Happy Valentine's Day

Well, it has been a really hectic, crazy week for us and I am SO glad that it is Friday! I get to spend the WHOLE weekend with the husband! This is a rare occasion at the Odom residence because Josh usually works on Saturdays. But, he is off this weekend and I cannot wait to go home today and get started on our long break from the world! We are planning to go out to the Outback tomorrow night for Valentine's day. We always have a weekend date (We call it our Friday night date even if we go on Saturday!) of dinner and a movie and the dinner is almost always the Outback because that's our favorite! I LOVE that we have so much fun doing such simple stuff together! He's amazing and I still can't believe how much God has blessed me! AOh, and I just realized that the week of Spring Break when Josh and I are going to the beach is also our 2 year anniversary! So, we are going to be at the romantic beach hideaway on our anniversary...and we didn't even plan it like that! Isn't that amazing! I'm so excited!! Anyway, yesterday Luke (our giant German Shepard) escaped from the fence in our back yard and our mean neighbors called animal control because they don't like our dogs. So, animal control called me and last night, and Tiffany and I had to go get him from the shelter. He was scared and he said that the shelter stinks and that he will not run away again. (We'll see about that.)He weighs about 200 lbs and he wouldn't get into the car. Tiffany had to practically pick him up. It was rough! But, I did manage to finish my outline yesterday! Yay! It's a week early but I had to finish it because I have a midterm next week that I haven't started studying for at all. We also had two calls about our rental yesterday and I am hoping to get some more calls today. My mom is going to show it this week and my dad is going on Saturday to pressure wash the outside and clean up the yard. We are so thankful for my amazing parents because if they weren't helping us then I don't know what we would do! I heard from the lady at UA and she said that if I transferred then none of my credits from Athens would count. AAH! That sucks pretty bad! But, I don't mind the drive too bad and I know that it will not be for long! I'm just going to do it! Well, that's about all of my news for this week. Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow!

Random thoughts Random days

I'm definately feeling much better today. I'm not sure why the bad mood yesterday...Just one of those days I guess. I got to spend all evening with the husband last night and that was nice. He took down the Christmas lights so now it is no longer Christmas at the Odom's. (Tear) I am at work (as usual) and yes, the 6th graders are driving me crazy but I have come to accept that as a part of my every day life. I am actually getting some school work done! Yay for me! I have started my outline on "The Quiet American" and I am already done with the introduction. The chapters are a little bit trickier but I still think I'm doing pretty good. We had our girl scout cookies delivered today and I am already halfway through one pack. I can definately hear the gym calling my name tonight. I don't want to but I suppose that I will. I still haven't heard from the UA lady but I hope that she will be getting in touch with me today! (fingers crossed) Our rental will be in the Daily Mountain Eagle from tomorrow through Sunday. We are praying for really good tenants this time! F.Y.I.: Don't sign with renters just because they have the same name as you. This is not a sign from God. It's a trick from the devil! :) Believe me, we know! Anyway, they are gone for good and Tina is going by to inspect. We are out a whole heaping crap load of $ but we are hoping to get someone new in really soon. I'm not sure why I am blogging all of this. It's really boring. Sorry! I'm just keeping myself from having to work on my outline! I really wish that I knew how to cook. I'm a terrible cook. Even when I'm not exhausted from working all day, I still don't cook. I hope that doesn't make me a bad wife. I'm not at all domestic.
Well, I guess that I don't have anything else that I need to share right now. :)

Waisting valuable time

Today is one of those days where I am sitting at my desk at work with a mountain of homework that I know I need to be doing but I would much rater...um...not. It's not at all that I have something else that is more important or more fun to do...I just don't want to do that. I have a few things on my mind that I thought I would spill and then maybe I will get back to work.

1. I really hate it when people call themselves "Christians" who are really not following God. I mean, it makes all of Christianity look bad. When someone calls themself a Christian and talks constantly about the happenings at church yet at the same time is a rude, snotty, and hateful person...I mean what's up with that? Why would any nonbeliever want to be a part of that? God is love and that means that Christians (who are representatives of what God stands for) should not only be loving but also kind, welcoming, forgiving, and sincere. Sorry, had to get that out after a rude encounter with a not-so-loving, welcoming, forgiving, and sincere "Christian".

2. When is summer going to get here? I am so tired of the cold and my job and this aweful semester at school. I'm exhausted and I can't keep up with my school work. Josh and I are going to the beach the last week of school. (Yes...I'm skipping out early) But, it seems like that week will never come! I can't wait!!

3. Is that lady from UA ever going to call me back? I really need to know what to do about summer classes. Come on lady...I'm not made of time! :) (I know what you are thinking but I don't think that this contradicts what I said about being a representative of God because I didn't say it to her.)

