After reading that blog post title, how many of you are singing “My Girl” by The Temptations? (And yes, I did link to the basketball scene from Father of the Bride with that song in it instead of a Temptations video. Father of the Bride is basically the best movie ever and I will link to it every chance I get.)
Moving right along…
Florida’s nickname, the Sunshine State, is well deserved. It is almost always sunny. Even when it rains, thunderstorms seem to be fleeting and the bright sunshine typically returns in no time at all.
The funny thing is that when it’s not sunny, people cannot help but comment and commiserate over the dreary weather. I’ve heard at least four people talk about the lack of sunshine today!
I grew up in a northwest suburb of Chicago, so I am very used to overcast days and am usually not too fazed by the lack of sunshine, but sometimes I catch myself falling into the dreaded cloudy weather funk. Today is one of those days, so I figured I’d combat the dreary weather we’ve having in central Florida by sharing a few things that brought a little sunshine into my day:
- BodyPump
I am flying to Pennsylvania at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning out of the Jacksonville airport with my family, so I drove in town today and made sure to arrive just in time to take an early afternoon BodyPump class. I am still trying to coerce my gym into bringing the class to Ocala, but until then, I will relish the times I am able to take the class when I am out of town.
- Single Leg Knee Drives
In addition to BodyPump, I completed a short 15-minute cardio circuit workout that I tore out of SHAPE Magazine. It introduced single-leg knee drives to me and the exercise quickly fell into the “things I love to hate” category. They kicked my butt in the best kind of way! You’ll definitely see them pop up in some of my future circuit workouts!
- White Chocolate Chex Mix from The Fresh Market
We don’t have any fancy schmancy grocery stores like Whole Foods or The Fresh Market in Ocala, so I get a little too excited to pop in and explore when I find myself close to one again. The Fresh Market bulk foods section is my favorite! I cannot seem to resist buying a bag of the white chocolate Chex mix every single time I visit and I picked up a bag after BodyPump today. It’s so darn delicious!
- Hot Apple Cider
After trying a sample of the hot apple cider on sale at The Fresh Market, I had to buy some. I immediately poured myself a cup to enjoy when I sat down to blog this afternoon. It tastes like autumn in a cup!
- Sadie
Did you guys know I love my dog? To quote Phoebe Buffay, this is brand new information! Okay, okay, I know my love for Sadie is blatantly obvious to anyone who reads PBF regularly, but she really does bring me so much joy. Today, as I was leaving, I gave Sadie lots of goodbye kisses and when I turned back to look at her sweet face one last time, she was laying on the couch, spread eagle. She cracks me up. What a classy little lady. (Oh! Good news! We heard from the vet and the lump we had examined last week is “not concerning.” Woop!)
Let’s keep the good feelings going! Tell me…
- What is one thing that is bringing a little sunshine into your day?
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My dog, Molly. But I love over cast and dreary days sometimes to curl up with a book in front of the fire. Maybe cuz I am from New England we get our share of them. You have to make the ost of them!
oooooh! i’m hoping it’s cold enough for a fire in the fire place when we’re in PA this weekend. so cozy!
I live in PA in the northwest corner & we’ve been having some cold nights this week. Our heat kicked on this morning before I left for work. So happy…I love fall so much & summer has gone on far too long.
White chocolate chex mix!? that looks DELICIOUS!
My day is being made brighter by getting caught up on work from being out of town all weekend (and getting ready to leave again!)
I know how it is though – where I live all of winter is so dreary! We are lucky if we see the sun once every 2-3 weeks. I think I need to move to Florida!
Yay for Sadie!! That’s wonderful 🙂
My day is being made brighter by this wonderfully-finally-fall weather we’re having here in the good ol’ PA! And also, the idea of working being almost over to go home to my little furbabies 😉
I’m a MASSIVE My Girl fan so you betcha I burst in to song before hitting the first line of your post!
UMMMMM….White Chocolate Chex Mix. WANT! Sounds absolutely glorious! I want more sunshine in my life….I am bracing myself for 5 months of cloudy/grey weather here in Seattle!
