Oh, Christmas

Oh, Christmas... This year has been the most frazzled crazy Christmas season that I have ever had...but it was wonderful... We had a great time with all of our amazing families and got to see almost everyone that we love. I got some pretty awesome gifts including a sewing machine that I have been wanting forever, a pink straighterner and hair dryer set, some clothes, a new Vera bag, a radar detecter, some shopping money and gift cards, and a georgous eternity necklace from my daddy. My mom didn't get to do her shopping before Christmas for us because Billy was in an accident and things got crazy at her house so we are going on a Christmas shopping trip in a few days. Josh got a TomTom from my dad that I have been trying really hard to steal.

Now that Christmas is over, I have ALOT of things to do before next Monday (January 4th) when I go back to school. Josh got a Mac with some really awesome recording stuff that he is going to set up in our computer room. So, we are going to rearrange that room and clean out all of the junk in there because I can't stand clutter. Then we are going to clean the house and take down all of our Christmas stuff. I hate it for Christmas decorations to stay up after Christmas. (at my house, I mean) It will drive me crazy until I put it all away. Then I am going to do all of the laundry and clean out our drawers and closets and take everything to the Hannah Home that we dont' wear. (...again, I hate clutter) We are also going to get rid of the big fish tank and I would like to get a pretty table to sit there and finally hang my painting that Tiffany bought me last year above it. Oh, I have to finish driving school and send in my certificate so that they don't come to arrest me! I'm going to shop for new clothes and shoes that I can wear for my internship and also for some sewing supplies....and I'm going to work on my sewing skills. :) I also am going to have to have my windshield replaced because it has two giant cracks in it and it is not very safe.... I think that might be all that I have to do...

Even with that crazy long list of things that I have to do before next Monday, I am going to take today off. I have just been running around so much lately that I haven't had a moment to breathe. So, today is my resting day. I will start on my list tomorrow. Josh gets home at four and we are going to go to Best Buy for him and Hancock Fabrics for me and then we are coming home to hang out and watch movies and be lazy! :)

End of the semester

Well, I have two tests until I am done with my classes. It's a really amazing feeling. This has been a pretty crazy week and I am so exhausted! Tuesday I had two big finals and I felt really good about both of them. Then Wednesday I went to school with my sister and she helped me with my unit. I worked so hard on the unit for about 15 hours straight! Seriously!! Then yesterday I went to class and took two more finals and turned in my awesome unit. I got an A on my unit and found out that I got an A in the class. That was great. Now I just have to make an A on two more finals and I will be done! I have had 21 hours this semester and have worked SO hard and it is now paying off as I am getting my final grades. I think that I will end with a 3.29 as my GPA for this semester. I got West Blocton for my internship and am so excited to intern with my kids from last year! I can't wait to start! I'm going to get some cute clothes for Christmas that I can wear to school. Everything is finally falling into place and I am just ready for May 7th to come! It's going to be an amazing year for me! I will intern then graduate in May. Then I am going to Disney World after graduation and then Chicago to see Brittany and Briana graduate from high school. Then when I get back I will get a job (at the high school) and become the varsity cheerleading sponsor. Then we will take the girls to camp then I will start my new career. (The part about working at the high school is a prayer!) I can't believe how blessed I am. I thank God everyday for my amazing life!

Internship placement

I just wanted to let everyone know that I got placed at West Blocton Middle School for my internship! I am so happy and thankful for all of the prayers that went up for me!

Almost done

It's Sunday night and I find out where I've been placed for my internship tomorrow morning...I can't wait! I have been praying for West Blocton since I first applied and it registered as one of my choices, so...maybe, just maybe I will get it! Aside from that, I have a week and a half of class left. I have six finals left and I took my aweful Russian final Thursday. I felt pretty good about it so, I'm just praying that I made a B on it and the paper. Tomorrow my whole Civil War class is going to lunch together. I am SO excited about that. I LOVE my friends from school. I wish that my school was here so that we could all still hang out after class is over, but after this semester, everyone will go their seperate ways into our internships and we will probably not see eachother again until graduation. :( It makes me sad! But, anyway, I get to come home tomorrow night because Olivia is in the Tuscaloosa Parade because she won the Little Miss Tuscaloosa pageant. So, after lunch, I guess I will come home and study and work on my unit. My unit is due Thursday and it is a BIG deal. Sadly, I haven't even started it. I know, it sounds bad but I have just been so busy. I have 4 finals this week. On Tuesday I have England and Britain and 20th Century Europe, then on Thursday I have French Revolution and Methods and my unit is due. Next week I will have my Civil War and Seinor Seminar finals and then I'm DONE! Wahoo! Next Thursday we are leaving for the mountains! We can't wait! Josh takes his ACT next Monday. We're ready to get him registered and started in the spring. It will be wierd for us to switch roles! I know Josh will do great if he just stayes focused on the future! Well, I guess that's all that's new with me this week. We have a SUPER busy December and it is just getting started. I am looking forward to getting together with my family at Christmas and being done with classes for good. That's going to be an amazing feeling!

Our BIG dreams

For as long and I can remember, Josh and I have had big dreams for our future. We have always talked about what our life will be like in 2, 5, and 10 years. The amazing thing is that God has already made our plans for us and we are just following along with what he wants for us. We are so blessed to have found eachother. We both want exactly the same things for our lives and we both have BIG dreams. We have been talking a lot lately about where we will live when we have our first child in a few years. It's a big decision because we need to be close to family but love where we live now. We have put it in God's hands and are trusting in his will for us. I thought I would blog and share some of our big dreams with my fellow bloggers!

First of all, our main goal in life is to stay close to God and allow him to lead us and our family. We had a hard time finding a home church here in Tuscaloosa but we found one and we love it. It's First Baptist Church Tuscaloosa. We are growing in our Sunday school class and getting involved in other areas as well. One great thing about it is an amazing children's program and a great preschool.

That thought brings me to our second future plan. Josh and I both want to have 4 kids. It's not something that one of us talked the other into. We both just wanted 4. Right now we are waiting on God's perfect timing and we think that we will probably be ready to start in a year or two. We're not in a hurry and we are currently just enjoying our time together. Sometimes we get ahead of ourselves when we see really cute baby stuff like this amazing baby bed. We have already named all of our kids. I guess you could say we're prepared.

Last year when we started working on our renovations in our house, we found a book of dream house plans. We bought it and looked at it and picked out all of our favorite plans. We chose one and have stuck with it. My Aunt Tina told me that when she and my Uncle Scott first got married, they put their dream house plans on their fridge in their tiny trailer. They decided that they wouldn't give up until they lived in that house. Now, they do. It's georgous. So, we have our plans and look forward to the day when we will be living in our dream house.

The last thing that we really pray about constantly and look forward to is both becoming teachers. I have one semester left until graduation and Josh is starting college next semester. I go to ASU and Josh is going to go to JSU. We are both going to be history teachers and Josh is going to be a basketball coach. We look forward to working together everyday and having such a normal and routine life.

Josh and I are very simple people and we love our life right now just like it is. We talk about our future and our dreams because we know that as much as we love our life right now, it is only going to get better as our family grows. We look forward to the future but we're not in any big hurry. We are so blessed and we thank God for everything he has given us and will give us in the future.

Bella

Josh and I have been talking lately about getting another pet. We LOVE dogs but it is hard to put another dog with Luke, he's a bully. So, we were talking about getting a cat. Now, I like cats but have never even considered having an inside animal. So, I just kind of dismissed it because I thought it would shed and all of that. Well, last night, Josh and I went to Gardendale to have dinner with Adam, Andy, and TJ. I said I wanted to go to the movies but he said we couldn't because he had a suprise for me and we had to pick it up. Well, I said, ok but we can still go to the movies and he said he couldn't leave my suprise in the car. When he said that I just new it was a puppy or a kitten. Well, sure enough it was an adorable kitten. His friend at work had her and she is only about 7 weeks old. She's so small and sweet and she's completely house trained. So, we brought her home and named her Bella. She's a little bit crazy but we love her already!

