So Much Going On

but so little time to blog. Not much to blog about. No pictures...

Well, not really.

Hello, fellow bloggers in the great WWW! I've missed you. Thanks, Coty for your sweet words and to Mike's co-workers who have been asking about me. I'm here.

I've been lazy, as you can tell. I haven't blogged in a while. I guess I have been bitten by the Facebook bug. It's not that I like it better than blogging because really I don't. Blogging is much better; it just takes more effort (and a bit more time, but not really...I'm really being lazy).

Facebook is Andrea Tobias Odom is.....and I just fill in the blank for today.

See what I mean? Not much effort at all. One thing that I thought was odd at first was that I always wrote in 3rd person about myself, but I think I've overcome that. Let's see, here have a look at some of my FB status lines to get a look into my life lately:

• Andrea Tobias Odom is happy for the little rain we got and I think the grass and garden were even happier to have the natural water from God. :)
• Andrea Tobias Odom is really sad that Michael Jackson is gone. His music was BIG part of my younger years. sniff, sniff.

Okay, let me go off on a little tangent, that I'm so well known for, on the FB status above. I know, Michael Jackson went more than "off the deep end" in the past decade or so. I did not like any of that (and you know what all the "that" is). But it still doesn't take away, that Thriller was the first album that I owed. That I loved singing his music with my sister at the top of my lungs and "trying" to dance the moonwalk, and all the other dance moves that he so effortlessly created. Many childhood memories encompass the music that he put forth. So, "Say, Say, Say what you want", but there is a little sadness in my heart for MJ. Not because of what he was in the latter part of his life, but for the wasted talent, and for the "good memories" that his music provided for me in a not always so "good life." End of tangent.

• Andrea Tobias Odom had fun with the YW and my girls at AJM community night tonight. Be Your Best Self!

Yes, you read that right, the YW. For those of you who do not know, I was called to be the YW President for our ward back in May. I love YW and have served in there many times, including the Stake YW, but never as President. I guess the Lord is trying to teach me to be the leader that he tells me I am, but in reality I'd prefer to be the Indian instead of the chief. Seriously... The interesting thing about all that is the Bishop told me that he and his counselors were inspired to call me after I bore my testimony in sacrament meeting. I almost did not bear my testimony that day, and waited close to the end. Then, I bore my testimony again in June. After sacrament meeting, I was asked to give a talk two weeks later. Moral of the story....no more bearing my testimony. Just kidding! lol

• Andrea Tobias Odom is wishing it would rain. My poor yard is craving more than the sips of water we have been giving it every evening.

So true, until today, it has not rained for about a month (at least). We have been having to water our poor grass and garden daily with the hose. The grass was so dry that you could hear that crunching sound when you walked on it (which we rarely do b/c we have the sidewalk). Plus, the brown spots are horrible on that once bright green grass. But, I'm happy and grateful to have a house with brown grass because many people don't have that.

• Andrea Tobias Odom is going to save a life, or two, or maybe even three in a few minutes. Going to give blood at the Red Cross. :)

Many of the people who commented on this post were talking about how wonderful and awesome I am--that I'm a good woman for giving blood. I really felt weird about all that because in reality, I'm not. I have not given blood in over a year, and faithfully, the Red Cross Volunteers call me sometimes twice a month begging me to give blood. I got so guilty for not giving, that can you believe, when I saw their number pop up on Caller ID, I would yell to my kids, "DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE, IT'S THE RED CROSS." Now I'm thinking, "GREAT, not only am I not willing to help save a life, but my guilt of the fact is putting fear of the RED CROSS in my dear children. Yup, they are definitely going to need therapy. BUT, I keep telling myself that I have legit reasons for not wanting giving blood:

1. My iron has been low several times when I have tried to give blood that they turn me away, and
2. The last two times I gave, I got really sick after. So much, that I had to go to the doctor. I think it was because my iron was low.

But...this time, I felt more guilt than usual (plus, I thought it might not hurt to have my blood checked again for free--the hypochondriac that I am. lol) so I answered the phone even with the girls yelling back at me, "BUT IT'S THE RED CROSS, MOM!" So, I actually set up an appointment to give blood.

They told me they have missed me. Like we are old friends.

I told them why I haven't been coming around as much. I gave them the "it's me, not you" kind of answer.

The volunteer told me to drink a glass of OJ before I come and I should feel better. Who knew?

I told them I'd have to bring my kids. They said, "No problem." Guess they really are desperate. Who can say no to someone willing to watch your kids while they are drawing blood out of your arm and taking the chance that you may pass out and not recover. J/k. :)

So, I went. However, they did have to prick my finger and check my blood TWICE. First time, iron was too low (12.1--you have to be a 12.5 for the Red Cross to take your blood). Thought to myself, "Yup, well, at least I tried, and I prepared myself for the "You are still a hero for trying speech."