Wow, I have 2 huge boxes of chex mix at home and a bag of white chocolate chips………….look out!
I LOVE MY DOGS!! I really, truely understand your love for Sadie! I think I am a bit nuts with the amount of gooshie love I have for my dogs. I cannot get enough of them, wish I could stay in bed in the morning and cuddle with them all day, and love to play with them. They are both Boxer mixes we rescued from TN (3 yrs apart) and wonder why we waited so long to get a dog.
Safe travels!
<3 Dogs are the BEST.
The fact that I am healthy. I take it for granted too often!
Loved this post! It’s raining in Southern Cali today too, and we of course are the same with the sunshine…so I was trying to perk myself out of the cloudy weather funk too!
My dog is a 7-month-old goldendoodle and just looking at him makes me laugh. I might be biased haha but he is the CUTEST! I wish I could post a pic here!
My husband brings SO much sunshine to my life! He’s so good about making time for us to have some fun, especially on dreary days! Also, a snuggly blanket and fuzzy socks with some tea sure helps on sunshine-lacking days!
Love this!
I’m working to get over food poisoning, but I have an amazing hubby who is taking good care of me. There’s some sunshine in that right?
coffee is quite the ray of sunshine, but I totally agree with good workouts and silly pups.
So funny that you mentioned Father of the Bride! I totally thought that of that scene too when I read your blog post title. 🙂 Love that movie! The second one is good too!
So glad that Sadie is okay! My family and my husband bring sunshine to my life.
Lol… we have the same conversations about the lack of sun in typically sunny Southern California!
My bearded dragon being adorable. We decided to bury her in sand up to her neck (which she was super nonchalant about, btw. Nothing bothers her!) before letting out the crickets (which she eats biweekly) into her tank. She emerged from the sand dramatically and it cracked us up. She is such a good sport. Lol.
Just saw you were featured on Ruelala blog bost!!! That should brighten the dreary day! Sometimes the best way to get over a cloudy day is with a good movie and blanket!
what!? i totally missed this. off to check now! thanks for letting me know! i <3 ruelala!
Father of the Bride AND Friends reference in one post? That brightened my day, that’s for sure!
Me too!!!
I’m pregnant, and feeling this little boy moving around inside makes me smile like a fool every time!
Up here in the north, I start my days with artificial sunshine – Philips goLITE Blu light – and it makes a difference. After you wrote about fav running things a few weeks ago, I found a used Garmin 305 on Amazon for a reasonable price and it has recharged my running routine like crazy. White choc chex mix? That would also make me very happy:-)
FOTB is the BEST movie ever!!! FOTB2 also isn’t too bad. I watch that movie every chance I get.
Hi! I just moved from Boston to the Philly suburbs (about 25 mins from downtown Philly) & discovered The Fresh Market! It is about 3 miles away! The bins are the best! My husband Loves the yogurt covered raisins! Are you going to be working while in Philly? A nice cup of tea always helps me on dreary days!!
My boyfriend sends me a text every day around 10a.m. with images from The Chive that he knows I will like. I hate looking at The Chive because of all the sleezy stuff, but he always find some good laughs for me!
Spending an hour this morning reading started my day off right 🙂 I am dying to try body pump! I think I’ve taken similar classes but not a “Body Pump” class. Your apple cider just reminded me to pick up some pumpkin chai tea after class!
What brightens my day is discovering that I have a coupon for a store I had no idea I had—gives me an excuse to go shopping!
Yay! Teaching BP brightens my days too 😉
Today having clean floors (I vacummed) is brightening my day. As is the walk I took, and the baby girl kicking inside me!
The kids I teach homeschool PE to. They always have so much energy and never complain about the crazy exercises I make them do. 🙂
Isn’t The Fresh Market the best???? My son loves to go there because he gets to sample the fresh ground roasted peanut butter each time. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t join in that little taste test as well 🙂
Great news about Sadie! And if you’re going to quote Friends, you can be my new best friend.
So glad to hear that the lump is not a concern — yay!
My mini dachshund definitely brightens my days too!