School and Melvin

I'm sitting in class right now...It hasn't started yet and since I severely need to pay attention during class, I thought I would blog before it starts to clear my head. Blogging is seriously my therapy. Well, I got my court date changed for my speeding ticket and now the only hassle will be finding a day that I'm not completely booked up that I can actually go to driving school. Ugh...Just thinking about it makes me sleepy! I'm working today and tonight on a PowerPoint presentation on WWII women that I will be using while I teach tomorrow at Holt. I can't wait for my Field Expereice to be over. I truly hate that school. I have three weeks left of class. Two big assignments and then finals. I feel like the little engine that could. I keep telling myself, I can do this. I'm almost there. I'm SO ready! I read the handbook yesterday for interns and it is going to be alot of work, but at least it will be the kind of work that I will enjoy doing...like lesson plans and evaluations.. Tiffany and I have decided to adopt the Varsity Cheerleading sponsor position for next year. I know, it's a little soon since I'm still about 8 months away from finding out if I will get a job there. Let's just say I have ALOT of faith about this one. The thing is that if we want to do it she has to step up to take over in March to hold auditions. So, she's taking a leap of faith. If, I was to not get a job there she will be fine because she has done it before. I just really, really, REALLY want a job there! 9th grade World History to be exact!! I'm praying for it everyday. I am also still praying devoutly for my internship to be at West Blocton. They will post that in a couple of weeks. I CANNOt wait for the Holidays this year. I love Thanksgiving and am sincerely looking forward to a week at home with almost nowhere to go. I will have a ton of studying to do but I don't mind that if I'm at home in my nice warm bed! Oh, and speaking of home, We discovered a mouse in our house!! AH!! As you would assume, I freaked out! Actually, I cried. (embarrassingly enough) Josh was like, it's just a tiny mouse(He then proceeded to name him Melvin as if that would make it less gross to me)... Well, it is living somewhere in our home and we have yet to catch it or see it again. There are traps EVERYWHERE... (Not the kind that splatter them...those are gross.) Until we do catch him, I refuse to spend time in our living room, because when we saw him, he ran under the couch. I should post pictures of all of the traps that are set up around the couch. (but I'm not at home.) Well, I think that is all the Odom family news right now.

School news

I stayed home from school today because they were just doing presentations and I wasn't going to miss anything. So, I stayed home and am working on laundry and studying for a test tomorrow. We are out of school on Wednesday for Veteran's Day so I only have to go to school for two days this week. Tuesday (tomorrow) I have a test in 20th Century Europe. I haven't made much progress studying so far but I am working on it. Next week is my last week before Thanksgiving break. I can't wait! When I go back from Thanksgiving break, I only have two weeks left of school. I have like a bazillion things to do to prepare for those last two weeks of finals. I also have a 10 page paper due and a unit due on December 3rd. I'm stressed about getting it all done and having a good grades but I just keep telling myself that I'm done FOREVER in a few weeks. I registered for my internship this morning and my tuition for the spring is going to be half of what is has been in the past. So, that was great news...and I found out that I will graduate on May 7th!

Totally random update

I have 2 weeks left until Thanksgiving break and I can't wait to have some time to be at home and relax. I officially have only 4 weeks left of this semester! I have some big assignments due in 3 weeks and then finals the week after that. I cannot wait to be finished with school but I'm bracing myself for the next few weeks because I have a lot to do...

I got a speeding ticket Thursday morning on my way to school. I was coming down 69 going towards Dodge City and was still in Pineywoods when I got pulled over. He said I was in a construction zone even though I wasn't really to it yet! Well, I went online this morning to see how much it was going to be. It is $257!! Wow! I did not see that coming! So... I guess I will be spending a Saturday in Driving School real soon... We can't really afford the ticket or what it will do to our insurance but even more than that is that I already have one ticket from April (driving as much as I do will do that to ya) and if I get another one within the year, my liscence could be suspended.

In good news, our renters decided to stay for another two months so we don't have to look for new renters right before Christmas. That is always so stressful... So, we feel really blessed to know that we don't have to deal with that right now.

I got an adorable peacoat the other day on sale! It's white with black buttons. I LOVE it! These days its rare that me or Josh get anything new...With me not being able to work at all and trying to save up for Christmas things are tight. So, I was so excited when I found this adorable jacket (that I have wanted for over a year) on sale for $39.99!!

I get to wear my new adorable jacket next month when I am hanging out in the mountains!! What a great way to end my career as a stressed out college student...by spending a few days in the mountains! I take my last final (EVER) on the 16th and we are leaving for the mountains the next morning! I can't wait! I absolutely love the mountains. It's romantic and relaxing and beautiful...I'm so excited!

I get my student-teaching placement in 3 and a half weeks. I can't wait to find out where I am being placed. I am praying hard for West Blocton!

I'm still praying hard for that situation that I posted about a week or two ago. It will all be resolved in about a week, good or bad. I know that God has a plan. I am trusting in his will.

I think that's all for me now! I know this was a totally random post!

My new state-of-the-art, fool-proof, stuff-that-you-already-know-but-still-don't-do, DIET and EXERCISE plan

I am always complaining about how I have gained weight since I got married and other people tell me that it's natural and I just accept that and pretend like it doesn't bother me...but it really does. None of my old (cute) clothes fit me anymore and it is quite depressing. My amazing husband constantly tells me how beautiful I am and how he does not want me to lose any weight but let's face it...I'm sure that it wouldn't bother him if I did! :) So, I have made up my mind (for the 50th time) to lose some weight! Now, I'm not going to say how much I weigh but I cetainly have a goal in mind! I bought some new groceries and have a good plan.

1. Diet & Exercise-- I have learned in my experience with dieting and exercising that they really do go together. You can't really do one without the other and expect to see a change. My goal this time around is to make a LIFESTYLE change. This is important to me because I have dieted before and lost a few pounds but it all comes back immediately if you do not change your eating and exercising habits.

2. Goals-- I am going to set immediate and long term goals. It is hard to stay motivated if you are constantly focused on a long term goal because losing weight is a slow process. So, I have decided that this time I will have a long term goal and a weekly goal.

3. Weigh-ins--I tend to go overboard with my weigh-ins because I get obsessed with my weight when I'm dieting. I want the scale to change every single day and if it doesn't, I lose my motivation. So, this time I am only going to weigh myself once a week. Friday mornings as soon as I wake up.

4. Support-- With it being almost time for the Holidays and all of those pictures coming up, everyone is in diet mode. This is a great thing for me because I have an excellent support system. Dieting is hard but doing it all alone is almost impossible! My mom, sister, and mother-in-law are all dieting with me. This will help me to stay on track and not lose my will!

5. Daily reminders-- Changing the way that I eat has proven impossible for me in the past. So, this time, in order to keep my focus on the future, I am going to give myself daily reminders that will keep me motivated. For me, these are things like my skinny jeans hanging where I can see them and the pictures of myself when I was skinny!

I am not wanting to lose a massive amount of weight. But, I am at that point in my life where I need to start teaching myself new eating and exercising habits because I cannot depend on my crazy hyperactive thyroid to keep me thin anymore. The pace of my life has sped up and there is a lot more drive-thru days and a lot less gym time for me. I have just got to stay focused on being healthy and happy!

Updates to come! Wish me luck!!

Prayers please

This is a late night post fueled by a lot of emotion that only comes to me at night. The thing is that there is something very big and very bad going on in the life of someone that I know and love and I truly need some prayers from my fellow blogging prayer warriors. I don't want to say who or what because that is not really necessary. God knows what the problem is and I would truly appreciate the prayers. Thank you in advance.

School and everything else

Just a quick update on school:

• My thesis is due next Monday. I have been working hard on it and it's coming along. I'm moving slow and steady. I'm not panicking yet but ask me again on Friday and it might be a different story. I will be SO relieved to turn it in. It's the biggest assignment of the year besides my unit and it will be a huge weight off to be done with it.
• I have one midterm left. It's tomorrow and I have a lot of studying to do tonight.
• I finally got in tought with my participating school for practicum and I am starting that on Friday. Thankfully, I only have to do 35 hours this semester so I will be going to Holt High School for the next 5 Fridays. I only have to teach 1 lesson so it should be a piece of cake. (Even though it does take my lazy Fridays away!)
• I have 7 weeks left including this week. Hooray!
• I'm working hard to balance out my time between assignments, tests, and class time. I want to do well and not fall behind. I'm in the final stretch. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!!

Aside from school right now,

• We got a letter of notification yesterday that our awesome renters are moving out. I'm totally bummed. They were like a Godsend and now we have to start the search again for the 4th time in a year and a half. Being a landlord is exhausting.
• I'm working hard to trust God and rely on him when it comes to stressful times. I tend to panic and freak out when bad things happen and sometimes I almost forget that when I pray God answers. I never want to be empty with my prayer. I know that He's there and I can trust that he is going to take care and provide.

