Waiting


My mind is everywhere these days. Pregnancy is a huge distraction for me. I am consumed by it most of the time, every hour of every day. I’m either reminded about how I won’t see a pair of pants with an actual waistline for months-I even have begun to miss buttoning my pants, now I don’t even have the option, elastic reigns. Or I ponder how I’m slowing getting to the point of not being able to see my feet and that I needed a pedicure yesterday. There will also come a time where shaving my legs will be a comedic event. Then to add on to all of this, I  have decided upon the crazy notion of possibly growing out my hair again because my hair is growing so quickly these days but also know that I will face an awkward Justin Bieber grow out stage. 

I’ve also been having pregnancy dreams like crazy. Many of them lately have involved running, like athletically. Let me just take a moment and state that I have never been a runner, I have tried in the past and have failed miserably. I am the person that tries to run but turns into an asthmatic mess of a human, hacking and wheezing my way through very short distances. But, in my dreams, I run. I compete. I fly. 

I also dreamt last night that I gave birth to three puppies instead of a baby. We pulled them behind our tour van (since we were touring musicians in my dream) in this pimped out trailer that was nicer than the van. But, they kept getting out and I couldn’t keep track of all of them. 

Lord, please let me not have 3 babies or puppies at one time. 

On top of my pants not fitting, I also am still worried about out little Marin. I try not worry, I really do, but it’s tough when I can’t quite feel her yet and know that she’s in there but could still be facing risky conditions. We see the specialist again on Tuesday and I hope to hear miraculous words come from his mouth: “She is measuring fine now and your fluid levels are up. I don’t know what you did, but great job!” Then, in my mind, I will be praising God in heaven and thanking all of you that have been praying and praying and praying. 

Tuesday. I have to wait until Tuesday. 



I’ve been making it my point to slow down and rest, firstly for my baby and secondly for my sanity. The other evening I came home, put some thumbprint cookies on a plate, made a cup of decaf (so over that), and sat down to read one of my favorite authors, Anne Lamott. It was like this book was made for me at this point in my life. If I had the guts to, I’d go through and obsessively highlight every line on every page.

“Oh, but my stomach, she is like a waterbed covered in flannel. When I lie on my side in bed, my stomach lies politely beside me, like a puppy.” 
 Anne Lamott, Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year

“I don't remember who said this, but there really are places in the heart you don't even know exist until you love a child.” 
 Anne Lamott, Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year 

I need times to breathe like the other evening. I’ve also needed the rest of this weekend. I actually was able to spend two whole days off with my man. We slept in, went shopping, watched movies, ordered pizza, made italian. My heart and stomach are full. We seem to keep getting stuck in this routine of me leaving early for my day, him working late, and me being basically asleep by the time he gets home. I cherish every moment that we have together now. 

Overall, Tuesday. I have to wait until Tuesday. 

And finally, thank you all for all of your prayers and encouragement. You have helped carry us through these past few weeks. 

If You Are The Prayin' Kind


Yesterday was very hard. Very hard. I am still trying to grasp a lot of what we were told. The news wasn’t good, the news wasn’t ideal. But there is one thing I know for certain, one thing I will hold on to with every ounce of my being: 

My God is bigger. My God is stronger. If His will is to bring this little girl into this world, it will happen. No matter what. 

Those could be the only words I write today and that would be enough. 

My faith doesn’t rest in my medical doctor, my faith rests in God alone. 

We were told yesterday, after being sent to a different specialist for an ultrasound, that Marin is measuring smaller than they would like. 

They also told us that I don’t have enough amniotic fluid to help guarantee the life and growth our little girl. 

Our God is bigger. 

Our God is stronger. 

The hard part with this situation is that there isn’t anything I could have done differently and there isn’t much I can do moving forward. We have another appointment set for the first of October with the specialist. For now, the only thing I can do is guzzle water like it’s going out of style. 

Prayer can change things. God can cause our little girl to grow big and strong. God can cause my amniotic fluid to increase to a point where it is safe and healthy. 

If you are of the praying kind, please pray with us. 

I want nothing more than to meet our little, healthy girl in February. 




IKEA TRIP


I can mark yet another item off of my list. My whole 28 Things List is actually going quite well. Let's see if I still say that once a baby comes into the picture. 

