Blaine&ShannonFinley: January 2013

Thursday, January 10, 2013

2013 Goals

I know I'm a little behind but its been a little busy around here so I haven't had time to sit down and write this post out but its been in my head for like a week! So I don't do the new years resolutions and for the past several years I haven't done anything, just lived life the same as I had the year before but this year I decided that I needed to set some goals for myself in the new year. Now that I stay at home with Peyton I feel like in order for me to feel accomplished I need to have some goals for myself. They are all small things that have very deep seeded meanings behind them not just your run of the mill I want to lose weight this year! I wanted my goals to truly have purpose and meaning for me so that they will be that much easier to accomplish and I can say very proudly that so far I have kept each one of the my goals! But I thought it would be nice to write my goals on here and every so often I'll give an update of how those goals are going for me that way I have a few extra people holding me accountable! So here goes!
1) Read my Bible daily - this is something that I have always struggled with but it has always been something that I know I should be doing so this year because I not only want to do it for myself but I want to be able to set the example for my children in the future I'm determined to make this habit stick and so far it has been amazing! God has opened up that bible exactly where I needed it to be everyday!
2)Tithe the way god wants us to - this has been on my heart for months and every week at church I feel like the pastor is talking straight to me because this is something I've struggled with forever but I decided to pray about it the entire month of December so that I would have peace about it when we started doing it in the new year and so far so good!
3) Run 1 full mile without having to walk - I am NOT a runner and never have been but I'm determined that I'm going to start a little at a time!
4) Exercise at least twice a week - I want to lose weight as much as the next woman but for me its so much more than that I want to be healthy for myself and for my children and that is really what its all about. So far this has been a lot of fun I've found some kickboxing videos I really enjoy and a few fun do with your baby exercises that have been really good! And made me very sore!
5) Be more adventurous - I am a worrier and I am a play it safe kind of person but my husband is not and I know there are things he would love for us to do together if I would just be a little more adventurous so this year it is my goal to let go of some of the fears and be more adventurous. Plus I dont want to teach my children to fear everything so this is my goal.
6) Send more birthday cards - not just birthday cards but just cards in general. I am always thinking of my friends and family especially on their special days but I've never been good at remembering that little card that I know personally can make all the difference and brighten someones day so I want to start that habit.
7) Read 5 new books- lets be honest we watched entirely too much tv in my house so I hope by setting a goal to read more the tv will turn off a little more plus I want to expand my horizons on the types of books I read! Gotta keep the brain working!
8) Read with Peyton each day - I want her to have the love of reading and learning and I know that it can start now so we start everyday by reading a story from her bible stories for kids book and she loves looking at the pictures and listening to mommy read! Not only will this teach her a love for reading but it is also starting the habit of starting the day with god and that is what I want for her more than anything!
9) Pray Daily - I've always been a prayer randomly when something happens but I want to pray continuously and with purpose. i want to have a relationship with god that i can pray with him for anything and everything and nothing at all so I've added a prayer to the end of my bible reading everyday!
10) Be a better wife - this is just a goal to better myself and my marriage. i think we all have things to work on but you have to admit before you get change it so this is my way of starting the change!!

Well there you have it my goals and their purpose for 2013! Wish me luck!!

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Our New Years eve Adventure

Ok so I mentioned in my previous post that we had a bit of an adventure on new years eve while were trying to drive home from Nebraska. The trip started out nice a sunny and calm and no worries in the world. Peyton was behaving Blaine was driving and I was reading in the backseat... all was right in this little road trip world of ours. We made a stop in York to eat lunch, and feed Peyton and then it was back on the road. Well once we get back on the road it seems the further south we go the darker the sky gets until eventually we hit snow. Ok not so bad until we continue going and the snow just gets heavier and heavier to the point that visibility is not super great at this point and the road are starting to get covered. So by the time we make it to Concordia Kansas which is about 50 miles north of Salina my nerves are completely shot and I tell Blaine I don't think its safe to go any farther. He tries to argue at first but after seeing how upset I was about it says ok we'll stop. So I see a sign that there is a holiday inn express just a mile into the town and we say great we'll stop there and get a room. At this point I've called people to check the radar for me and by the looks of the radar we were going to getting out of the storm anytime soon and it was supposed to continue on into the evening and night (it was about 3 in the afternoon at this point). So we go up the road to the Holiday Inn.... and of course this hotel sits on probably the biggest hill in this entire town and we can't get up the drive to the parking lot. Blaine tries both entrances and somehow doesn't get us stuck (I was terrified) so by this point I'm in the back seat in tears because I'm so upset and scared and I just want me and my little baby off of the roads and out of the cold. We had seen a super 8 motel just a few blocks back so Blaine says we'll just go there and thats what we did. They had a room, gave us a discount cause Blaine works for the federal government and so we bundle up and get out of the car and into the hotel. Blaine brings in the few things that we need for the night without unpacking the entire car in the snow and we just get comfy. Peyton naps a bit we watch some tv and play some angry birds just trying to make the best out of a not so great situation. Blaine treks next door in the snow to Mcdonalds later in the evening to get us some dinner (love my hubby) and we watch tv till we can't keep our eyes open anymore and call it a night. It def wasn't a super great New Years eve in fact I'm pretty sure we were asleep by 10 but around like 1230 Peyton made a few little noises that made us both stir a bit look at the clock realize it was after midnight we both said "happy new year" in our most unenthuased sleepy voice and went right back to sleep LOL! Aren't we so much fun!! Then in the morning we got up, had some breakfast, loaded the car back up and hit the road. The roads were still pretty gross when we first got started but by the time we made it to Salina they cleared up pretty well and we managed to make it home without anymore incidents! It was not the road trip home that we had planned by any means but thankfully I have been blessed with a wonderful husband who keeps calm in bad situations and we were able to make the best of it. All that matter to me was that we were together and that we were safe but man I can tell you the words "Home Sweet Home" never rang so trip after that trip!!!

Friday, January 4, 2013

Nebraska Christmas

We are home from our vacation and after two days of travel I have never been happier to be home. But thats a story all its own so I'll save that for my new years blog post! Anyways, we really enjoyed our time in Nebraska this christmas and we were all very blessed as usual! We drove up the day after christmas and as we drove we watched the temperature drop and the snow started getting deeper and deeper! LOL! But it was a beautiful sight and the roads were good so I didn't mind too much... although it was def. COLD! We spent a lot of time just relaxing and hanging out with family which lets be honest is my ideal vacation! We were able to celebrate our nieces birthday on Thursday along with Blaine's dad's and then we just enjoyed a lazy relaxing day Friday and did a little shopping as well. It was relaxed unplanned and wonderful! Then saturday was family day. We started the day by taking family pictures and let me tell you that was quite a task LOL! Considering our family pictures included 14 people and 6 of those people are 4 and under! So we planned it all out so that the children were napped and fed and happy. Well that would have been wonderful if the portrait studio hadn't been AN HOUR BEHIND! So needless to say our plan was out the window and the kids were OVER it by the time it was our turn to take pictures! But we did end up with a decent picture of the whole family and a pretty cute one of just the 6 kids... I dont really know how we managed it but we did LOL! After the lovely experience we all went back the Blaine's parents and enjoyed a day playing and laughing and eating... the way the holidays should be. We had a wonderful lunch of all the typical holiday food and then we opened all our gifts and we were so very blessed and Peyton is such a lucky little girl!! It was so fun and such a wonderful time! Then we just spent the evening enjoying eachothers company! Sunday we just had another lazy relaxing day and enjoyed every moment of it! Then we drove home... which is a story all its own! For now I'll leave with you some pictures from our trip!