relaxing at night. I usually try to cram so much into my day and my day usually starts pretty dang early nowadays. Once the husband gets home, we usually feed the little one and put her to bed for the night. We've been watching Game of Thrones lately and I love to have a glass of wine when we do. (Don't worry, I don't breastfeed for a good amount of time after drinking alcohol.) It's nice to just slow down even for an hour before bed. 

5. Detox Baths. I am a bath person. Lately, I'm lucky if I shower before 2 pm, but sometimes in the evenings, the husband watches the baby monitor and I get to take a bath. Recently, I've been doing detox baths when I can. This includes some epsom salt and my lovely Doterra oils. I feel so wonderful afterwards and I feel like I just soak out all of the crap from my body. I love detox baths so much. I also seem to sleep much better after taking one.

6. Coconut Oil. I'm kind of shocked that it took me so long to embrace this amazing stuff. It has so many uses and so many benefits. To name a few....

• Make-up Remover
• Body lotion 
• Helps lessen the appearance of stretch marks
• Cooking (I cook eggs, veggies, chicken, you name it with this stuff!)
• Cradle Cap

I could go on and on. Here's a pretty good list of coconut oil uses.

7. Diffusing Oils. I know you're probably reading this saying, "Oh no, here we go again. She's talking about essential oils." Sorry, but I love them. I like diffusing citrusy scents during the day when I'm working. Sometimes I add peppermint to the mix. It lifts my moods and increases my focus on the task at hand.

8. Dry Shampoo. My hair secret. Let's be honest here, I do shower everyday but I don't always have the time to wash my hair, blow-dry it, straighten or curl it, etc, etc, etc.... So, this is where dry shampoo comes in. This stuff has been a saving grace over maternity leave. My baby needs me a lot. My hair doesn't get washed everyday. Truth. This allows me to go 2 days between washing. Total life saver. I've used a lot of different brands, but this one is my current choice.

9. Reading a good book. This is the other way I wind down at the end of my day. I sleep way better if I read before bed instead of watching too many episodes of something on Netflix. 

My current reads (I always have too many books going at one time and clearly I need to add a novel or two to this list.)

• Bread & Wine, A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes
• Daring Greatly
• Operation Instructions, A Journal of My Son's First Year 
• The Happiness Project
• Bringing up Bebe

10. And finally sleep. I know, you moms out there are probably laughing at this one. Sleep? What is this sleep you speak of? When you have baby, everyone tells you to sleep when the baby sleeps. I feel this isn't the most realistic of goals, but I do make a point to try and go to bed at a decent time. I could spend hours on the computer, pinning stuff on Pinterest, but instead I try to get a decent amount of sleep. I know that I will be waking up at some point to feed the baby, so I take what I can get. Naps are also moments in time sent from heaven. I probably nap maybe once a week but sometimes that's all I need to hit the refresh button.

Doterra Oils: My Current Obsession

I'm obsessed. I recently met with a Doterra Independent Product Consultant because I was super curious about essential oils. I have a number of friends back where I went to college in Washington that use them and I had to find out more for myself. 

A week or so later, these beauties (I purchased the Home Essentials Kit) arrived at my doorstep and I have already begun using these amazing oils. I have a lot to learn, but I truly believe this is a great step in a good, healthy direction for my family and I. It could also become another business venture for me if I decide to host classes and sell products myself. I see that in my future at some point. Right now, I am learning everything I can about the oils and using them on my family. 

My baby's cradle cap is already disappearing far quicker than any other thing we've tried. I am using a drop of Melaleuca and some coconut oil. 

My husband's muscles ache a lot due to his line of work and he is trying out the Deep Blue Rub. 

I am excited to try our diffuser in our home. I went with this one since it was cheaper. Not Doterra, so we will see if it works well or not. 

I used lavender (with a carrier oil) on Marin's feet last night and she seems to sleep better. I think at first she wasn't quite sure what to do with it. I might try diffusing lavender in her room as well at night. 

I'm sure I will write about these products again. I have just begun to skim the surface. 

Do you use essential oils in your daily life? What is your daily routine? 

Staying Sane: Date Night

Date night is important, very important. Ever since we became parents, I've realized how even more important finding time as a couple and as individuals really is. Being parents is amazing, but unless we are staying sane in the process, life can get difficult. We don't want life to become difficult. We want to live out extraordinary lives, even in the day to day. That's always been the goal. 

This was right before we left for the date. I didn't know quite what to do with myself! 