That's all for me today...back to my paper...

Thank you MawMaw

Saturday was the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Birmingham. Me, Josh, and Tiffany have been running (really more them than me) to get ready for it. I have been looking forward to it for a while now. Well, when we got there it was raining...not bad...just drizzling. We got there just in time to see the parade of survivors. I did not expect to get emotional but I did. I managed to keep my emotions to myself because I didn't want to be the one who cried and caused a scene. (My whole family was there.)

Growing up I was very close to my MawMaw (my dad's mother). My parents worked a lot so I spent alot of my time with her. She was amazing. As a kid, she played with me and got down on my level. She never left my side when I was with her. She was like having a best friend around all the time. She cooked for me (anything I wanted). She spoiled me. As I got older she became ther person that I wanted to grow up to be. Not because she had an amazing job or a big house. Her job was to keep me and her other grandkids. Her house was a trailer...but she was so proud of what she had and she never complained. I wanted to be like her because she was the most amazing Christian women that I had ever known. She studied the Bible day and night and her TV was never on anything but TBN. She was so kind and gentle. She would give everything she had to other people. She went to Church everytime the doors were open and she prayed and worshiped God diligently. She never doubted God. She never said a bad word about anyone. (My grandfater had an affair when they were younger and married the woman and my MawMaw loved that women and accepted her into her family.)

When I was in middle school my MawMaw was diagnosed with Brest Cancer. It was shocking news to all who knew her. She went through Chemo and Radiation and had a double mastectomy. After a long hard battle, she went into remission. She grew her dark hair back out and started eating super healthy. She followed the doctor's orders exactly and stayed in God's word. She gave God all the glory for saving her life.

Seven years later, it came back. She was keeping my little cousins Jaxon and Gracie at their house. She got disorientated and fell all the way down the stairs. Her arm was broken and they decided to run some tests. The cancer was back and had spread all over her body. She was in the hospital for about two weeks. I was holding her hand when the doctor told us the news. There was nothing more they could do. My dad actually passed out cold. It was horrible. About two weeks later she passed away.

Her name was Ginette Jane Fuquo Aaron. She was born and raised in a small town on the outskirts of Paris. When she was just a young girl she found her father in the basement after he had hanged himself. She went to an all girls Catholic school. She grew up poor. She met my grandfater, Charles Aaron when she was very young. He was stationed in France during World War II. They fell in love and immediately got married. They had their oldest son Eric and middle son Jimmy (My dad) while they still lived in France. She chose the name Jimmy because it was the only American sounding name that she knew. When the war was over, they moved to Chicago and then eventually here to Alabama. She had two other children, Mallick, and Tina. When she found out that my grandfather was having an affiar they divorced and he remarried and moved to Chicago. She never worked and was always poor. When her oldest so Eric's girlfriend June was pregnant with their first daughter Jerrikka, he died in an accident at work. My MawMaw was devistated to say the least. A few years later, Mallick, her youngest son, was bitten by a mosquito and came down with encephalitis. He was in the hospital for a long time but he survived. He has always suffered from short-term memory loss since then.

For a woman who had experienced so much loss and devistation in her life, she was optimistic and happy with what she had. She loved her children and grandchlidren and lived for us. She fought hard in her battle against brest cancer. She was an amazing person and I believe with all my heart that I am who I am today because of her.

School, Netflix, and my awesome God

My big paper is due two weeks from today. Balancing seven history classes is even harder than I thought it was going to be. However, SO much of the pressure is gone now that I know that I passed the Praxis. All I have to do now is finish up this semester and I'm done. It's an amazing feeling that I cannot even begin to describe. Today I'm studying for 2 midterms: One tomorrow and one Wednesday. I also have a chapter to read and an assignment due Thursday, a quiz wednesday, and one more midterm next week. All the while I am scrambling to get this big paper done! I am overwhelmed but I just keep telling myself that in a couple of weeks I will be studying for my last finals ever! This is week 8 on the countdown to being done. Obviously, I can't wait!

In other news, Josh and I decided to invest in Netflix. I was sceptical because I don't like to wait on things to arrive in the mail. But, he talked me into it and it turns out that it's pretty awesome. He has Xbox live and so we can watch anything that we want including TV shows (even ones that are brand new) anytime. You don't even have to wait for them to download. We LOVE it. Because of it, we have discovered the show Harper's Island. It's kind of a murder mystery and it's a little bit cheesy at times...but it's really good.... :)

I have been praying hard about some things lately and I can really see God working in my life. He has been showing me that all I have to do is ask and he will provide as long as what I'm asking for is in my best interest. I am really learning how to trust God and expect great things from him. I'm so glad that I can know that I have an amazing God to rely on in any situation.

I can hear the Hallalujah chorus in my head

I PASSED THE PRAXIS!!

Stay Tuned...

Oh, how school has overtaken my life... I can't have a nice dinner with my husband on a Tuesday night. I can't sit down at my computer without having to do research. I can't even call Mallory without having to complain for a while just because she knows how I feel. I can't read a book that doesn't concern the Civil War or the French Revolution. I'm sorry blog readers...I can think of nothing but school and therefore it has all but consumed my blog. However, please stay tuned for the soon-to-be blog of a student-teacher...Coming in late December! :) (Guarenteed to be at least a little more exciting!)

So, what's new with me, you ask.... Yup... You guessed it... S...C...H...O...O...L...
-I'm currently working on the research for my big paper and I can't find enough sources...
-Impatiently waiting for my praxis score...
-Attempting to juggle midterms, weekly, quizzes, and weekly book reviews, with the new all- consuming paper...

---Is this semester over yet??

Aside from school, I get to go home tomorrow. (Thursdays are my new favorite day of the week.) Friday is Blocton's homecoming and I'm going to go spend the day with Tiffany. Saturday we are supposed to run at the Frog Level 5K but Josh and I want to talk Tiffany out of it because we would have to leave our house at 6a.m. (Not cool!) Saturday night we are going to Jeff and Donna's house in Gardendale to hang out with the family. We LOVE going over there and I hope the weather still feels this amazing! Sunday we have regular church and down time. (Sundays are also my favorite day of the week, except that they are followed by Monday which happens to be my least favorite day!) The days of this semester are passing slowly but surely... I'm looking forward to it being over and hopefully our trip to the mountains! December will be a great month because school will end, the mountains, the beauty pageant, and Christmas! ( I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!)

That's all for me today...

( I would like to dedicate this blog to my research paper...Thanks to myself for choosing the hardest topic ever to find sources for and so instead of writing my paper, I am blogging at the school library -which I'm pretty sure is illegal- because I can't find any more sources and it's stressing me out!)

Little Miss Winter Sweetheart Pageant

There's not too much new stuff in my life right now! Just the same ol' boring school stuff...I am really trying to stay on top of things (I want to make all A's!) but it is starting to get overwhelming! I have seven classes and they are all history...(Including one Methods class that is teaching history)...It just makes me SO excited about teaching next year! Yesterday we talked about ordering cap and gowns!! AAH!! Tiffany was talking about how some people don't walk and they give you the options...I was like...YES! OF COURSE I'm gonna walk! I plan to dance across the stage! haha.....To those of you who are recent or soon-to-be graduates- You know exactly what I mean!

I am still waiting on my Praxis results...I'm freaking out a little bit...but I know it's going to be ok! I felt pretty good about it this last time so I'm just praying that I passed!

As most of you know I have done pageants all my life...the last one I did was Miss Bevill State in 2007 when I was still in school there...I have thought about doing some since then but I won that one and it was a pretty big deal for me so I figured I would just go out a winner...haha Anyway, my mom is now full-fleged involved in the "Little Miss" pageant circuit with Olivia (who just turned 5 last Sunday!) She has been on a winning streak and has been accumulating an entire room worth of trophies and crowns...which just fuels the fire for her and my mom...haha Well, anyway, I was thinking about how much money those women make off of those pageants because they cost a fortune to enter and a lightbulb went off in my head! :) So, I talked to my mom and my sister and we are going to have a pageant of our own...My mom has done one before and it was kind of small scale and she made $2000...(IN ONE DAY!!) So, we have started the process...My mom isn't working right now so she is SUPER into this! We have business cards and decals for our cars...( I know...she's a little bit crazy!) But, anyway, we are going to have our first pageant in December...It's called Little Miss Winter Sweetheart and its for ages 0-18 years old. There are tons of prizes and AMAZING crowns and trophies and banners...My mom has really went all out for it. We're having it at the CHS building in Jasper in the big Exhibition Hall where my prom was. We're going to decorate it for Christmas and there's even a Christmas wear contenst. I think it will be lots of fun and were going to make good money off it for Christmas! I'm pretty excited about it! So, if you know any little girls that might be interested let me know...

