7QT: All the things.

1.  Important Business First.

2.  I've been re-arranging furniture.  (translation:  If you feel you have no control over anything in your life, at least you can control the furniture.  Until your spouse gets home.)

We need more seating in our living room.  See quick take #7 below.

I'm thinking about this piece from Target. The size perfectly fits the tiny space I have left. Unfortunately, it has a rather restricted weight limit so Patrick and I could not sit on there together.

Also, unlike most of my furniture, it is not brown.

Brown hides dirt, chocolate, coffee, and daily dinge.  Downside:  brown is boring.

I'm also in love with this rug from LL Bean. But honestly.  Can you put a Christmas tree on an orange rug?  I thought not.

 Of course, it is available in navy.

In the perfect version of my life, I only buy furniture from LL Bean because everything is guaranteed for life and my home looks like a beach cottage in Maine.

3.

Am I the only one that missed when JULIAN FELLOWES made a Titanic two years ago for the 100th anniversary of the historic event?!?

Just in case you were starting to doubt the "There are only 80 British actors total" Theory, may I point out that Clara, current Dr. Who companion, is a stewardess on board Titanic.

Edmund is currently obsessed with shipwrecks, specifically the Titanic.  I see this as a sign that we need to go back to Cali to visit the Queen Mary again.

I also raided our library system for any and all Titanic related material.  (We did NOT watch the Leo DiCaprio/Cate Winslet film.  If we do, it will only be to see the amazing re-created footage of the ship's actual descent underwater.  The best part of the movie in my opinion.)

The reviews of the Julian Fellowes version are varied, but we enjoyed it.  By and large, it's family friendly.  One wicked mother of six exchanges glances and a kiss with ... no spoilers here.

Julian (yes, we are that close) does a remarkable job highlighting the plight of Catholics at that time, in the creation of the ship as well as on board.  The portrayal of class differences is eye-opening.  The snubs the aristocracy give each other are almost comical.

All of the details that I find captivating about the Titanic travesty are given due: the lost binoculars, the treatment of steerage passengers, the cowards, the heroes, the cluster of mistakes made in the creation of the ship, the myriad of bizarre conditions the night of April 15, 1912.

At this time, the Julian Fellowes Titanic mini-series is not available on Amazon Instant Video or Netflix, but the DVDs are available on Amazon Prime for only $5.38.

(I do use affiliate links.  Thank you for your support.)

4.  Do you rotate toys?  If so, how?

We have far too many toys in our home.  Books too for that matter.  I pitch or donate the junk, but I still have more than we can store neatly.

This is just a tiny fraction of what we have.

I have this one cabinet that I would like to imagine could contain all of the toys. But as more birthdays and Christmases keep happening to Jill, and Polly has a good size basket of her own things, I am fighting a losing battle.

5.  Our garden is STILL flourishing!  I am still harvesting about 6-10 tomatoes a day.  They are small plum tomatoes, which are perfect for Marinara Sauce.

Patrick based his sauce off Martha's recipe.  He can't follow a recipe. His creative genius just takes over.  He added fresh basil and I forgot to put it through a food mill.

It was still most excellent. And I am not a fan of red sauce.

6.

St. Jude's School for Kids Who Want to Read Good and Do Other Things Good is chugging right along.

I am THRILLED that I took Charlotte's advice and bought the Teaching Tapes for Saxon math.

Edmund was thisclose to testing into an advanced grade level but I chose to under-challenge him and build confidence, rather than over-challenge him and create frustration.

He watches these terribly made dvds of the sweetest woman with a Southern drawl explaining the day's lesson, and whips through it.

THEN he re-creates the dvd lesson on our whiteboard HIMSELF with problems of his own creation! FOR FUN!

We are also delighted with Andrew Pudewa's Student Writing Intensive on dvd.

Edmund finds the topics (Sea Snakes, Desert Tarantulas, etc.) so completely fascinating that he looks forward to the writing lessons.

7.

As you know, it's Friday, and these are the 7 quick takes that I always link up with Jen Fulwiler, because she's good at this blogging gig.  (shudder.  "Gig" is one of those words that makes me cringe.)

Jen has really good stuff to say today, particularly on entertaining.

Hospitality is a virtue, something that comes naturally to some, and must be worked towards for others.  I've found that entertaining for me is often always an act of humility, because my house isn't the way I want it.

But it's not my will that matters here, and that's the rub.

Go read Jen.  She gives hope to those who suffer from inferior home issues.