Disable the lock screen and you won't have to look at it.
Agreed. Assuming you don't take your N7 to public places with the possibility of losing it, and you aren't worried about prying eyes at home, just go to Settings > Security > Lock screen,then select "None". Then whenever you press the button to activate the screen, you'll be right back to where you left off, but without the lock screen. This is much more convenient than using a lock screen.
However, just to make sure that you understand what is going on, if you slide your finger to the right on the lock screen clock, the placeholder for another lock screen widget will appear. Tap the plus sign in this placeholder and four widget options will appear: calendar, Gmail, sound search, and clock. Tap on the one you want placed there. If you want another widget, repeat those steps. If you want to delete a widget, long press on it and drag it to the "X". You can even remove the clock widget and have no widgets at all, but then you'll really go nuts, staring at the plus sign in the placeholder when you activate the screen.
By the way, on my N7, the placeholder outline disappears in less than a second after I've activated the screen. It should be the same for you. I don't find it that obtrusive, especially after using Jelly Bean 4.2 for a couple of weeks.
Cute baby, by the way!