New blessings and updates

I took the Praxis this morning...again... Tina brought me a prayer cloth from her church and I kept it in my pocket during the test. I prayed all the way there. It's so stressful because if I didn't pass it this time then I only have one more chance to pass it in order to intern next Spring. I went to West Blocton with Tiffany yesterday. It was such a fun day. I went over and visited all of my friends at the middle school. I didn't get to see any of my kids but all of the faculty and staff were so excited to see me. It made me feel so loved and missed. Mr. McGee has asked me to come and do their beauty pageant this year because I did it last year and he loved it. So, I said that I would and that maybe I will be there for my intership. He said that if they call him he would love to have me and Mrs. Wilson said she would love to have me in her room. That means that if I got her class i would be interning with my group from last year. I love those kids so much. I am really praying for that blessing! Josh and I are enjoying this weekend together. We are catching up on the new season of Heroes. Tomorrow morning is the first Sunday of our new Young Married Couples Sunday School class. We had a meeting about it and met all of the couples a few weeks ago but it all starts tomorrow. I can't wait. I know that God has some big plans for Josh and I there. I got a call about local missions and also an e-mail about doing skits for Worship Kidstyle. I am looking forward to becoming more involved. We have joined the choir and are working on Christmas Musical right now. It's so exciting finding our place here. I know this is where God wants us to be. We are as happy as ever. It's hard being away from home so much but God has blessed us so much that i have nothing in the world to complain about...

Skydiving and such...

We have been so busy lately that I have had no time to blog. I'm almost all packed up and ready to go to bed. Tomorrow is the first day back to school and I will be staying at my mom's house this week. Thankfully, we had a three day weekend and I only have to spend two nights away from my husband this week. Those nights away are really hard and they just get harder each week. This will be week three of this aweful semester and I am thoroughly looking forward to the end of it. I am taking the Praxis this Saturday so PLEASE say a little prayer for me. I have been studying but you never know what will be on it. It's super stressful. I would just love to pass it this time and be done with it!

On Friday (my 24th birthday), my mom, sister, brother-in-law, and I all went skydiving. It was my first time. IT WAS AMAZING!! We are going back in a few months for Josh's birthday and I can't wait! I was nervous because I had never even been on a plane before but I absolutely LOVED it! If you have never done it, I would totally reccommend it!

First week of school

So, my classes started on Monday and I am already in full swing of homework and studying. Right now my main focus is passing the Praxis. I have the study cards but they are so overwhelming that I think I'm going to order a book instead. I only have 3 more chances to pass it if I want to intern in the spring. Pray for me! This week is going well. I am staying at my mom's house which is nice but I miss Josh SO much! It's so hard to be away from eachother. I can't wait to go home tomorrow and hug him to pieces! Classes are going to be hard but I can do it. I'm ready to get it over with! Next semester is coming fast and I will be done with all of my classes! It's not going to be long. I can't wait. I will post further details about my crazy new classes later.

I got in! I got in!

Yesterday morning was the last day of Add/Drop for the Fall semester. If you are a devout follower of my blog then you already know that I have been seriously stressed for the past few weeks because I have to take 7 classes this fall in order to intern in the spring and there was one class that I needed that overlapped with another class I was already in. I needed my professor to send permission to the registrar's office for me to be enrolled in the class. I have been freaking out for the last few weeks because I sent him several e-mails and left several voice mails and I still had not heard back from him. I am sure that he thought I was a little crazy because I even had the registrar to e-mail him for me. Well, anyway, FINALLY, yesterday morning I got an e-mail from him saying that he had been out of the office all summer but he sent permission for me to enroll to the registrar's office...Then I had an e-mail from the registrar's office saying that I was enrolled! When I checked my schedule I was in! Whew! All of the stress and freaking out...and I finally got it! I was beginning to believe that I wouldn't get in and I was so down about it. When I registered for my internship, one of the possibilities was West Blocton Middle School (where I worked last year) and the interning teacher that I would be working with if I get that school is Mrs. Wilson. She teaches 7th grade Civics. I am really praying for that because that would mean that I would get to work with my babies from last year. I got so attached to them that it would just be such a blessing to be back in the classroom with them for another semseter. Also I already know all of the teachers and administrators there and I know that I would just be so comfortable there. Unfortunately, I failed the Praxis...AGAIN! I am registering to take it again September 12. I am going to go by the bookstore today and try to find a good study guide. I keep missing it by about 10 points. I've just GOT to pass it this time. Anyway, I'm SO happy and relieved that I got in the class. Now I've just got to get through 7 Senior killer Upper level history classes and the Praxis and then I'm done! F-O-R-E-V-E-R!! Or until I enroll in the Master's program... But, believe me...I am going to take a nice long break from college before I go back! I certainly learned a HUGE lesson about waiting on God's perfect timing and trusting that he is in control. I tried not to doubt him and just to pray for his will in this situation but I was really struggling because I just want to be done with school so bad...Now, I know that God was testing my trust in him and I am feeling so amazingly blessed by his goodness and mercy.

No News Update

I don't really have too much to say tonight but I thought I would give a quick update on my school situation. The truth is that there's really nothing to report. I have been waiting for about a week now for my professor to give the OK for me to enroll in that last class and I still haven't heard from him. I think he is out of the office because I have been calling him and he's never there. I'm frustrated but still praying hard and trusting that it will work out. I have had an amazing week of rest at home in my clean house. I have basically done nothing all week and I am loving it. I get bored and lonely fast though so I know I will be glad when school starts back. (At least for the first day or two) I am dreading leaving home 3 nights a week but since I have decided to stay with my parents Josh is getting to come with me and that makes all the difference in the world. Tomorrow I'm going to spend the day with mom and Olivia. I have promised to play Polly Pockets and watch Coraline so I have a busy day of fun ahead of me. She's excited! She is so funny and she's growing so fast it amazes me! She will be 5 years old next month. She says the craziest things that really crack us all up all the time! She is the smartest kid I have ever known. She is certainly her own little person. But, anyway, I am going to try to talk Josh into going to bed. He's such a late-nighter!

Window Markers

It has been a rather hectic week at the Odom residence. I officially finished my 21 hour summer semester. It was killer but totally worth it. I am registered for 18 hours for the fall and waiting for my overload application to process so that I can register for the last class. (EVER!!) Wow, that sounds amazing....Josh's union at AT&T has been planning to go on strike for about a week now and we were really starting to worry about it but we prayed about it and sent out a few prayer requests to the family, and God took care of it. They were supposed to start Monday morning and one of Josh's co-workers called a few minutes ago and said that the strike is cancelled. That was great news. I am currently waiting for my professor to tell me if I can take my last class for next semester because one of the days that the class is on I am already registered for another class. I don't want to get into all of the gory details but let's just say I have an entire army of believers praying that he says that he will work with me and I can take the class anyway. I would appreciate any prayers from my blog followers as well. It is a trying event in the life of the Odoms but we have placed it in God's hands and we know that he is taking care of us. Tomorrow morning we are joining First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa. We really love it there and Josh has been playing the drums for a while. We are ready. Wendy and Jackson are coming with us and then we will all go out to eat for lunch. Then, tomorrow night all of our friends are coming over to wish farewell to our dear friend Jonathan who is moving away to Arizona. Josh and I have spent two days doing yard work and cleaning house and now we are oficially done and my house looks so amazing I seriously considered taking pitcures. haha We have started a new thing at our house that I love so far, I bought window markers (Crayola) and they are just like regular markers, they just write on windows and mirrors. So, each week Josh and I are picking a new bible verse that we like and I am writing it on our bathroom mirror. In our guest bathroom (the one that everyone uses, we are sticking with our favorite, "As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" Joshua 24:10. I really like it. It's a nice way to start the day...with God's word on our hearts. Right now in our private bathroom we have Psalms 32:10. I don't know why that one stuck out to me. I just liked it. Well, I have to get up bright and early in the morning for church so I am going to bed.

