7 Quick Takes Friday

I've been enjoying Jennifer's 7 Quick takes each week; thought I'd take the plunge since it's a new year and all...

1

In case you haven't noticed, I freshened up the look of my blog. So click through and take a peek. I'm not sure I love the new template, but I don't have the time or inclination to do much customizing.

2

The new year started off with a surprise (sort of) visit from hubby's sister, along with her husband, two grown daughters and one granddaughter. It felt good to have the house full of people, even briefly. Since we've decided to put off finishing the "cosmetic" part of the remodel for a bit (minor things like painting the living room and replacing 30-year-old carpet), I'm getting to the point where I'm ready to take a deep breath and go ahead with inviting people over. Don't like the look of raw drywall? Tough.

3

Highlight of Christmas: Santa decided that Mommy needed a scooter to keep up with kids who now will be riding scooters to school every day. The girls have been out riding most days since Christmas, and I've discovered entire muscle groups I didn't know I had.

4

My girls have decided that watching the Rose Parade (on TV) is their New Year's tradition. Two years ago, a friend of a friend who happens to be a city councilman in Pasadena got us tickets to the VIP grandstand. If you're going to get up at o-dark-hundred to watch a parade, that's definitely the way to go. Needless to say, my kids are now entirely spoiled for any sort of stand-on-the-sidewalk-craning-your-neck viewing of parades.

5

Are you officially old when you're in bed by 9 p.m. on New Year's Eve? Or just a parent?

6

My big project for the vacation: moving offices. Over the past year or so, my work space has shifted a few times as construction encroached. I've been working out of a small bedroom since the spring, and my approach to temporary quarters is to let them look very temporary -- and messy. So now I've negotiated for the new office (since hubby isn't working from home right now), and it's time to start moving stuff around. I even tackled the filing that's been accumulating for about a year! If only I can keep it clean.

7

I haven't finished watching this, but had to mention it now: The World According to Monsanto, a documentary produced for French TV that you won't see in the U.S. Do you want your food supply controlled by the company that brought us PCBs and Agent Orange? HT: Civil Eats blog.