Meet the Shaneyfelts

Archives for September 2018

Equality and the Comparison Game in Blogging

Yesterday Mallory Ervin posted on IG this picture with a long caption explaining how influencers/bloggers and their followers are equal.  Apparently she heard stories from NYFW with some influencers who were acting too good for their followers or other smaller bloggers.


And this got me thinking…

I’ve never once felt like I was too good for those who follow my blog and instagram BUT I have compared myself to other bloggers and felt like they were better than me.

Comparison is a slippery trap that’s easy to fall in to.  Instagram and blogging are worlds that are easy to feel like you don’t have enough or that you should look a certain way.  Does anyone struggle with this at times?
I love blogging so much.  I love the bloggers I’ve connected with and the friendships I’ve made over the Internet.  I love reading other blogs and finding inspiration–and that’s what this whole community should be about–inspiring one another to be a better version of ourselves instead of making it seem like one life is the better life to have.

I hope this post makes sense (I know I’m just rambling), but I really though a lot after reading Mallory’s post.  It’s so sad to know that some women in this industry aren’t supportive of other women and it’s rooted in comparison.  I love the image above–we are equal.  Just because one person follows another doesn’t mean one person is better than the other.  

I hope that those of you who leave my blog and instagram never feel like your life isn’t as good as mine or something to that effect.  Instead, I hope you leave here with new ideas, new inspiration, or just feeling happy!

I’m so thankful for those reading my blog.  I love this creative outlet and it makes it worthwhile knowing people enjoy reading what you create!

Friday Faves!

Yay it’s Friday!!!  This has been a short week for students, but don’t sometimes the shortest weeks feel like the longest?  It’s been a busy week for us on the home front, too.  My mom and I painted the nursery and we’ve got two huge fundraisers this weekend!  My MIL’s sisters are having a massive two day yard sale today and tomorrow and tomorrow my sister is doing mini sessions for our adoption fundraiser!

It’s been a BIG week!!!  This week is all about adoption, and I’m going to make sure that my posts don’t revolve around that, but this week was all about it.

 Tuesday we mailed off all of our paperwork to our consultant group!  It’s so crazy to think about all the paperwork we did and all the drug tests, physicals, fingerprinting, etc. that we had to do and now it’s all done!!  So now we’re waiting to be deemed active!



 My friend Hailey went with me to mail off our stuff since Dustin had to work.  I had asked her to take one picture of me with the package and she basically took a picture of every move I made 😂  I need to do a blog post on it next week because it is so funny!



 I did an IG story last week wearing this top and I had a few questions about it.  It’s Loft from a few years ago but I saw on another blogger’s try on session that Loft has a similar style out now.  I tried looking for it on their website, but it may not be online yet.



One of the girls in my small group gave me this boba wrap and I decided to try it out the other night.  I remembered I had my Bitty Baby in storage so I used it.  Baby wearing feels foreign to me, but it’s something that Dustin and I will both be doing!



If you’re looking to adopt domestically and need a profile book designed, I highly recommend Little Ampersand Co!  Kendahl was so easy to work with and she worked quickly.  There is no way that I could have designed what she did.  She did such a beautiful job and I can’t wait for these birth moms to get to look at our book!



You’ve got one week left to purchase an adoption t-shirt before we place our order!  
$20 = youth med-xl and adult small-xl
$22 = 2xl-3xl
$5 shipping, if needed
paypal.me/DustinShaneyfelt ……make sure you don’t mark that you’re buying goods and services because we lose money that way!
I’ll send out details to everyone who buys a shirt, but I’m going to gather pictures of people wearing our shirts and post those!  It’s been so neat seeing how far our story has reached!

Fall Favorites: Crock Pot Meals!

Happy Wednesday, y’all!!  Today is the first day of mine and Emily’s Fall Favorites link up and it’s a topic that I’m really excited about because fall just screams crock pot meals.  They are easy, hearty, and warm, and I really love warm food during cold weather.



Since it’s 90 degrees in Alabama right now, let’s pretend we’re at a crisp and cool 60 degrees and you’re coming over to eat a meal I’ve prepared in my crock pot.  These are a few of my favorites…

First, I love to cook chicken in my crockpot and I can do anything with that chicken.  I buy chicken breasts in bulk at Kroger, trim any fat, and then bag them in quart freezer bags two to a bag.  Then I stick them in the freezer and just grab a bag whenever I need one.  I’ll take a baggie of two frozen chicken breasts and stick them in the crock pot, cover with water, and cook on low 8-10 hours.  I’ll take them out, shred them, and then do whatever I want with them!!!

I also love to take a baggie of two frozen chicken breasts and pour a jar of salsa over them and cook on low 8-10 hours.  Then I love to get out a pie dish, layer tortilla chips, and place this salsa chicken over tortilla chips.  Then add any toppings you like for nachos and bake!

Those are just some really simple recipes.

Crockpot Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti–I made this when we first got married and LOVED it!!  My mom had never had chicken spaghetti so I probably made it a little too much after we got married and I suddenly became responsible for feeding a grown man haha!

Crockpot Buffalo Chicken–I make this for Dustin every once in a while when I’m feeling nice 😜 because spicy food makes me sick.  This is so so easy to make and Dustin likes to put it over a salad with ranch dressing or even over tortilla chips and greek yogurt.

Light Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup–I found this recipe after searching for recipes similar to Chick-fil-a’s tortilla soup.  Oh My Gosh this recipe is amazing and I can’t wait to make it again this fall and winter!

Chinese Cashew Chicken–Okay y’all, this is a must!!  This does require a little prep so I usually prep it the night before in my crockpot liner, and just place that in the crockpot in the morning before I leave for work.  If you like cashews and Chinese food, you will LOVE this!!

Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal–I cannot wait to make this again this fall!  It was so nice waking up with the house smelling like cinnamon and apples and being able to open the crockpot and have a warm breakfast.  (That was a long sentence but this food really is so good!)  This was one of our favorites that I will be making the first cold spell we have!

Link up below with Emily and me!  I can’t wait to see y’all’s favorite crock pot recipes!

OR