Current Events in the Odom House

I haven't posted in about a month...I have been SO busy with this 21 hour summer semester. But...drumroll please....I am one week away from being officially done! I will get 2 whole weeks of down time before I have to start back. Josh and I have been making some pretty major decisions lately about the immediate future. First of all, I had to take several finals this past week so I stayed in a hotel in Athens Thursday nigh...It was aweful...the hotel was nice but I was alone and scared and cold...I just wanted to be home with him...So, we decided that I am not going to be staying at the Extended-Stay hotel in the fall. I am just going to stay with my parents and he is going to stay a couple of the nights with me each week. It's only three nights a week and I will feel so much better to be with my mom and dad than with creepy strangers....The second thing is that I am not going to get a job. With me not staying in the hotel we will not need for me to get a job and that is a huge relief because I barely survived this two-month semester without a job. I am so thankful that I have a husband that loves me and wants whats best for me. It's amazing...The third thing is that we are going to join First Baptist next week. We just know that it is the right place for us and we are so excited about it.

Monday I am going to six flags with Tiffany, my mom, and my dad. Yep...that's right...My mom and my dad... I cannot believe that we are going somewhere with our original (if you will) family. ha We have NEVER done anything like this since my parents divorced when I was 8 years old. They are both remarried and everything...It's nothing wierd or anything. Tiffany just get tired of having to choose a parent to take on trips so we invited both of them and they are both going. They get along great so that's never an issue and we always have fun when they are together. I guess they have been divorced for long enough that the akward tension is gone and now they can just be friends. It's much better for us that way for sure!

Josh and I got a new 55 gallon fish tank. It's really georgous. It's right inside the front entrance to our house in the forier (or however you spell that). We got all of the supplies for it today and set it up. It sprang a leak, but with some minor adjustments and help from Tiffany we fixed it and now it looks georgous. I've got to get some plants to go under it on the bottom shelf of the stand but I'm really proud of the way it looks.

I got my new pink laptop and I LOVE it. It is kinda huge because I wanted the biggest screen that they had but I am glad that I got it. It is perfect for me because I can do my school work on the couch. I know that makes me sound lazy but the chair in the office just hurts my back! Anyway, I've only had it for a couple of weeks but there is this wierd light running across the middle of the screen so we are going to have to call about it because I am afraid that something is wrong with it...I hope not!!

We talked to Wendy tonight about Disney World. I am SO excited about it. We are still in the planning phase, working out all of the details. It is really hard to get our whole family together because we are all in school (Me-Athens, Jake-Auburn, Heidi and Mallory-Montevallo) and with Josh's job we just have to go on whatever vacation week he can get. But, we have chosen a week-The week before Thanksgiving. (We went last time during thanksgiving and the crowd was unreal!) We think it will be a really good time to go. Jake, Heidi, and Mallory might only get to come for the second half of the week but Jackson's birthday is on that Wednesday so they are trying to wait to suprise him with the tickets when it gets close. He's been wanting to go really bad so he will be thrilled. (Not as thrilled as me...I'm sure) But, Josh and I LOVE Disney World and we have been wanting to get back there one more time before we have a baby. I know it sounds crazy but it's important to us and we are not sure when we want to have a baby so we just wanted to go this year just in case...(We are in no hurry about the whole baby thing though...)

Well, now that I have written the longest post ever to make up for the lack there of recently... I think that I have just about given out all of the current events in the Odom house...Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Stressful happiness

This is a picture of me and Josh at the fireworks show on the 4th...

This past week has been really stressful trying to figure out our renter situation and balancing school with trying to get a part-time job. Sometimes everything happens at once and you feel like you don't even have time to breathe. Well, the good news is that we did pick a renter and are signing with them on Saturday. Please say a prayer for us about this because renting has been nothing but trouble for us in the past and I will be way too busy in the fall to deal with another rental disaster like this past year. I have been taking applications to places that I think that I would enjoy working. (None of those places are in or near the mall!!) I am also on super overload trying to get all of my school work done this week because on Sunday, my sister and I are driving to Chicago to pick up my cousins and then turning around and coming home. The original plan was to meet them in Padukah but it got messed up and now we are making two round trips to Chicago in one week...wow...It will be worth it though because we never get to see them. I have to go tomorrow and run errands. I have to go turn in a few applications that I have filled out at home and then I need to go to UA library and return books from last semester (and pay their ridiculous late fees) and borrow a bazillion more books to write my 2 research papers this semester. I am oficially registered for fall and for my internship and waiting for my Praxis results. This is an increadibly stressful period in my life and this next year is going to be tough with my living half of each week in a hotel halfway across the state from my husband and my bed...but I know that God is taking care of us and we are so in love that nothing ever really gets me down. I am truly blessed and I am thankful for my stresses because they are the reason why I have a home and a wonderful life. No complaints.

Our new church

I never knew how it felt to be new at church until now...I've never really had to be new at a church before. When I started to Mount Vernon I was young and I had Morgan to introduce me to everyone...and I already knew a lot of people from school. It was just easy and I really started to feel at home quickly. Now we are the new people at church and it is not nearly as scary as I thought it would be. Josh and I spent a loonngg time trying different churches after we moved to Tuscaloosa and we got really discouraged when we couldn't find a single service that even remotely reminded us of Mt. Vernon. We both LOVE Mt. Vernon and have called it home for most of our lives. We have a church family there and a history and were both VERY involved there. So, it has been a rough year trying to find a church where we could see ourselves belonging like we do at Mt. Vernon. We prayed each week that God would lead us to the right place where he wanted us to go and where he needed us. We are so willing to go where God wants us and we want him to plant us somewhere where he will REALLY use us.....and guess what? He did! We started to First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa a couple of months ago. We found it online and the first thing that struck our attention was all of the oppertuinties to get involved. They have an amazing music and drama ministry (and for those of you who know me...you know that music and drama is a big deal for me)...and they have a softbal team (that's Josh's favorite thing). Those were the reasons why we watned to visit that church but God gave us reasons to think that we might someday call that church home. We fell in love with the chruch on our first visit. I knew that I loved it but I didn't want to influence Josh's answer so I asked him first and he loved it too. We have been going there ever since and we are really enjoying it. This morning we talked after church about how we can really see ourselves becoming a part of this church. We are going to continue to pray about it because we want to be SURE that this is where God wants us before we transfer our letter of membership... I'm just really happy that we have found a church that we love and that we can grow in and become involved. I feel like we are where God wants us to be and that we did move for a reason. I know that God is going to use us to do great things here and I'm so blessed that I have such an amazing Godly husband to serve God with.

Extended-Stay Hotel

I think we have figured out what I am going to do about college in the fall. We found an "Extended-Stay Hotel" in Hunstville (which is about a 20 minute drive to Athens) and we have decided that I am going to stay there three nights a week for the fall. I have to go to school 4 days a week and it's a 3 hour drive one way from home so I have to stay there. I really dread being away from home but I know it will be best for me to be close and comfortable while I am at school...The bright side is that the fall is my last semester of classes! Yay!! I can't believe that I am in my last year of college. I hope it goes by FAST!! Josh found me a hot pink laptop online that we are going to get so that I can do my school work there. In the meantime...this summer semester is kicking my butt!! I have more work than ever this week and I am (yet again) avoiding it by blogging....Well, that's all I wanted to tell you today. Have a safe and happy 4th!!

This weekend...

I should be studying right now for my two midterms on Tuesday but I thought I would take a minute to blog...because I don't want to study...

Right now the A/C guys are here installing our brand new state-of-the-art air conditioning/heat pump unit and it's oh-so-hott in here in the meantime...I have been cleaning house all morning ....I finished everything but the floors and I'm just too hot to sweep/mop/vaccum right now...I will do it when they are done! Last night while Josh was running at the park I went outside to check on him (the park is across the street so I can see him from the front door when he's running or playing ball) and I noticed how crazy-grown-up our sidewalks were with weeds...So, I got out the gardening gloves and started pulling weeds...Now, those of you who really know me know that I'm not much of a yard work/outdoorsy girl so you should be proud...I pulled all the weeds from the sidewalk/lava rock area and then I borrowed Tiffany and Eric's big scissors (hedge shears) and I cut all of our bushes...I even cut one completely to the root because I didn't like it. :) Josh cut the grass and he was very proud of me for helping outside...

Tonight when the A/C guys are done, Wendy and Jackson are coming over to go eat and to the movies with us. We are going to the Olive Garden (Josh's favorite) and then to see Transformers. I think they are going to spend the night and go to church with us in the morning. They have been wanting to visit our church for a while so I'm pretty excited for them to go with us.