4. It's Josh's birthday and he's at home all alone because he got off work today and I didn't! I feel aweful and I can't wait to get home to him. That has (of course) made this day seem like it has lasted forever!

5. Baby Aiden, Quinn, and Olivia have kinda made me baby crazy today. I have been reading old blogs all morning because I'm bored!

On the praise report side of life, our renters finally moved out! (Hallalujah!) My mom and family have started getting back into church. (Pray that they find the right one.) and the weather has been amazing! I am a much happier person when I am not freezing cold! :)
I am taking Josh to the Olive Garden tonight for his birthday because I'm an amazing wife. (I hate the Olive Garden. ) He's a pretty amazing husband too! He definately deserves it! I am so blessed! Ok. That's all for me for today! Enough procrastination...back to work!

What a difference a clean house can make...

It's Saturday morning and my dad is on his way here to hang out for the day. We are going to go eat lunch at Cracker Barrell and then come home and watch a movie. He wants to watch something on Josh's new gigantico TV. Josh is at work today :( so he is missing out on the fun. But, dad is bringing Sydnee and Tiffany is coming so dad gets a day with all of his girls. Then this evening I am going to ride back to Jasper with dad because we are having Josh's birthday thing tonight at Wendy's house. It is going to be an eventful day. Now, yesterday I was not excited at all about today's festivities because my house was a disaster and I had homework piled up to the sky. But, luckily, I married Prince Charming and last night when we got home from dinner, he helped me clean the entire house. (I mean really clean. He hates that!) He knew how stressed I was and he was so sweet to really help me. He didn't even complain! :) I went to Athens yesterday for my class. This was the first time that I have ever actually been there because I'm an online student. It took me 2 full hours at 90 mph to get there. The class was fine but I'm not at all crazy about the campus. It's really old and everything smells like asbestos. I couldn't find my way around and to top it all off. I accidentally left my GPS on while I was in class for 3 hours and it died and so then I got lost trying to find my way home. Oh, and it costed $50 in gas to get there and back. I liked the drive really but the school not so much. I don't know how I will ever actaully start driving there all the time! AAH! Anyway, that's about all that I have to say about my life right now. I am going to get in the shower!

No reason to repeat bad history

It's finally Thursday afternoon! I have been waiting for this all week. I'm not completely there yet because right now it is only 1:59 and our bell to leave doesn't ring until 3:05. Almost there though! You are probably thinking that I still have one more day of this week but I don't! I had to take off work tomorrow because I have to go to Athens to have a class meeting. We only have 3 the whole semester. I am an online student. This week has literally exhausted me! I am glad that it will be over in one hour and 5 minutes! Yahoo!
I am upset about a situation that we had a school this week and I'm not sure at all about what to do. On Monday we had a pretty massive fight in the gym. 5 white boys against one black boy. The black boy, Cameron, is a group home student. He is from Triwell. For those of you who don't know, that means that he has been in some seriously rough circumstances growing up and also that he has done some seriously rough stuff. This is his first year in a public school and it's kind of like a trial run. If he is good, he can stay. If not, he's out. I guess that because of these circumstances I have shown some favoritism to Cameron when I probably shouldn't have. He's not exactly the most well behaved kid in my class but he's by far not the worst either. So, anyway, on Monday, some of the boys were aggrivating Cameron. The rumor is that they were calling him racial names. I will let you take the wild guess. Well, he was obviously trying really hard not to react to the boys and he turned around and started walking away. Then one of the boys came up behind him and pushed him. He turned around and all 5 of the boys jumped onto him. He (being a pretty tough kid) threw them all down to the ground. That was all of that. Well, the boys (the 5) went around all day telling everyone how they "would have totally kicked his butt if we weren't at school." It was completely obnoxious and I had a chance enounter with them in the hall at one point in the afternoon where I put a stop to that. Anyway, to make a long story a little less long, the next day, Cameron got written up and the other boys didn't. Well, I must steal a quote from Elenor Holmes, "There is no reason to repeat bad history." Why do we have to show a difference. They are all kids equal in God's eyes and equal in my eyes.
Talk about unfair. The reasoning was supposedly that the other boys never "threw a punch" and Cameron did. Well, this administration shows so much favoritism to that group of kids. As a matter of a fact, once in the middle of the day, I left school with my sister and ran into the Vice Principal of the school with about 10 of our worst behaved kids. He was taking them out to lunch for "improved behavior"? What the crap? I can't even begin to understand why these kids who are outright mean to the other kids are being treated like there is nothing that they could do that would cause them to get into trouble and the less fortunate kids are being treated like everything they do is wrong. I don't know what to do because I feel like Cameron is being pushed into the direction of becoming a bad kid. Why should he try to do the right thing or make bad grades when they are going to find something wrong with everything that he does? Is this 1920? Are they really going to show racial and socioeconomic favoritism? I don't understand.
Well, I guess that I am done ranting about that. I do feel like I should do or say something. I am just undecided on what? Anyway, on a totally different note, I have a lot to do this evening so I guess that there will be no time for my evening nap! :( That's ok though. I am going to suck it up and go to the gym! I also have to let the doctor check my arm and make sure that I don't have TB. My fingers are crossed. :) Well, that's about all for me today.

