Things I've Noticed at the Gym

I love going to the gym. It’s easier for me to exercise when I have to make the conscious effort to get dressed, make sure someone’s watching the kids, and drive there. I feel like I owe it to myself to have a good workout. Now I am by no means an expert, but I’ve been to a few gyms- from the big social club gyms, down to my current little neighborhood gym. And I’ve made a few observations...

1.      People have no shame

I call her “loud obnoxious lady.” Once she came in wearing a hot pink bathrobe covered in hearts. She doesn’t own a coat because it’s ‘not supposed to get cold in Florida.’ She generally shows up with her equally loud friend, and together they plow away on the treadmill, loudly bemoaning the many faults of their husbands and kids. Don’t get me wrong- I understand we all need to vent, but if I was her husband, I would go out for drinks with Chris twice a week, too!

2.      The bigger the grunts, the more weight you can lift

You know the type- super big and buff up top, with little skinny legs. These are the guys who apparently forgot leg day exists. They get huge weights, sound like they’re the Hulk while pounding their sets, and then drop them to the floor with a huge crash. Then there’s the production of stretching their sore muscles and drinking from their gallon jug of water. I’ve always wanted to saunter over and imitate them, just to see the reaction. Of course, my idea of ‘huge weights’ would be twenty pound dumbbells…not exactly intimidating.

3.     Time slows down at the gym               
      Don’t believe me? Do a two minute wall-sit, or a sixty-second plank, or run full out on the treadmill for five minutes. You’ll feel like the clock is ticking backwards! One minute of gym time is like five minutes in the outside world.

4.       Friends are better than no friends
      I have to go work out at 5am because that’s literally the only time of the day when I can go. Chase and I work opposite schedules so we rarely have a free evening. I was very inconsistent until I met my gym buddy. She’s a lifesaver! Sometimes the only reason I drag my butt out of bed is because I know she’ll give me crap if I don’t show up. In spite of despising leg day, Gym Buddy has guilted me into it at least once a week. It happened to be this morning and the soreness made me consider just rolling my chair around the office so there was no need to stand up.

5.       People watching is a great distraction

At my old gym, I used to do the elliptical for 45 minutes at a time. That gets pretty boring, especially when the only thing on the televisions was the Golf Channel, ESPN, and infomercials. I started people watching and it was hilarious! There was the woman who wore a full-on ballerina costume every day. Or the pretty girls with perfect hair and makeup who went from machine to machine, not even pretending to use them; they simply bounced around depending on where a buff guy was working out. I especially enjoyed the older man who clearly thought he owned the place. He would make his rounds- flirting with every woman, giving out hugs and advice.

And I have to end this post with a shout out to a couple of my favorite shirts that are perfect for gym-time

Strength, Courage, No Carbs Tank

#MOMBOSS Tank

With Love,

Susanne

A Lofty Project

So Handsome Hubby got me a new laptop for Christmas. It’s been great- and eliminated my excuse for not writing because I couldn’t figure out his ancient Mac. But with the computer came the idea that I needed my own writing space, which of course, will make me a better writer! I’ve decided to seize/hijack/annex/appropriate/conquer the loft from the boys. (I had a lot of fun with the thesaurus.)

Anyway, I’ve fallen down the Pinterest rabbit hole and have a million ideas on what to do with my new space. It’s currently a toy collector and decorated with comic book memorabilia, and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to completely remove either, but I’d like to make it more Susanne-like. Then there's the struggle with my inner geek and kinda wanting to find a place for this this Star Wars lamp.

I’ve also been looking at paint swatches for a focal wall. This, however, will become a job for Chase. Does that sound unfair? Well, let me just tell you a story. Back when we had the old house and were trying to get it on the market, we had the bright idea to paint every room in the house. I was pregnant at the time, and Chase told me I didn’t need to help because he didn’t want me getting tired. I said I was fine! He then told me the paint fumes were bad for me, so I didn’t need to help. I kept insisting it was too big a job for one person. Next, he said he was having a friend come over to help him, so there was no need for me to paint. By this point, I was getting frustrated and told him it just sounded like he didn’t want me to paint! The guilty look on his face was priceless. Allegedly*, I am a ‘messy’ painter. I get drips everywhere and I can’t keep paint off the baseboards. He felt it would be more work to have me ‘help’ than to just do the entire house himself. Allegedly*. This initially hurt my feelings, but it’s been a great card to play in the years since. Want to paint the living room? Get busy then, cause I’m too messy to be any help. (evil laugh)

Okay, back to my new writing space. I’m undecided on what kind of desk I want. I’m thinking maybe something colorful, or if I get my focal wall, a little more neutral.

Simple is better and not having clutter really helps the stress level and feel more focused. Part of that is having the perfect chair- comfy and soft. I adore this one from Pottery Barn; just not a fan of the price tag, so I’m still exploring my options. (Does anyone else immediately think of Friends when Pottery Barn is mentioned?? Apothecary table? No, okay just me then) I’m a little scattered today.

I’m not a huge fan of this desk, however the space surrounding it makes me happy.

Here’s the current situation of the loft- I’ll be posting after pics, once I get this up and running, which will probably be a little while because I want it to be perfect! FYI, my wonderful husband took these pics for me, but didn't feel it necessary to at least remove the laundry from the pictures. Sigh. Boys.