This list item: TAKE AN IKEA TRIP. 

I love IKEA. It's like the land of inexpensive furniture that I can actually use in my house. Did I mention there are meatballs? There are meatballs. And mashed potatoes. And Swedish everything. 


A few years back, Colorado finally got their own IKEA. When I lived in the northwest, I used to drive by the IKEA in Portland every single day on way to class. Talk about tempation. Luckily, the Denver location is a pretty long drive. Convincing my husband to drive all of the way there isn't always the easiest of tasks. But, this time, I succeeded. 



We also didn't bring the mom van (bad choice.) But, we ended up fitting everything in Ryan's car. I had to ride in the back seat on the way home. I bet we looked like an odd pair driving back to Fort Collins. 

Some of our goals for this trip: 

1. We wanted to bring back the Man Cave. Now that we don't have room mates, I figured I'd be a nice wife and let my husband have his room back. 

Sad Man Cave 
Geoff helping. Not. 
2. Since he was getting back his man space, I wanted a new rug for the living room and whatever other goodies I could find. 

3. We wanted to check out the baby/kid section at IKEA. Before this, I always breezed through that area because I didn't really have a need to look at that stuff yet. We have a lot of ideas for the nursery now. 

Our Man Cave....




I would like to take a moment and tell you that I am a total nerd. The X-Files, I Want To Believe poster, all my idea. Mulder and Scully forever. 

Our Spruced-Up Living Room....


I am obsessed with the rug and pillows. Obsessed.
A few other odds and ends from trip....

Dish Towel 
Kitchen Rugs 
This same weekend, I finally painted the accent wall in bedroom as well. 

I feel accomplished and really like these little additions to our home. I predict that we will be taking another trip to IKEA for some nursery items in the future. And meatballs. 



















It's A.......

GIRL! 

I'm going to be completely honest and say that I am surprised I am writing the word above. I thought for sure, somehow in the way back of my mind, that we were having a boy. That's what was showing up in my dreams. Pretty crazy how everything you thought changes so quickly. There was a 50/50 chance I was wrong, and I was! 

I just need to get this out: Katie, you were right! 

We are super stoked. The idea of having a girl pretty much scares the crap out of each of us (hello, teenage years and lots of pink), but we can't contain our excitement. 

Ultrasounds put so many things into perspective. They make the journey we are on seem so much more real. We went in yesterday afternoon to the Women's Clinic. The technician believes I might actually be earlier than we think, meaning, I might only be around 18 weeks, not 20 weeks. My doctor assured us that isn't a cause for concern, but next week I will be going to see a specialist for another ultrasound. The tech wasn't able to get all of the images we needed because of the position of the baby and the chance that I'm not as far along as I thought. They want to make sure the baby is growing at a healthy rate and that my predicted due date is actually somewhat accurate. 

Overall though, our baby girl is moving around and looking great! We almost weren't able to find out the gender of the baby yesterday due to the ultrasound issues, but we did! I am so glad! I don't think I could have left that building without knowing if it was a boy or girl. The suspense alone would have driven me insane. 


Before the Big Reveal 
We had our family over to reveal what we were having last night. We went to the bakery right after my appointment, found the best looking chocolate cake we could find, and had them write "It's a Girl!" in big, pink letters. 

My dad is already discussing with Ryan about the "Rules for Dating My Daughter." There have been discussions of shot guns during the teenage years. I remember the talk of those rules. I remember. 



Seriously, so much pink. Already. I won't be able to escape all of the pink. 

It's all becoming so real. Yes, my belly keeps growing daily. Yes, I have weird food aversions and cravings. But, telling our family that we are bringing a little girl into the family is a big deal. 

This is Ryan's "OH CRAP" face. 
I pray this little girl will be full of spunk and creativity. I also pray that her parents will be able to handle all of the pink gifts they will be receiving in the near future. 



We believe we already have a name picked out: Marin Ryan Hollen. Which, in loose translation terms, Marin means "of the sea." Ryan means "little king (or queen). So in my mind, we are having a little Queen of the Sea. I'm totally fine with that. 


I can't wait to meet our little girl.