Monday night, Grandma and Grandpa Hollen came to our house to watch the lil' one while we went out for the first time since Marin was born. I've been away from her only for little snippets of time: to run errands, to escape to Target for a little mommy break, to actually take a shower and shave my legs. 

This was the longest stretch so far. We were away for about 4 hours and I can't even begin to count how many times I thought about my kid. It was crazy! But, we had a wonderful time away for even just a bit. It is so important to do this: for our marriage and for our sanity. We can get so caught up in caring for an infant, which is important obviously, but we can lose ourselves in the process. I think Ryan and I are doing really well at not losing ourselves as we become parents. It's a process, surely, but we are making strides towards really settling in to this whole parenting gig while still keeping our marriage and relationship strong and healthy. 

For date night we went and saw the Lego Movie. I was skeptical at first but ended up really enjoying it! It was really good! 

After the movie, we went to Old Town to one of our favorite restaurants: Stuft, A Burger Bar. Any place that has sweet potato fries and lets you build your own burger to your liking is a place I want to be at. I want to go to there. 

Monday night also marked the first day I've had a beer in oh, let's see, about 10 freaking months! I've been waiting to have alcohol and read up on how to still be breastfeeding and consuming alcoholic beverages. Sunshine Wheat. Wonderful Sunshine Wheat. It had been so long! 

Hallelujah. 

The last time I believe I had a beer we are were at Stuft Burger (creatures of habit, clearly.) I remember feeling sick to my stomach and couldn't even finish my beer. Little did I know, I was actually pregnant at the time! No wonder I didn't want it. Now though, I gladly welcome the occasional beverage back into my life. It can stick around for a while. 

What do you do for Date Night? 

Here are few other ideas....

1. Here's a great list at Lovely Venture.
2. 21 Free Date Night Ideas at Adventures of A Couponista.
3. 52 Almost Free Ideas at Oh Simple Thoughts.
4. Stay at Home Date Night Ideas at Imperfect Homemaker.   

Maintenance

 

Life seems to slowly teach me certain things. Some things I grasp easier than others. Others have to hit me like sledge hammer for me to gain one ounce of respect from whatever situation I’m facing. I keep finding myself thinking about the depths of life, how time passes, and how it passes too quickly. It is a terrifying thing to sit and grasp for a moment how quickly minutes really do pass and how far I’ve come in my 26 years of life. So much has happened. So much will still happen. Even though I am young, I still feel like time passes by so quickly. The weeks all blur into one and I’m left watching the leaves turn and fall yet again as the first snow graces our lawn. Time moves quickly. I want to keep a hold of it. But how?

Maintenance. I know I’ve spoken of this before, but it’s in the journey. Every day we are faced with a decision to merely sleep our way through life or to take every day by the horns for all that its worth. You have to make the decision though, it just won’t happen the second you finally decide to quit hitting your snooze button and get out of bed. Maintenance is found in the eating of wholesome meals, working out the kinks in my muscles, keeping our house as much of a home as possible. Maintenance is in reading a novel when life slows down in the evening. It’s found in picking up a guitar or paint brush. Or having a campfire out back while drinking wine and spending time with others. Maintenance is a massive process.

I want to know that I have maintained a good life, one that didn’t settle even when everything seems so routine and mundane. Life can be found in the maintenance only if you are willing to seek it out. We are all from somewhere, yet we have now found ourselves here with one another. I don’t think that should be taken for granted. I don’t think time is incredibly fair, but my goal each day is to make the most of it, in whatever way possible. No matter if I sit in an office staring at a computer screen all day, get to play a show, or experience the outside world as nature has intended: it’s all about maintenance.

 

I Want to Be a Loser

I know what you're thinking: What an emo title. What a great read for my Tuesday morning. Stay with me, I promise I will make some sort of sense. 

If any of you know me or have read my blog for any given amount of time, you probably know that I'm always on some sort of diet. I'm always scoping out the next meal plan or fitness routine. It is a struggle. My weight has been a constant force the past few years, a force to be reckoned with. A force that I cannot allow to sway my days any longer. 

I've been on a new plan and going to the gym very consistently as of late and I feel awesome. I feel awesome until the fateful time I step on the scale every week, only to be hit with the same darn number. My muscle mass is going up, my fat mass is going down, but still no budge. Not even a smidgen. It stares back at me like something that has been etched long ago into cement, never to change or morph. 

I'm sick of staring at that scale. I don't want to any more. I want to wake up every morning knowing that I'm feeding my body extremely well, taking care of it, lifting my weights, and sweating my butt off. That's all I need. That's really all I want. 