Well, that's all about me for today...

Blogging=Therapy

This is a crazy stressful week at the Odom residence. It's **MIDTERM WEEK**...I like to make it dramatic! Well, that's how I feel about it anyway! Besides being crazy over midterms...when I got back from Atlanta last weekend, our A/C was broken! AAh! It's sooo hot in here! We have called everyone under the moon to get estimates and everyone says the same thing..."It's broken...Get a new one..." Well, that's not good news...I won't even get into telling you how much its going to cost...Yikes! Besides that...we evicted our renter last weekend...(Another one bites the dust) And...she never paid for last month so we are trying to decide if renting is worth it or if we should put it back on the market...(Needless to say...It didn't sale last time) Then today, I went online to balance my checkbook and the Wyndham charged me way wrong for my room from last week and when I called the manager was SO rude...ugh...It's just been one of those days...So...I hit Josh really hard in the stomach (not on purpose...but it was kinda funny) then I cried really loud... (definately on purpose...not very funny) then I decided that we will be fine and then to quote one of my favorite people of all time... "I'll think about that tomorrow"...So, now I am sitting here blogging instead of studying...On the happy side of life...midterms mean half way is already here for the summer semester...Yahoo! If I pass all of my classes then I will be totally glad that I took on so much of a crazy work load. Also, I am going to meet Josh after work tomorrow to see Transformers with David and Lindsey... That will be fun!! Well, I think that just about covers it all for me. Thanks for listening to me vent on and on...Blogging is therapy...Don't ya think?

What I aspire to be

I have recently started keeping up with the blogger "Mama's Losin' It" and so here is my response to her prompt-

"What do you aspire to be?

I have always had big dreams. I guess that confidence in myself and my future plans is something that I was either born with or that my family gave me early on because I have always felt that my big dreams were not only possible but bound to happen for no other reason than that I wanted them to. So...here they are in order:

1. My number one ambition in life is to be like Jesus. Although it is not always the top priority in my mind...I do want it to be. Being a child of God comes at a price and that price is to "take up your cross". Now, I don't know about you but sometimes my everyday, normal, run-of-the-mill routines get in the way of my "child of God duties". That's crazy right? But, nevertheless, life happens and gets all in the way of my big plans to always put God first. That is something that I don't think I will ever perfect but I will continue to work on throughout my life.

2. My second most important life goal is to be an amazing wife and mother. I'm not yet a mother but I have been doing the wife thing for a while and while some may be domestic and find everyday wifely chores such as cooking and gardening easy and simple tasks, I am not-so-domestic and HATE to cook. So, I carry out my be an amazing wife goals in other ways...Such as: unconditional love and support and then there are my everyday wife duties such as bill paying, and house cleaning, and clothes ironing, and that sort of thing... I happen to find being a wife to be the VERY best job in the world. And as far as being an amazing future mother, if I am anything like my mom, I know I will be a great mother.

3. My third goal is to be an amazing daughter and sister. My family is the best family ever and I love them a whole lot so I do whatever I can to make sure that they know how much I love and appreciate them. I love to spend time with them so I make it a goal to spend as much time with the parents as I possibly can.

4. My next goal is to graduate from college and be a great history teacher. I can't wait to graduate and I love working at the school and working with the kids. They are so amazing and they mean the world to me! I know that being a teacher is exactly what God planned for me because I know that I make a difference for them and they really listen to me and appreciate me. It's a great feeling to know that I matter to those kids.

Not-so-lazy summer

So, I haven't posted in quite a while...Turns out my lazy summer is not so lazy! I have been doing my field experience for the summer semester this week and guess where it is? Yep...that's right...I'm back at Blocton! I am glad though! I am working at the high school with history and English students. There are only 10 ppl in my class so we are really getting some good one-on-one time and it's not bad at all! Plus...we get out at 12:30! I have ten days to do this month and I have done 2 so far. Next week I am going to Atlanta with my mom and my sisters for a couple of days...I'm pretty excited about that! I am working hard this summer and there is a lot of work but everyday that passes, I am one day closer to graduating!! I looked at the ALSDE website today at all of the jobs listed for Alabama for next school year and there are (suprisingly) a lot of history jobs! It makes me feel better about finding the perfect job next year. I, of course, want the 9th grade at Blocton but I am just going to keep praying and I know that God will put me where he needs me! I'm really happy these days. Not working all day everyday does a lot for one's attitude! (plus, I still get a paycheck until September so...) Well, that's all for now!!

Before and After

So, I talked and talked about the remodel when we were working on it because it was taking over my life but now it's done and I still haven't posted pictures...The reason for that is because I lost the cord that connects my camera to the computer...But...alas...I found it this morning...So, here are the befores and afters of our guest room and computer room...

The before picture of the guest room.



After picture...I don't know why we only had one pillow!

Before in the computer room...

Painting to computer room...

Laying down hardwood...

After picture...My desk...I don't have my computer yet....

Josh's desk...It's a mess...

Update....The latest news

It's Saturday night and I thought I would take a few minutes to blog about what's been going on with us for the past few days. Friday was my last official day at work. It was super emotional and I ended the day by standing in my regular bus duty spot and all of the kids came by and hugged me. I cried like a baby. It was hard to say goodbye to them because they have become such a part of my everyday life. I will pray for them for the rest of their lives I assume. I love them all....Then....last weekend Josh and I visited First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa for the first time. We loved it. It was really close to the type of service that we are used to at Mount Vernon. The music was great and the pastor was amazing. We were so excited. It was really hard to leave our home church and church family that we have both been such a big part of for most of our lives and try something new. We got discouraged and started to think that there was nothing here for us. But, we saw the website for First Baptist and they really offer all of the things that we were looking for. Josh wanted a softball team and I wanted a choir/ensemble that I could sing in. Plus...they have an amazing preschool. (for someday...) So, needless to say...we are really excited to have found somewhere that we really love. We are going to Sunday School in the morning for the first time. I really want us to find a place there.....In other news...Josh has been on vacation from work this week and we spent one night at his parents house and one night at my parents house. We went out on the boat and it was a lot of fun. It was nice to just hang out with my mom and Olivia. I look forward to seeing a lot more of them this summer. I am so glad that I am finally free from the stress of a full time job. Now, I can just focus on getting the next 2 semesters of college out of the way and then I will be an intern! One year until graduation...I'm counting down the days...I start my crazy summer semester of 7 classes in 2 months on Tuesday. Pray for me! I will need it!! :) It's going to be great though now that we have our amazing new computer room/study...I'm kinda excited to get started. Luke's ears were bleeding on the ends the other day and I called Jonathan at the vet's office and he said that he was being bitten by flies. So, we spent $50 on a bug zapper and neosporin....Sometimes dogs are like having kids. He's happy now and on a regular vitamin. It's going to help boost his immune system so that he will live a long and happy life! Well, thats all about us for now....

Last days at WBMS

Friday is my last day at West Blocton Middle School. I have been so anxious for the summer to be here and so ready for this job to end but now that it's here I am heartbroken. I have absolutely fallen in love with my first class. They are amazing little people with big hearts and I love them all. I don't know how I am going to manage to go from seeing them every single day to never seeing them at all. How do other teachers do this? All of the other teachers just seem so ready for them to be gone but I just wish I could have them again every year. They are a great class. Of course, every class has it's bad eggs but even the worst behaved kids, I have grown to appreciate. THey all have something to offer and they are all still at the age where they have big dreams and their own personalities despite the pressures that are starting to rise around them. I know that even if I teach them in the 9th grade year after next they will be different. They will be more grown up and less sweet and innocent. This is just an emotional time for me. I would adopt many of them...seriously...I would take them home as my own. There is something about a teacher's first group. The attachment is strong and a bond is made that probably won't ever happen again. I pray everyday that I get that job as the 9th grade teacher next year. One more year of college and I'm a real teacher. I can't wait.

Finally done

It's official!! We have finished the remodeling!! Yay! It looks amazing and I'm so excited about it. Anna is here and she is staying with us until Friday. It has been really nice to just sit and talk and catch up. Our lives have went in such different directions but I know that Anna and I will always stay connected. I like having her around. I wish she lived closer to me! Jake helped us Sunday night and we stayed up until 4 in the morning finishing everything and now it's done. I stayed home from work yesterday and cleaned all day and now it's so nice to come home to a clean house with two brand new amazing rooms! It's great. I have 3 days of school left and Atlanta on Monday...Then my job is officially over.