I live in “the sunshine state” too, but it’s here in Australia. We are heading right into the flames of summer with a predicted 40 degrees Celcius tomorrow! That can get you down, too! But the thing that lifts me up is always an early morning outdoor workout, or a visit with a baby or small child. Kids have sunshine in their hearts every day!
My 17 month old baby girl and my newborn baby boy- they always bring some sunshine to my day 🙂
The season premiere of American Horror Story is definitely bring some brightness (darkness? creepiness? still excitement nonetheless!) into my day!
Sadie is such a cutie 🙂 It’s a little dreary here too. A short tabata workout from Jess (at Blonde Ponytail), my mom’s home-cooked meals, and serving a Mass for the lawyers and legal personnel in the community are all bringing sunshine to my day!
The chex mix looks wonderfully sinful! Body Pump is one of my favorite classes too! Always such a great workout!
it’s been raining here off and on this afternoon, so this post brought a little sunshine into my day 🙂 my dogs definitely make me happy. they’re crazy, loving, and full of energy! i totally understand your love for sadie. <3
have fun in PA!
I am happy that it still feels like summer here and not fall. Wish it would last til spring!
Just realized that Fresh Market is only 9 miles from me. I’ve never been there. I know where I’ll be going this week!
Father of the Bride is EASILY my favorite movie in the whole wide world <3 I can quote that movie like no other! 😉 My sunshine on cloudy days is always my fiance! (cliche I know) but I can't wait to marry him next summer!
Pinterest is definitely bringing me sunshine this week! I love seeing all the unique recipe ideas for the Fall/Halloween, outfits and other interesting quotes and items!
Here in Nevada it is also a rare rainy day, but the hubby and I went to the local Whole Foods Store and they have a Tap Room! So fun to drink a pint of tasty beer before shopping. Got to love fancy schmancy grocery stores!
…that workout is great! I have done it three times already since getting that issue. I use an old reebok step on the highest height for my box.
I made a big batch of warm chili to bring some sunshine into this rainy day….and took a run in the rain:-D
My GSP Lucy is my daily sunshine! But I have to say ever since you mentioned Tuna Melts My Heart on your blog I am now a daily follower of Tuna! His pictures just crack me up! Today’s is especially funny! “)
My sunshine was a friend coming to visit after work! I’m moving 6 hours away on Sunday so she came to catch up on life and say goodbye 🙁 sad reason but it was good to see her 🙂
Father of the Bride is a lifetime classic!! It is by far my favourite movie. It is the movie I always watch when I am sick and I will never stop loving it. If I was to get married I want to walk down the aisle to the same song she did. I know it is a wedding classic anyway but I just love that moment so much and even now when I watch it, even though I’ve seen it a million times I still get tears in my eyes.
I wish the sequel was just as good. It’s ok but it just doesn’t have the same level of classic like the first one.
White chocolate covered pretzels are my absolute favorite!!!
My cat Norman brings sunshine to my day:) You are not the only crazy animal lover…I treat him like my child! My sister asked me if my twitter was now his twitter page because of all the pictures…I just can’t help but take a new one when he’s doing cute things!
As for today, I ran into my friend and her baby outside the grocery store after work and it was the perfect pick me up after a hard day at work…that 3 week old baby worked his charm and had me in a puddle;)
I live in Seattle and I don’t think I’ve lived anywhere where people talk more about the weather! And I totally know what you mean about getting in a funk on gray days. For this time of year, we’re seeing a lot of sun, so I’m taking the opportunity to soak it up on long walks with my doggies and my hubby while I still can 🙂
My kids and my dog brighten all my days…and usually my husband (but he was very stressed today) 😉
Father of the Bride is one of my all time favorite movies. The DVD is one of the first gifts my husband ever bought me — because he noticed that I had worn out my 10 year old tape!
Haha I think people everywhere commiserate about the weather at this time of year – “oooh it’s chilly, oooooh it’s unusually sunny, ooh it’s so rainy and gross!” I actually didn’t associate the song title with Father of the Bride, but I DID associate it with Danny Tanner on Full House! I’m pretty sure it was DJ he was singing it to… gosh I loved that show!