Seven Quick Takes Friday

1. My sister and her family are coming from Ottawa to meet our new niece.  They'll arrive this after noon and stay until Monday.  While they're here, we'll have a party for new niece's older brother who turns four in a couple of weeks.  So today I'm cleaning and shopping and making beds!
   
   
2. It's been cool these past couple of weeks, just the way I like it.  Hovering above freezing during the day, but lots of sun.  It's great weather for my stage of life and it makes me feel energized.  My mom was a little concerned about me just wearing a light leather jacket out every day, but understood about the internal heat generation that's been going on.
   
   
3. I'm trying out some contact lenses; must be that mid-life crisis thing again.  I went for a regular eye exam yesterday and came out sporting contacts and a new pair of over-the-counter reading glasses (bright red!).  I wore them for about four hours yesterday and will try for five today.  Dr. Tang, my wonderful optometrist, gave me two mono-vision lenses, left eye optimized for distance and right eye optimized for reading.  The reading is not great yet, but maybe my brain has to be trained for that.
   
   
4. Just got tickets for Fiddler on the Roof, another Mirvish production opening shortly in Toronto.  I'm taking my mother there for Christmas and am really looking forward to it.  She'll be in town for the holidays and it will be a fun outing that I know she will enjoy.
   
   
5. I can't say enough about this Gary Taubes book I'm reading: Good Calories, Bad Calories: Fats, Carbs, and the Controversial Science of Diet and Health. I got it from the library after watching him give a lecture (in a video) and now I've added it to my Christmas wish list.  I'll post at length about it in the future, but it's refuting a lot of conventional wisdom about diet, is compelling and thoughtful, not sensational at all.  I will definitely be making some significant dietary changes, mainly cutting out refined carbohydrates.  I highly recommend this as required reading for anyone concerned about their health and the nutritional foundations.
   
   
6. I have most of my out-of-town shopping done and am caught up on all the birthday shopping from the past few months.  I know what I'm getting for everyone remaining, and that's the biggest hurdle.  My mother-in-law is arriving for a month on Monday and I want to be able to have a peaceful and relaxing time while she's here, and enjoy the Advent season.
   
   
7. This Sunday after the main mass, the chapter of the Catholic Women's League that has been newly re-established in our parish will be installed and blessed.  I'm on the executive, and it's great to see our efforts coming to fruition in this formal acknowledgement of our chapter status.  We're having a potluck lunch afterwards for members and their families, and I have signed up to bring bottled water, 6 dozen rolls, and butter.  The busy woman's offering!

More Seven Quick Takes over at Conversion Diary today!