Good afternoon! I’m still in Florida, but only for the day. I pack up and leave bright and early for a 6 a.m. flight back to Detroit tomorrow morning. Even though it’s raining, I’m still happy to be here and am soaking up as much time with family, friends, and the sunshine as I can!
I am in between a lunch and dinner date, so I have some time to catch up on life a little. It’s nice when that happens. A couple of weeks ago, I saw this Around My House Survey going around, so I drafted my own to save for down the road. Surveys are fun to read every now and then, right?
Since I am currently sitting in my old bedroom, around my old house, it seems like the perfect opportunity to share it with you. Here we go!
• Household chore I actually enjoy
I really don’t mind vacuuming, but I legitimately enjoy wiping down surfaces and counters. Vacuuming will probably happen once a week, but I take a few minutes to wipe down all of the kitchen counters and glass tables in the living room almost every day.
I usually use Clorox wipes to take care of messes, but if surfaces are already pretty clean, I break out clean day spray and go to town. The entire line smells so good!
We have an ancient vacuum that is practically falling apart, but it still gets the job done at the moment. I would most likely vacuum the house a couple of times a week if I had a lighter, more powerful one. The second we get the Dyson we’ve been eyeing, it’s on.
• Our biggest house disaster is…
Our closets or garage. None of which are what I would consider to be a “disaster”, but they’re definitely not organized like how we would like them to be.
Scott does a pretty decent job at keeping his side of the closet organized, but it takes me half a day to really clean out items I may not be wearing and situate my side the way I like it.
As for the garage, we specifically rented a condo that came with a 2-car garage for the snowy winters. Let’s just say Scott and I rotate who gets to park in the garage quite often.
• Before company arrives, I hide…
The numerous dog and cat toys all over the floor and stairs, as well as the mail that overflows a corner of our kitchen counter. Do any of you have that issue? Scott and I open mail and have the hardest time putting it away. It’s an everyday struggle next to our fruit basket.
• Most recent music download
I haven’t actually downloaded music in a while.
Ever since I (finally) joined the Spotify party, I have been making and streaming playlists online. (Check out my latest workout playlist I shared this morning!) It’s been great, and even worth the upgraded ($9 a month?) membership to be able to skip songs and download the playlists directly to my phone when I’m offline.
• The last thing I bought online…
Was from LuLu’s. It was the perfect solution to my need for a red dress for that Valentine’s Day Wedding. (Thanks for the suggest, Kit!)
I absolutely love it and even used the picture to help me accessorize. #win
• I hate to shop for…
Anything I need. I love to go aimlessly shopping for things, but if I am on a mission to find “this pair of jeans” or “this style of pumps”, I can easily get stressed out and don’t enjoy it at all! Slowly but surely, I have resorted to purchasing more and more of my wardrobe online. It’s been great!
• Favorite Family Ritual
When the weather is warm enough (usually throughout the summer and fall), Scott and I like to go for a long walk or even run through the trails with Roadie on the weekends. It’s usually sometime late Saturday morning if his schedule allows.
After our run, we usually make smoothies, get ready and head out to a farmer’s market or grocery store to stock up on produce for the week. I really miss that little weekend family ritual around this time of year!
• I sleep in…
Sweatshirts, flannels, and socks in the winter (brr!), or tanks and boy shorts in the summer.
• I have a style crush on…
Olivia Palermo and Emily from Cupcakes and Cashmere.
Her casual daytime looks are my “nights out”, but whatever. They’re both put together so well!
• I’m currently reading…
The book of James and magazines. It’s been forever since I read and finished a book cover to cover. I definitely need to work on unplugging at night and get back to it. Any book suggestions?
• How did I ever live without?
Running. Seriously. I swear, I have solved so many problems by clearing my head on a long run.
I had other forms of activity and exercise growing up (I basically lived at the dance studio), but I never knew how much I love the sport of running and racing until I trained for my first half marathon almost three years ago. Since then, I fell in love with the process of training for a long distance race and pushing my body through things I never thought I even wanted to do!
I’m truly convinced that running and racing is ninety percent mental. I love the challenge of training for a half, but I also enjoy racing smaller distances for time and participating in fun runs.
I can’t believe it took me so long to try one. I’m officially hooked!
Your Turn
Pick a question (or five) and answer it (or them) in the comments section below!

I actually loooove doing laundry. For some reason it just helps clear my head and I love the smell of clean laundry!
http://www.asideofdessert.com
I enjoy doing laundry and folding towels, but for some reason I really don’t like folding anything else! So funny.
I’m with Taca, I love doing laundry (and I am doing some right now). I get really zen with the 40 minute intervals of waiting and folding, waiting and folding. I feel like I can accomplish quite a bit in those time gaps when I know I’m racing a timer. 🙂
Oh totally! I feel so accomplished when I’m cleaning the house or something and did this, this, and this in between loads. Too funny.
I too, would LOVE to get my hands on a Dyson. Those things are expensive though! Enjoy your last night in Florida;)
Right? I’m waiting for the right holiday sale to pounce on one. Fingers crossed for next Black Friday! 😉
I am the exact opposite when it comes to shopping! I will tolerate it if there is something specific that I want/need, but the idea of wandering aimlessly makes me recoil in boredom. I haven’t done a short, fun race in way too long! I’ve been a bit obsessed with long-distance training, so thanks for reminding me to get back into it. 🙂
It’s nice to get back to shorter races every now and then and not have to worry about a crazy training schedule to prepare for it!
Love Olivia’s style, those would be my dress up outfits as well 🙂
That’s way more realistic if you ask me 😉
I totally agree on shopping for a specific item! you can never find what you exactly want!! i always say you have to just buy things as you them and not look for a certain item!
That’s totally my excuse to buy things “I don’t need” that just so happen to be on sale 😉
I agree on the shopping thing! Esp with shoes – when you need the perfect pair, they’re nowhere to be found! Loved the survey, so fun 🙂
Thanks for reading, Diane!
I agree with you on the shopping and favorite family activity! I can never find what I need when I’m shopping for something specific.
Shopping on a mission is never something I look forward to. It just sucks all the fun out of it. Boo.
What a fun post! I have a style crush on Pink Peonies and Emma Watson!
Emma Watson is adorable!
I totally agree about shopping with no pressure! If I’m just browsing, I can walk out of a store with way too much. If I have that one thing that I’m looking for, I’m stressed and nothing seems right.
Every. Time. 😉
You hit the nail on the head about shopping! I Love to shop…but not when I am on the hunt for something I am visualizing or need. I get that item in my head and am never satisfied until I find it (or don’t find it). It makes things frustrating because I set myself up for a let down!
I. LOVE. Online shopping! I think I hate the mall anymore b/c it’s just a bunch of teeny-boppers and going there makes me feel old. haha
I always enjoying shopping for what I don’t need too. Sometimes if I need it it feel more like a hunt or a chore. Too stressful!
Exactly. Clothes hunting just isn’t the same!
Haha! I do the same with the mail! I get all excited to open it and then I see it is either bills or ads and I just leave it there! Ha! I love cleaning dishes, the repetitive movements and the sound of the water running just relaxes me 🙂
I’m constantly wiping counters down too! Another thing that drives me crazy is water stains. I don’t know what it is about them but they drive me nut! I’m always wiping down the faucets and around the sink!
Haha, me too! I’m the same way. I also can’t stand coffee drips on the counters in the mornings. 😉
How fun! I did this one a while ago!
My favorite runs are the fun ones! I’ve done the Color Run and the Hit & Run 5ks. I really want to do a Zombie Run!
I still haven’t done a Color Run, I want to next time it comes close to me!