I still want to be a loser though. A loser of pounds. A gainer of muscle, confidence, and strength. My jeans are buttoning easier than they used to and I've had to wear a belt with my favorite blue jeans. I am not only a number. I am a strong women that is taking this one step at a time. 

As I was cooking my meals for the week last night, it really hit me. No more scale. No more measuring. No more stressing out and feeling miserable. Just living and breathing, sweating and enduring. That's it. Healthy meals, healthy habits, kick butt workouts. 

Simply put this morning: I want to be a loser. But, the scale and I are going to break up for a while. 

And I feel totally alright with that. 

My Vegan Journey: January Update

I have a love hate relationship with food in most circumstances. I love a good cheese, some french bread, and wine just like the next person, but my hips and tummy probably would disagree most times. I want to get through my day knowing that I ate the best that I could, nourished my body with the fuel that it needs (which probably shouldn't include drinking quite as much coffee. Maybe green tea!), and being nice to my self and the misconceptions I may have about my body and health. 

It's a constant journey. I cannot eat like an angel for a few days and then completely sabotage myself on the weekend just because I kept it up for a few days. I think I make it far more difficult than it needs to be at times. 

January was a good month. I ate mostly vegan. I would be lying to you if I said I didn't allow myself a cheat day every once in a while, but I can say that I only consumed meat maybe 3 or so times. That in itself is a triumph. Whenever I could eat vegan I would. When we would go out or I wanted to have a nice date with my man, sometimes that's harder to do. Those times would be when I would eat vegetarian at least. 

Don't get me wrong, eating vegan is wonderful. I feel better. My stomach loves me so much more. I enjoy planning meals and actually cooking something. But, a girl has to have some cheese every once in a while. Let's not get all crazy. 

My journey for February......

I plan on still eating as close to vegan as possible but I will allow some dairy every once in a while. I miss my greek yogurt and the occasional veggie pizza. But, meat? I don't really desire it as much as I used to. I'm alright with that. 

I like the challenge. It's good for me to plan my meals out before hand. I enjoy cooking and baking with a vegan bent in mind. I plan on continuing on this journey for the months to come. One thing I would like to add to this journey is more exercise. Sitting at a desk all day isn't helping anyone. I also would like to embrace using my juicer more often. 

Hello, February. 

Another Step

Some of you may know this and some of you may not. Last fall I went on the HCG diet. Highly controversial and fairly insane, but I still did it. I lost a lot of weight in the process. Was it worth it? In some ways -yes, in some ways- no. Have I kept all of the weight off? Most of it. Will I ever take myself through that torture again? No way. The second round I became so sick and I feel like my body still has damage from that diet. 

*If you're on that diet, go for it. If you're not, that's probably a good thing. It works, but it sucks. (That's my two cents.) 

So, I've taken another step to reach my goal. Weight Watchers. I tell you all this to hold myself accountable and to also state that the first week I've been on it has been wonderful. For those of you that don't know what the diet entails, you can eat pretty much what you want as long as you stay within your daily points. My OCD mind loves the ability to track everything online or on my phone too. This feels much safer. I feel much healthier and fully believe I will make these results stick this time around. 

Breakfast is still my favorite meal ever. 

I also plan on posting some recipes during my endeavor to the change the way I eat and take care of myself. I made this one on friday. Piece of cake and only 5 points per serving. Awesome. This recipe is specifically from Weight Watchers.

SLOW COOKER: RED BEANS, SAUSAGE, and RICE SOUP

Ingredients

	1 clove(s) (medium) garlic clove(s), minced
	1 medium red onion(s), chopped
	1 stalk(s) (large) celery, rib, chopped
	1 medium green pepper(s), chopped
	15 oz canned kidney beans, dark-variety, rinsed and drained
	14 1/2 oz canned diced tomatoes, undrained
	9 oz cooked chicken sausage, andouille-style, cut into bite-size pieces
	1/4 tsp dried thyme
	1/4 tsp black pepper
	6 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth
	1 cup(s) uncooked white rice, converted-variety recommended

Instructions

• Place garlic, onion, celery, bell pepper, beans, tomatoes with their juices and sausage in a 5-quart slow cooker. Add thyme and pepper; stir well.
  
  
• Pour in broth and rice; stir again. Cover slow cooker and set on high power; cook for 4 hours. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Notes

• We recommend converted rice because regular long-grain rice can become mushy in slow cooker recipes.
  To turn up the heat, add 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper with the thyme.
  Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  It turned out to be quite good.