Is this the Arctic or a sauna?

It's a constant battle in this house between hot and cold.

Upstairs, the heat only works in select rooms and T has installed electric heaters in the others. My basement is incredibly perfect.

And then there's the main floor, where first thing in the morning it's like a tropical rain forest. We have tea going and boiling eggs, sometimes scrambled eggs, too, and then there's the toaster.

After everyone leaves and I've lost my morning three pounds, I shut everything off and vacate the kitchen for a while. Usually by nap time it's chilly in here again. Chilly enough for me to layer the baby in a few shirts and go heat him up some lunch.

Today I took a nap and let me just tell you, I was FREEZING.

The drastic temperature drop is unreal! By dinner time it's usually in the low hundreds again, but tonight that didn't happen and I couldn't figure out why.

I can tell you why it's always so hot; the stove.

The ancient hunk of junk in my kitchen is gas operated and it's always too hot to touch, even when it's not on. The pilot must be the strongest pilot ever lit, because it radiates from the kitchen to the rest of the house and is the number one reason not having heat all through the entire upstairs isn't killing us.

So, naturally because I needed to use the oven tonight the pilot seemed to have gone out and it was snowing in the kitchen.

I put together a macaroni and cheese, which came out completely awful, by the way, and when I opened the top oven to put it in, the oven wasn't running. I tried the bottom, the faithful, dependable bottom oven. It refused to turn on. I fought with the upper unit for awhile long and then stuffed the stupid dinner inside. I was so cold.

And angry. Don't forget angry.

To cheer myself up, one of my favorite games is to stretch out on the daybed and let the kids jump around me. The onslaught of giggles makes me feel much better. And their body heat didn't hurt either.

At bedtime I was actually comfortable and I think the kiddies were, too.

I left them with T and retired to he playroom which doubles as my sitting room after eight o'clock. I was shivering when T descended the stairs. She laughed and turned the heat up and as I write this, my ears are on fire and the dog has moved out into the unheated hallway to sprawl on the tile floor.

I think I might join him.