On Shaheen – Top: Madewell – also available here and I also love this and this version too! | Jeans: Nordstrom – these are my go to black jeans but I love these budget friendly ones too!  | Shoes: Everlane – love these and these too! | Lips: Bare Minerals – just started using this matte gloss and I’m obsessed! 

On Trevor – Pullover: J.Crew – love this one too! I bought this for Trevor a few months back and he know wears it more than anything else now! | Tee: Nordstrom – these are his go to | Jeans: Nordstrom – love these and these too! | Shoes: Nordstrom – I’m obsessed with these sneakers!

On Zain – Sweater: Nordstrom | Tee: Nordstrom – I swear by these, easy to put on and he wears them with everything! | Pants: H&M | Sneakers: Nordstrom

Well, I will be honest and say this wasn’t a post I was sure I would ever write. Let’s go back a few months and start there. Chicago has become a home to our family; it’s where Trevor and I have spent almost our entire time together, where we have cultivated some of the best friendships we have ever had and where we gave birth to our sweet Zain. 

When we looked around at our life here, we were really happy. Trevor really enjoys his job, we love the city and it’s nice to have my brother and his family in the suburbs. We decided this was the place for us and started the dreaded house hunt. We found an amazing realtor through Neal and Jess whom we seriously can’t say enough amazing things about (if you’re looking let me know wand I’ll pass along his information) and got to work. Our weekends were soon full of house tours, neighborhood searches and conversations with builders. 

Our dream (more so mine probably) was to find a beautiful old gem that had or could be restored while keeping all the old details and making it new and fresh. Sadly, most of those projects in Chicago that include a yard and a good neighborhood school like we desired went quick and were also way out of our budget. We decided to start looking at new construction but just couldn’t really settle on anything we saw. They would look so beautiful when we toured and then something just stopped us from pulling the trigger. We wanted something unique. 

Right when we were getting tired of searching a beautiful greystone in Logan Square came on  the market. Our perfect neighborhood, our perfect home. It had been totally rehabbed with every detail considered and the project had taken over a year. We met the contractor (who happened to live down the street from us in Bucktown) and immediately knew it was our forever home. We sat down on a Wednesday and talked through everything with our realtor and put in our offer! While we waited for John to call back, we toasted and couldn’t believe we had finally found our dream home. (Little bit of background: the builder really loved our family and had told our realtor if we came in at full ask it would be ours—there were several other bids in play) John took a bit longer to call back then we had hoped and when he finally did his voice didn’t sound as expected. He told us that someone had come in well over ask with all cash and there wasn’t much we could do. 

We were crushed. 

We decided then and there to take a break from the house search and I won’t lie I still browse pictures of that house… 

Two days later, I looked down at my phone after I put Zain down for a nap and saw a text from Trevor with a picture of an email he had received from a job in Louisville. I’m not kidding when I say I got chills. If you had asked us last year if we wanted to move back to Louisville, the answer would have been an immediate no. I talked about it a little bit previously here but it’s amazing how much can change in such a short amount of time. 

When I saw the email, it just felt right. We decided not to tell anyone (not even our families) till we really knew for sure what was happening. So for the next few weeks Trevor sorted through emails, phone calls and was flown in for an interview. He came back and was immediately offered the position. I think we were kind of in disbelief. 

Was this really happening? 

We sat down and thought long and hard about what this meant for us and our family and ultimately decided this was the right move. I have tears in my eyes actually putting it into words but this city will always be our home and I know this isn’t goodbye. Some of our best friends are here and I’m sure we will be back often. We have made them all promise to come visit every year for Derby. 

I’m excited for what our future holds and can’t wait to get back to Louisville and make it home. Trevor and I haven’t lived there in so long and we are excited to reconnect with the city, be closer to family and friends and really plant some roots. 

Thank you all for your unwavering support and I hope you will enjoy following along in a new city. I foresee lots of house searching and renovating in our future (get excited!) and hopefully a little less snow with just as yummy food. 

Cheers to new adventure for the Khan Hollands and I promise to keep you all updated! 

My sweet family!

So incredibly proud of this guy, as always!

I can’t with this kid!

This is really happy Zain! He probably saw his snack pack 😉