Remodel Update...General life Update...

Things are finally coming together in our house...It's still a total mess but we have both rooms completely painted and the hardwood is done. Tonight Josh is going to do the Crown Molding and the baseboards in both rooms while I paint the trim in the guest room...Then we are done!! We will then start putting together the furniture and putting things back where they go! I can't wait! I'm so excited that we are finally almost done! I love the color of both of the room and I am so excited to see the finished product. I picked up the guest bed yesterday and I love it. It's so cute and perfect for the room.

Today is day 6 on the big countdown and now I'm getting a little sad...I am really going to miss my kids and miss being a teacher for a whole year. I'm looking forward to a break and sleeping late! That will be nice! I am also kinda looking forward to getting started with the summer semseter...not because I love torture but because I know that it will go by fast and then I will be in my last semester of college!! Yay!

Josh is loving his promotion...(I think mostly because he gets to boss people around!!) But, I am so proud of him. He's such an amazing man and he's such a good husband to me. I'm so blessed...

Remodel Update 3

I didn't get much done yesterday because I was wiped out...But, I did sleep a lot so I feel pretty energized today and ready to get going on the remodel when I get home...I sent Josh an email this morning with my crazy OCD plan to get things done before this weekend. Here's the plan:

Today (Wednesday)-Josh will finish the floor and do the baseboards and I will go after school to get my driver's liscence renewed (I was supposed to do it yesterday but I was so tired!) and then I will go home and clean out the current computer room/future guest room and then tape it up and get it ready to paint

Tomorrow (Thursday)-Josh will do the crown molding and I will paint the guest room, pick up the bed, desks, bed set, blinds, curtains, file cabinet, and bookshelf (that will be a mixture of trips to Walmart, Target, and the furniture store) I'm staying home from work so I should be able to get all of it done...

Friday: Josh will put together all of the furniture and we will replace the plugs and do the closet floor, and put the doors back on and I will paint the trim in the guest room and hang the blinds and curtains...

Saturday: Josh will cut the grass and work in the yard and I will clean the house

Sunday: We will go to Jasper and spend the day with our moms.

We still have tons of work to do but I can finally see the end coming because Josh is one row of hardwood away from finishing the floor in the new computer room. It looks great and I love the color that we painted that room. I'm really tired from all of the work but I know that it's going to be worth it!! We have managed to stay within our budget with the exception of paying for the desks and buying my new computer...My new computer is going to have to wait a couple of weeks but I don't mind...and we paid for the desks out of our regular checking account but that's ok too. I'm excited that Anna is coming to stay with me next week and I'm even more excited that there's going to be a bed in a real guest room for her to sleep in. I have never had a guest room before....I can't wait! I'm so grateful to my amazing husband for staying up so late and working so hard...He's the best in the world!! I will post pictures as soon as I can! I have got to get a new cord to connect my camera to the computer...That's all of the remodel updates for today...6 days of school left...

Remodel Update 2

Last night Josh worked on the floor in the new study. He got about halfway done. We ran to Lowe's and picked up a few things including the sage green paint for the guest room. I worked on the trim in the study but I got tired and went to bed. So, there's a lot to do today. After school, I am going to 1. Go get my driver's liscence renewed 2. Go to the furniture store on 7th street and see if they have any beds that I like better than the white bed. 3. Go home and work on the trim in the study 4. Clean out the current computer room and get everything taped up and ready to paint 5. Laundry 6. Supper 7. Tanning bed----Not enough time in the day. Really I have two days to work on this stuff because I think that I will come to work tomorrow and then stay home Thursday to paint. Our goal is to have everything done by Saturday so that we can put the desks and bed together Saturday and just do the finishing touches that day. We still have a lot to do so I guess we will just see how it goes. I'm so tired today and my hands are really sore from painting. I am dreading painting another whole room. Renovating is exhausting!

Remodel update

Josh and I started yesterday on the computer room. While I was sanding the doors in the garage Josh ripped up the carpet. Then we went around with happers and screw drivers and pulled the strip that holds the carpet down out of the floor. It was kind of hard because under the carpet is just concrete. After we got all of that up Josh pulled up the baseboards. Then we vaccumed and swept up all of the mess and we had a clean slate. We started painting and the Jake got there and he helped us paint. We ordered pizza and I finished painting while they painted the new baseboards and crown molding in the garage. After all of the paint was semi-dry we started laying down the floor. I had to run to walmart pretty late last night to get some shems. They didn't have any so we emprovised. I went to bed at 11 but the guys stayed up late working on the floor. It turned out to be much more complicated than we thought but they are doing really good. It's a little less than half way done but the hard part is over now. There is a lot more cutting than they thought there would be and I was afraid that the saw was going to wake up our neighbors last night. I'm really excited though. It's coming along really fast and I think it's going to look georgous when it's done! I can't wait to see it all finished!! I ordered the desks and hopefully they will be here in a couple of days. I still haven't ordered my computer but I will do that soon! We haven't found a bed for the guest room but I am going to go look at the furniture stores in town this afternoon. I hope that I can find one that is not too expensive!! Well, that's all for the update on the remodel. I will post pictures as soon as we are done.

Thursday 13

1. I have officially started back to the gym. I seriously need a daily gym routine in my life and I decided to stop being lazy and just go. Josh has been going with me this week but tomorrow starts his new position as Team Leader so he will be going in the morning and I will be going in the afternoon.

2. Today is day 12 on the countdown to summer break! Yahoo!

3. Tomorrow is Camenron's memorial service. It's at 11:00. All of the 6th grade teachers are riding together and our kids are checking out to go. I hope that his family comes.

4. Saturday Josh and I are going to Jasper. We are meeting first to get Josh's hair cut and then we are going to dinner with Karla and Craig. Then I am going to meet the girls at Perico's and we are going to Brittany's house for Heather's lingerie party. It has been ages since I have gotten to see the girls at all so I'm pretty excited about that!

5. Sunday Josh and I are going to First Baptist for the first time. We looked at their website and they have everything that we are looking for. Pray for us because we are nervous. It's pretty gigantic and intimidating but I just feel like it's probably going to be the one...

6. Monday is the Atlanta trip and my kids are SO excited about it. I am the sponsor for the National Honor Society and we are teaming up with the Beta Club to go to Atlanta. We are going to hit the Aquarium, the Coke factory, and CNN. I think that it will be fun and it's the first field trip that I am in charge of so it's pretty exciting for me...and it doesn't hurt that we are taking charter busses instead of regular school busses.

7. I'm trying not to snack so much and it's really hard because currently I am starving.

8. Yesterday Mr. McGee (theboss) called me into his office to ask me if I had reconsidered quiting. I said that I can't because of my internship and he told me how sad he was going to be to lose me and how good he thinks I am at my job. It made me feel so good. He also asked me if they could call me next year when it was time for the pageant because I was a great director and he will need my help with it next year! That will probably bite "number 3" right on the butt to see me here running the pageant next year (when I don't even work here) after she told me how badly I did at it last year. Some people! :)

9. I am really looking forward to this summer. We have a lot of things planned that are going to be so much fun. One thing that I am looking forward to is that my little (17 year old not-so-little-anymore) cousins (who I adore) are coming to stay a week with me in July. We are going to Six Flags with them and then a few other times. (We love Six Flags)

10. Josh and I are working hard to convince his mom that we have to go to Disney World this November. We are having Disney World withdrawels.

11. I can't believe that I am going to graduate in just ONE year! Is that even possible. I was beginning to feel like graduation was a mirage that didn't really exist that colleges made up so that we would just keep frying our brains and giving them money...

12. I am still starving and I have run out of things to say to fill my 13.

13. I am going to go to lunch now. The End. :)

Memorial service, computer room, and today's agenda...totally random information

Today we found out that they are holding a memorial service for Camenron on Friday at 11. Our kids can check out to go and all of the 6th grade teachers are excused to go and then come back. I'm glad that they finally set something up. There is a debate going on with Etowah county over where they will bury him but that's a whole different sad story. Tiffany and I have been looking into getting the mayor to come out and recognize the boy(s) that jumped in and saved the other boy that was drowning. He will probably come and give them recognition on awards day here at the school.

Josh is at home today. He is working on pulling up the carpet in the computer room and pulling up the baseboards. We painted one wall purple but we didn't like it once we got it on there so we are either going to go with a darker purple or maybe a red. It's hard to choose. Really, you never know what you will like until it's on the walls.

