It's The Weekend | Number One

It's no secret that I love to make lists of any kind and then check off the items on each list. Sometimes, I compile lists of things I've seen and read. Sometimes, I create lists of things I would love to do in the future or things I can do now to make our present even more awesome. 

Here are a few of those things for your weekend....

Let 2017 Be The Year Of Working & Resting Hard

Date Night & Cold Showers | 20 Habits That Change Lives

28 Books to Read in 2017 

Can we just live in a bus? 

Speaking of books...this is next on my list. And this. And this. 

The morning routines of other people fascinate me so much. 

A good reminder and a warm pasta salad. 


Have a great Saturday! 

Marin Turns Three

On February 18th, our little gal turned three years old. I say this every single year, but somehow we were in the hospital one day, holding a little baby in our arms with no idea what we were doing and then we blink.....We have a 3 year old. 

Marin has blessed our lives in ways that I can't even begin to describe. Becoming parents has been one of the most rewarding and difficult things we have ever done. I have learned more from this little girl in the past few years than I have in my entire life. 

On Saturday, we invited our family over for a birthday celebration. In true Marin form, there was lots of pink packages and glitter tissue paper. She was given this adorable dress from a lady at church that her daughter wore 20-something years before. I think it's adorable. Marin's hair is also growing like crazy (finally) and she really needs a hair cut, but her dress is so cute. 

We brought in some chicken from Raising Canes and had other people bring sides of fries, beans fruit, pasta salad, cupcakes, etc. Raising Canes was the brilliant decision from my husband and I have been way too thankful to be eating chicken all week. It's so good. 

I barely got any photos taken because she moves quickly and so does our family. 

We don't have a baby girl any more. We have a little girl. Marin's vocabulary shocks me daily. She sleeps through the night. She drinks out of a big girl cup. Just this week, we dove once more into the land of potty training. It's finally clicking and I cannot believe it. She went poop in the potty last night and I've never been so thrilled about a bowel movement in my entire life. We haven't had a single accident and I'm so proud of this little peanut. 

I cannot wait to see what this new year brings for Marin. She will become a big sister to a new brother this summer. She will become a big girl and say good bye to diapers forever. This fall, we have enrolled her into 2 day a week preschool. I want to get her into dance class. 

We love you, Marin! Happy 3rd Birthday!! 

Hollen Family | IT'S A......

Today is the big day, the day we found out whether or not we are having a boy or a girl. I seriously cannot quite believe that I am nearly half way through this pregnancy. It seems like just the other day, I was on vacation with Ryan, staying in Denver and holding a positive pregnancy test in my hand, mildly freaking out. Ok, I was pretty much freaking out. We had been trying but I didn't think I would be pregnant so soon. I couldn't even drink the the bottle of wine we had brought to our B&B or sit in the awesome rooftop hot tub that overlooked Denver. But, still worth it. And now....here we are.

I am one of those planner people that really needs to know if we are having a boy or a girl. I would like to think I could be carefree and spontaneous and not know, but this is reality people. My reality. If it is a boy, I need to buy pretty much an entirely new wardrobe unless he wants to grow up in glitter and pink. If it's a girl, I have more clothing for her packed away in Marin's closet than I know what to do with. I haven't gotten rid of everything. I have been a packrat mom with all of Marin's clothing.

But, once we are in the know, I am excited to start decorating nursery #2 and prepping for this little baby that will be here truly before we know it. I've been pinning stuff like crazy. Find me on Pinterest here. Here are a few nurseries that I love...Sources are linked below the image.

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So, without making you wait even longer.....

We had our ultrasound and OB appointment today. Ryan was off so he got to go with me. The last time we did this with Marin, we had a few complications and scares. You can read about them here...but we ended up with a perfectly healthy, awesome little girl. 

No scares today. Baby is healthy and good. Praise the Lord!

We had the ultrasound tech put the gender reveal in an envelope. Then we took said envelope to King Soopers and had them make us a cake and cover it up so we couldn't see it. 

We had our family over for the reveal. It's a good thing we only had to wait until this evening. The suspense was intense. So...drum roll please....

The look of pure shock probably will tell you what I thought we were having....

Baby Hollen #2 is a BOY!!!!!

One Little Word | 2017

Over the past few years, I've sought out One Little Word for the new year ahead of me. Sometimes the word comes to me almost immediately during the Christmas season, other times I have to really hunt for it in the midst of the chaos and beauty of life. It's a nice feeling to have a word that you can become grounded to or even toss aside entirely, but for it to still be there as you need it and learn through the seasons of a new year. I've learned a lot from my words in the past. 

Here is my word from 2015 and 2016. I love being able to choose a word, or even have a word choose me. It keeps me grounded but also moving forward. 

I had my word for this year probably about a month ago but I'm just now being able to share it with you all. Many of my mornings have been filled with this idea and I feel it's ready to share with the world. 

Leading up to this post, I feel like I have been wavering in many things in our lives. Being pregnant with our second child (see the adorable announcement video here) has sent me on an never ending loop of feeling super tired but knowing that I should be doing something worthwhile. I desire for my days to mean something, to be worth something. I desire to be able to look back upon this year and realize that we accomplished a lot, even with a little. 

My word for this new year is.....INTENTIONAL. 

As far as goal setting and New Year resolutions go, that word originally felt like a predictable choice, an easy choice. But, it kind of chose me. 

I read this quote early this morning on Pinterest and it soaked into me. Being INTENTIONAL to me is putting in the hard work. Creating the lists. Taking the chunks of time in your day that are usually wasted and doing something extraordinary with them. INTENTIONAL to me is finding the magic in the ordinary. Emptying the dishwasher. Changing the diaper. Reading the same book to the kiddo for the 100th time that day. Working on the work project that never seems to end. Crossing off the items on a to do list and continuing to move on. 

I like the idea of working hard in silence. I believe that's what INTENTION looks like, feels like, moves like. Many times in life, I want people to be aware of my hard work. I want people to think that I have it all together and that I work my tail off. But, in all reality, I don't think that matters. Yes, you have to do the work and put in ALL of the time, but your success will speak for itself. 

I want to approach this year much the same. Do the work, put in the hours, don't boast about the hustle. The success and end result will speak for itself as something of value and worth. 

It's the little steps, the little lists, the little moments that will add up to an life of INTENTION. 

These will be my areas of focus this year...a mind, body, and soul approach. 

HOME |  Purge. Home Projects. Weekly Cleaning Schedule. Clean Car. 

BODY | Move more often. CSA or Farmer's Market. Self-Care Weekly. Get Outside. Drink More Water. Essential Oisl. More Sleep. 

MONEY | Side Hustle. Meal Planning. Debt Free Goals & Plan. Budget Boot Camp. Spending Freeze. No Mindless Purchases. 

FAMILY & LOVE |  Family Meals. Date Night. Work Life Balance. Be Present. Take Vacations. More Husband Time. 

MIND | Less TV. More Books. Podcasts & TED Talks. Learn Something New. Brain Dump in AM & PM. 

SPIRIT | Wake at 5am often. Gratitude Journal. Morning Pages. The Artist's Way. Community Involvement. Church. 

I'm not sure where all of this will take me this year, but I'm willing to take the time to find out.