Mental Health Day

Well, I woke up yesterday morning at 4:45 to Josh's increadibly too loud alarm clock and it was way too early to even move. So, I decided to sleep for a few more minutes. Josh just so happened to have a day off work and he was going to be home all day with nothing to do. As, I was lying there I began to wonder why in the world I was even considering getting out of my nice warm bed. So, I set my alarm for 7:30 (which is when I would need to get up and call into work to let them know that I wasn't coming) and I went back to sleep. As a teacher you only get a few days a year to be off so I really should choose them wisely but yesterday I just needed a day for myself.
It was pretty much the best day that I have had in a while! I have been way too stressed about the little things lately and I needed a day to get things done so my mind could relax! So, we slept until about nine and then we got up and got ready. We went to eat lunch at our favorite Mexican restaraunt in Northport, Los Tarascos. It was really good! (even though I bit my lip and it still kinda hurts) Then, we went to the bank. Then to the doctor's office because I had to get a TB skin test for school. It stung! Then we bought groceries and then came home and we cleaned up the house.
I know that this probably doesn't sound like much of a day to you but it was pretty amazing for me. I don't normally love to run errands but Josh makes everything more fun for me! :) He's pretty amazing to be around and to get a whole day together is pretty rare. We are always so busy. We watched Fireproof before we went to bed and it was really good. It made me cry, naturally.
Now, I am back at WB sitting at my desk with a room full of kids. They are being really good today. It's still freezing in my classroom because they make us turn off the heat at night and it takes half of the day to warm up again. (I just had to wake up a student. You gotta love it when they fall asleep on their desks and start drooling. yugh!) Anyway, I am excited about watching Lost tonight. Josh and I (and both of our families) are completely hooked on that show. Well, that's really all there is to say about my life today. I know, I'm boring but I like it pretty well. I can't wait until summer! I need the sun and a break!! Only 74 more days! YAY!

Another day in the life...

Well, it's Monday morning. (sigh) I woke up this morning hating this day for no apparent reason except for the fact that the alarm woke me up and I had to take a shower. (at 5 am) I came to school still reeling from the emotional weekend and wondering what or how my friend is doing today. But then I was given a little jolt of inspiration from two friends who reminded me that I have so much to be thankful for. (including Monday mornings)
Josh and I have decided to turn over a new leaf and stop eating fast food every night of the week. This year has been tough because I was so used to working on my own schedule and then all of a sudden my routine changed to 5am every day and a day full of emotional, loud, funny, crazy 6th graders. Needless to say, I am exhausted most of the time. I have decided though that I need to be more on top of things. (like my school work) I am a terrible cook though. Cooking makes me nervous and I always burn something. We have a cooktop that was brand new in June and the top of it is burnt around one eye becuase I always spill stuff on it when I'm trying to cook. I am excellent at taco's though. And thankfully Josh loves that! We are a perfect pair! :)
I have been trying to diet and work out and all of that but it's really so much harder than it looks. I saw this adorable pregnant girl at the gym last week who had this cute little baby bump and I was thinking how does that happen. I want to be that cute when I'm pregnant. (Not that I'm going to be any time soon) It was just a thought. Although Josh and I did name our second child last night. See, someone that I love who has this amazingly perfect family told me that you can pray and ask God for exactly what you want out of life and he will provide it for you. So, we have been (as crazy as it sounds) praying for our future family. We are going to have 2 boys and 2 girls. We are naming the first two after all four of our parents. (and they are actually cute names amazingly enough) At least, we think they are. We get excited about the future sometimes but we LOVE the present as well. We are waiting to have kids about 3 more years. (We have our reasons.)
Friday I have to drive to Athens for the first time. I had to take the whole day off work because I have to be there at 1 and it takes half of forever to get there from my house. I am actually looking forward to it though. I will finally get to see the campus and meet my professor. Also, I love being in the car by myself. I like the time that it gives me to think and pray, and sing really loud. :)
Well, thats about all that is new with me today.