Today after school we are going to the gym and then I need to go get my driver's liscence renewed! I am sad about that because I really like my picture. I wonder if they will let me keep the same picture if I still look the same?? Well, my kids are at break now and they will tear down the walls if I don't get out there.

Update...

A quick update to add to my last blog about Camenron...They did find his body. All that the news release said was that they found it at 11:05 in the Cahaba River. I told my kids. It was hard but not nearly as bad as this morning. They are dealing with it.

Trying to understand God's ways...

Yesterday morning Josh and I woke up to an early phone call. It was Mrs. Lowe. She is the 6th grade math teacher. She was calling to tell me that one of our students, Camenron Knowles, had drowned. Apparently, he had been at the Cahaba River with some of the other kids from his group home and two of them got caught in the current. One of the older kids, Chavez Clark was able to save one of the younger boys but he couldn't reach Camenron. The rescue team has been diving in the river trying to find Camenron's body but have had no luck. We have heard that the river is really rough where Camenron was and that there is no telling when or even if they will find him.

Camenron was the same kid that I blogged about a few months ago that had gotten into trouble when a group of other kids jumped him and he fought back. He really just got dealt a bad hand. I guess sometimes I just don't understand why things are the way that they are for certain kids. Camenron was 13 but he was still a kid on the inside and he had been through so much in life. I just think that it's not fair.

I know that it is not our job (as believers) to judge others for their actions and I really do try not to do that but sometimes I just get so aggrivated at people who pretend to be followers of Jesus Christ who very obviously walk to their own version of the scripture. There were so many people at this school who didn't care about Camenron at all before this accident. They didn't want him here because he caused trouble and they couldn't look past the outer appearance into the fact that he was just a kid and he didn't know any better because he never had parents who took care of him or taught him right from wrong. He did the best he could. It just really stinks to see those same people who were talking about how they couldn't wait for Camenron to be kicked out of our school so that they didn't have to deal with him anymore, being the ones who are crying and sobbing and can't control themselves.

I guess that my main question for God is...Is Camenron being held accountable for his actions or is he still considered as a child in the eyes of God? See, Camenron came from a rough background and I don't have any idea what he's been through in life but I do know that he doesn't have parents or family, he lives in a group home (orphanage) called Triwell, and the kids who live in Triwell have to have some kind of criminal record. I don't know what he did or how he ended up there but I do know that even though he played tough, he was still a kid who needed love and guidence and didn't ever have either.

James 1:26-27 (New International Version)
26If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Our kids this morning were a mess. Most of them didn't even know about what had happened until they got to school today. I spent my morning with the group of kids who spent all day with Camenron everyday. They were so shocked and sad and angry. It was hard and I did break down a few times but I tried to keep it together because I had to be the grown up that told them that everything will be ok. For some of them, if not most of them, this is their first experience with loss like this. They cried and sobbed and held onto eachother. We passed out tissues and hugged and talked. They made posters to send to Triwell (his group home) and they talked about the field trip on Friday and how much fun Camenron had.

Well, I guess that's all there is to say about that. Please pray for the kids who were close to him and for his family (if he has one out there somewhere). Please pray for the other kids like Camenron who go unnoticed in this world.

Weekend at the Odom residence

Today is Saturday and I LOVE Saturdays. I have about a million things to do today but I have hardly done anything at all except for catch up on the Grey's Anatomy episodes that I have missed and paid bills. I just needed a break for a few hours. It was nice. :) Now, I just got out of the shower, I am about to get ready and go to Wal-Mart to buy groceries and then I am going to come home and straighten up the house. I HATE cleaning but my house is looking pretty rough so I guess it's about time. When Josh gets home from work we are going to cook supper together and then we are going to either rent a movie or go to the movies (we haven't decided that yet). We are also going to go to lowe's and pick out the paint for the computer room and look at all of the other stuff like floors, baseboards, crown molding, and lighting. I'm REALLY excited about that! We also need to run by the mall and get Josh some new khakies for church and for work. He got a promotion! He's now a team leader so he will be coaching other people. He's very excited and I am very proud! I guess that's all about us for now. We are trying a new church tomorrow so please pray for us. We have been praying hard about it because we want to find the perfect place and we just want to fit in and make friends and all of that but I know we are working on God's timing and not our own. I'm trying to be patient...but I'm not praying for patience... :)

Warning! All-out, over-the-top, whiny, pathetic venting session ahead....Proceed with caution:

Today I am feeling whinier than usual (which I know is hard to believe) but it's true. It's because even though we are so close to the end of this school year I still feel desperate for it to just be over. I am thankful for this job because it definately taught me a lot and I got to spend a lot of extra time with my sister and get my name around for when I graduate and try to get a real teaching job.However, I am so ready for this job to be over. I have almost successfully completed day 18 on the countdown and I am desperate for the next three weeks to come and go. I will be SO glad to say goodbye to this school and move on with my life. I have, however, learned from this job what kind of teacher and coworker that I don't want to be. There are just a few really mean and hateful people that I have worked with here. I have had my own personal encounter with three of them and I am a totally non-confrontational person so you can imagine how that worked out for me. I accidentally kinda sorta used the laminatior machine a few months ago without knowing exactly how to use it. It only has like three buttons so I didn't figure it would be that complicated. Well, after being personally chewed out in the middle of the hall by one of them, I was then verbally attacked by the second one via school-wide e-mail and then also a Vypress (chat) at the end of the day just in case I was lucky enough that anyone on the faculty hadn't gotten the e-mail. She really wanted to be sure that I was sorry. Now she personally keeps the laminator machine locked up in her room for supervision because apparently she owns the entire school. I have considered telling her that she can let go of her grip on the laminator because I wouldn't touch the thing with a 10 foot pole after last time...but, I suppose that would require me to have a back bone and unfortunately, I was born without one of those. So, anyway, then when I single-handedly voulenteered to set up and run the entire beauty pageant single-handedly I was told all night how aweful it was and how bad of a job I did by number three who (by the way) didn't voulenteer to help at all. Oh, and did I mention that I did that single-handedly? (Except for the amazing help of my super-sister who flew in and saved the day. I would have had a nervous break-down and then died of a heart attack if she hadn't been there.) I did, in fact, have a panic-induced, all-out whailing, balling, crying session when the pageant was almost over in front of at least a few of my co-workers. I would like to personally thank number three for that show of public humiliation. The three of you will not be forgotten. I will tell the tales of the horrors of my first year as a teacher for many years to come I am sure. Hopefully, between now and then I will grow a back bone and stand up to someone who runs over me with their own personal train of mean-hearted wickedness. Oh, my. I believe that I have over-shared and that you have just witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime venting session. Sorry. I got carried away.

Useless Information

Well, this is my last week of the Spring semester of classes. Thank goodness! This semester has just about killed me...and I guess I am a glutton for punishment because I am registered to take 7 classes in the summer. I know! It's a lot... But, I have to take that many to graduate next year and right now I am at the point where I will do ANYTHING to grduate!

Josh and I are planning to start working on our office this weekend and I am so excited! We are getting a bed for the guest room and I found this really pretty bedroom set on Sticks and Stuff website that is pretty cheap that we are going to see about this weekend too. I'm excited to see the finished product of the office. I think that it is going to be much more grown-up and professional looking. I will post pictures if we ever finish!

Other than that I am just counting down the days until this school year is over and I am free! It has not been a bad year but I definately have those end-of-the-year gitters and I can't wait until I am done! I am looking forward to just being abe to concentrate on college and SLEEP LATE! I am a sleeper so that has been the downfall for me this year with my up-at-5am job. I'm ALWAYS tired. I usually sleep when I come home from work for about an hour or two and then still go to bed with Josh at around 10. I have a B-12 deficiency. :) I like to use that as a good excuse to sleep all the time!

I got a Twitter. My aunt Tina sent me a request to get one so I did. I like it because the status updates are my favorite thing about facebook.

Oh, I am going on a field trip Friday with my kids. It's nothing spectacular. Acutally, I really don't know where we are going! But, I am very excited that I got a free t-shirt and I get to wear jeans! We never get to wear jeans and I have told Josh probably about a million times this year that if I could wear jeans then I would be SO much happier with my job!!

Well, that's really all of the news about us for now...A lot of people that I know are pregnant right now so I kind of have baby fever. But, I'm sure it will fade. It usually comes and goes. We still need a few years. But, we are painting the guest room a light color so that we can paint over it when we have our first baby. Planning ahead....