*Bob’s Burgers reference- season 8, episode 3. I’m not an obsessive fan. 

With Love,

Susanne

A Day in the Life of Cayden, 3 year old and self-proclaimed dinosaur-knower, big awesome kid, and smarter than big bro

 

“I want chocolate chip eggos, please.” The morning had started off well. He convinced mommy to let him wear his favorite t-rex shirt under his school uniform and big bro generously shared his virtual reality goggles so they could watch the cool shark video again. But the plate mommy put in front of him was Not chocolate chip eggos- it was chocolate chip pancakes! “This is yucky. Here, Ez. You can have the yucky pancakes.” He then tossed the offending items directly onto his brother’s lap, who promptly screamed and threw them on the floor where they were devoured by Dara the puppy.

A few minutes later they were headed out the door to school, Batman lunch box clanging along the sidewalk because it made a loud noise he liked. The day was full of painting (some paper, but mostly hands and shirts), feeding the school hamster which seemed to be a different color and size every week, and playing outside. Cayden liked to pretend they were in a plane and he would fly them to different stores. His favorite places included: Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, Target, the kid’s museum, and Bass Pro. 

Not his most flattering pic

 

Daddy usually picked him up on the golf cart and today was no exception. Waving goodbye to his friends, he jumped on the cart and informed daddy and Ezra that the triceratops is a plant-eater and the t-rex is a meat-eater. Cayden had to keep reminding Ezra because he was just a baby and could only make roaring noises; he wasn’t big like Cayden and knew big words.

After a lunch of pizza bites, which he calls ‘tarts’ because that’s what Dino Dan calls them, and a lively game of Get the Lego From Dara Before She Swallows It, it’s naptime. 

Well, Daddy thinks it’s naptime. Cayden just sneakily pulled his dino field guide out from under his bed, and proceeded to spend the hour looking at pictures and talking to Ezra, thus keeping his brother awake, too. He thinks Daddy may be on to him. Mostly because daddy walked in on him halfway out of bed trying to reach another book. But he wasn’t all the way out of bed- his legs were still on, so technically he was obeying the stay-in-bed rule. 

About that time mommy got home from work and Cayden ran to give her a hug, not-so-subtly pushing Ezra out of the way so he can be first. Mommy wanted to go for a walk and told him to sit in the wagon! 

“Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy.” Cayden talked over her announcement, patiently repeating himself until she stopped talking. “I have legs and they like to walk on the street, not be squished in the wagon. Put Dara in the wagon, she can eat the cheez-its on the bottom.” How do you argue with that logic? 

Dinner was fun, as usual. Cayden loved to choose one item on his plate that he suddenly didn’t like anymore and refused to eat. He rarely won the battle of wills, but he never lost hope. It did seem to wear out mommy though, because bed time followed quickly. A negotiation on how many stories to read, teeth brushing (including a semi-unsuccessful attempt to use big bro’s toothbrush), and countless hugs later, the boys finally settled down…for a minute.

Cayden couldn’t sleep- a blanket was missing!! He only had Paw Patrol blankie, Paw Patrol sleeping bag, Star Wars blankie, seven random toys, and Old oo-ee-oo-aw-aw blankie** Where was New oo-ee??

He started shrieking ‘help! help!’ at the top of his lungs. Why didn’t mommy come right away? If he couldn’t sleep, no one else should either. Once the missing blanket was located and mommy grumpily left, he settled into his snug little cocoon and fell asleep.

**Oo-ee-oo-aw-aw is Caden’s treasured monkey blanket. Sound it out- it’s the sound a monkey makes. Mommy note- I spent a long time hunting for a second identical monkey blanket once we saw how attached he was; there were many tears each time oo-ee had to be washed and Cayden was separated from him- yes, the blanket is a ‘he’.

With Love,

Susanne

Vision and Vibes

Happy New Year!! I know I know, I'm a couple days late. Forgive me. But I've been busy! I have a bunch of new shirts in the shop- including a couple cold weather items. And there are more on the way! I think I'm hitting my stride and 2018 is going to be a great year for Love You 5 Design.

So like everyone else, I've been thinking about and planning my goals for this year. I've never really written anything down or had definite ideas for what I wanted to accomplish in a particular year. However, I think it'll give me focus and direction. Plus, our local brewery, Oil Well Craft Beer, is having Create Your Vision Night, complete with DIY Vision Boards! I'm sure the wine will greatly inspire my vision.

Back to the important things- my new merchandise! And I'm still offering free shipping for a while longer (GIMMEFREE). AND, if you're really nice and shoot me an email, I'll even give you a discount coupon code. Let the shopping commence!

 Celebrate your people! I love this shirt because it represents those I love fiercely. Have a different size tribe? I can do custom numbers, as well.

Because #OBVIOUSLY  

This shirt is really soft, flowy, and flattering.

 

Attitude? Me? Nah

Cold enough for you? Even here in Florida we're freezing! Represent the city you love and stay snuggly at the same time! I can do custom cities- just message me!

Go out and make those 2018 dreams come true with hard work and vision!

With Love,

Susanne