Hell froze!

So far, winter has been mild here in Ohio where we've basically basked (for this season) in higher-than-average temperatures. But that all ended yesterday when an aptly named Arctic Blast swept through and took no prisoners.

Yesterday, by the time I sat here to check e-mail and do some work, the temperatures outside where in the teens and the windchill was -1. When I went to walk Lizzy in the evening, the snow was falling in earnest and the streets were nearly deserted under what looked like near blizzard conditions.

But being back in the tiny city next to the capital means that when we get in the car we can actually go somewhere fun, not just for necessities, so my husband and I took a break and drove to a nearby café so we could sit in front of the fireplace, he sipping decaf and me enjoying their great hot chocolate.

I'm really enjoying being so close to so many fun places and on Thursday got a chance to reconnect with girl friends I hadn't seen in a long time as we went to a nearby tea house where I had a "Zen" blend that prepared me well for the sushi lunch and hot-stone massage I enjoyed with another good friend later that day. All within 20 minutes of our old house.

Today, the weather isn't as unkind and the snow has stopped blowing and drifting although temperatures are in the twenties, which feels almost comfortable compared to yesterday when this old drafty house couldn't find the way to keep itself warm. We'll definitely have to replace the storm windows at some point, another improvement for the already growing list of work that the poor old house needs.

And while we know that the house does need a lot of TLC, it's not something that frustrates either one of us (at least not right now). On the contrary, we both feel like it'll be nice to revamp the house and make it look better and be more comfortable for ourselves as we continue to make our lives here.

My husband just came in, after working outside and in the garage for a while, to comment that lore has it that no matter how big a garage is built, there is moment when it seems like it should have been four-feet bigger. "I have reached that point," he said, smiling. Our garage here is much smaller than in our erstwhile "country estate" so he's had to be more creative in arranging his motorcycles and my car and the lawn mower, etc.

Indeed, everything is cozier here and we're getting used to running into each other in the small kitchen space, about half the size of the one we used to have. But I wouldn't change it. Home is, indeed, where the heart is.