Yesterday It Snowed - Ick! I Think Winter Has Finally Arrived

Yesterday's first snow was a good reminder of what winter holds in store for us. We had at least three inches by the time it was finished, and had to shovel several times at the shop. Although we expected to get more snow overnight, I wasn't seeing any real white when I looked into the front yard when I awakened, so maybe we missed that one. That would be great since today is a swimming day and that's always a bit tighter schedule than non-swim days. 

It's nice when I wake up early on swimming 
days. My schedule for those days is very 
tight, and if I have to shovel, it gets even 
more difficult. The doors unlock at 5:00 am, 
and I need to be in the water already no later 
than 5:10 am. Shoveling can add up to 30 
minutes of extra necessary work before I can 
head to the Y, so early is better. 

I spent yesterday at the computer in the shop, entering and changing some inventory that needed updating and packing some product we'd sold out of over the weekend. The first snow day is always a really slow day, and yesterday was no exception. I had three customers through the door, two who were looking around, and one who purchased a couple of small things to repair some pieces she had. It was NOT a day to write home about. 

We're far from empty, but we are low on stock in 
some items, and we didn't restock our jewelry 
or Native American-made products in advance of 
the holiday season this year. We'll deal with what 
we have and that will have to make do. 

DH spent his day in the back doing the book work and finally felt cold enough by mid-day to set up his space heater. So he was warm. I wasn't stupid - I had leggings on under my dress, and had my shop sweater on over it with a turtleneck under it. We keep the shop cool because our customers are walking in wearing their winter coats, but it means we, as the staff, need to dress warmly. Hopefully I guessed right with the clothes I packed for today. It's hard to predict what our weather or temperatures will do. 

I really liked the Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato 
soup recipe I first tried several weeks ago. It's 
easy to make and it's very tasty. I think I'll make 
another batch of that tomorrow, and maybe add 
some ground sausage or something similar to it 
for a bit of protein. I also had DH pickup salad 
yesterday. I'll chop it into smaller pieces and 
should be able to eat it for dinner. I've missed 
my salad since I've been dealing with my new 
braces. 

I'm looking forward to tomorrow already. I think I'll make that Roasted Peppers and Tomatoes soup again. That was one of my favorites, and it's a lovely thing for colder weather. It goes together relatively quickly too. I'll add the ingredients to my shopping list for tomorrow and enjoy the smell of roasting peppers filling my house tomorrow after I'm finished with my morning errands. 

I love the aroma when I'm roasting the red peppers 
for the soup. It's spicy, but not harsh, and it fills 
the kitchen with tasty promises. 

So, I'm getting this wrapped up early. I awakened at 2:30 am, and instead of rushing, decided I might as well stay up, have a relaxing meditation and then dive into my day. Consider my day started now, and I'll be off to the gym in less than an hour for my first swim of the week. I still might have to shovel a little bit if we got some windblown snow, so I have to make sure I have the time to do that before leaving for the gym. Have an excellent Tuesday and Slava Ukraini.