But no, they told me to hold this hot pack in my other hand and that they would have someone else come in and check it again by pricking that hand. OKAY... they really are desperate.

Low and behold, when they pricked the other finger it was 13.5. So, I got to help at least one person that day, even if guilt was the underlying factor for doing so. Service is service, right?

• Andrea Tobias Odom is hoping we will get another great neighbor to move in next door to us. Anyone looking for a great house in a great neighborhood? It is brick (over 2,000sq ft.)---, has a built in pool, BIG fenced backyard and a detached mother in law suite that is an approximately an additional 1,200 sq feet. Let me know. The thought of unknown neighbors scares me a little. :)
• Andrea Tobias Odom is HAPPY, even when cleaning a messy house b/c at least I have a messy house to clean. :)
• I'm still HAPPY. Yesterday, in my talk at church I used a quote by Marvin J. Ashton. He said, "Being of good cheer builds contagious enthusiasm." So what are you HAPPY about?

All the "HAPPY"ness from above came about from the above mentioned talk that I was given on D&C 68:6. Preparing for that talk really has given me a new prospective to try to be better about choosing to "be of good cheer".

That talk really gave me a new prospective on AGENCY and using it wisely, as well as strengthening my testimony of the fact that when we truly recognize the hand of Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father in our life, we can overcome all things.

They are there for us. They want us to succeed.

With them we can not fail. We can't.

Isn't that all the reason in the world to be HAPPY? I think so!

• Andrea Tobias Odom says: Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. You really do make a great difference. I'm so happy my girls have a daddy that loves them, plays with them, counsels them and takes care of them. What a blessing!
• Andrea Tobias Odom forgot to make cookies for the dads at church tomorrow. Gotta go bake some cookies. Ahhh.. (It was almost midnight. I did not finish the cookies until about 1am--YIKES!)
• Andrea Tobias Odom : To my sweet husband and all the other wonderful fathers out there who strive everyday to take care of and love their families through good times and hard: Happy Father's Day Weekend. :)

I wrote this status line after watching "A Father Indeed" on Mormon Messages. Oh, man that brought tears to my eyes. If you have not seen it, click on the link and watch it. Really good, but trust me, you'll need tissues.

• Andrea Tobias Odom had some fun in the sun today at the beach with friends. Could life be any better?

We went to Gulf Shores. It was such a fabulous way to spend a REALLY HOT day (It has been over 100 degrees nearly everyday. Today, we did get some relief). The breeze coming off of the gulf was awesome. So much fun. A lot of great memories, but in true fashion of me...NO PICTURES! My friends got some though. lol

• Andrea Tobias Odom hates shopping for a swimsuit! I wish I could design and sew my own. Bathing suits are horrible!

Okay, in all fairness, this could be a complete blog post in itself, and maybe it will be. This comment I posted after sums it all up. "I really hate the swimsuits. I mean, my body could use a little help too, I'm sure, but there is really very little to chose from that is cute and modest and not going to break the bank at the same time."

• Andrea Tobias Odom loves CHILDREN'S LITERATURE!

What can I say about this except that it is true. Oh, how I love it. From picture books like Good Night Moon and The Giving Tree to YA literature like Belle Prater's Boy, Fever 1793, Tuck Everlasting, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, and Out of the Dust (all books my sweet and smart girl Ariel has urged me to read, and I'm so glad I did. AWESOME).

• Andrea Tobias Odom is loving that the our garden is starting to produce some fresh vegetables. YAY. Growing a garden has helped me to better recognize the "everyday" miracles that surround us.

All I can say about this is YUM, and the lessons learned from gardening are so wonderful. I have learned that tomatoes don't need nearly as much water as cucumbers, that patience and hard work lead to great things.

• Andrea Tobias Odom is is up early to get Ariel ready for Pirate Camp!

No, not what you are thinking. No swashbucklers involved in this camp. It is a camp that is offered at the Magnet Middle School Ariel got accepted into (don't remind me, my baby is entering Middle school. Sniff. Sniff). It is two days and they get to switch classes, learn a little of what is expected of them, go to P.E. , learn about policies and procedures, practice opening lockers, and receiving HOMEWORK to be completed by the first day of school! Yes, homework which will be graded.

Phillips is a magnet school in which your name is selected from a "lottery" for acceptance. Not grades, not if your gifted, just the luck of the draw. We applied, and were happy for Ariel's name to be selected. Although, Mike calls the school a Nazi camp because their policies are VERY strict, they have A LOT of homework and even skip 6th grade math an go straight to 7th grade math. It will probably be a challenge for Ariel, but I know she can do it. She is very smart. I worry though, that she will not conform to the rules. She is not a conformist and likes to do things her way, but we will see. When she found out that if you don't do your math homework EXACTLY the way you are told, you will get a zero; she got mad and said, "That's not right. We live in a democratic society." lol.

Well, I could keep going on, and on with these FB status quotes, but I'll save you. Heck, I probably lost you at HELLO! lol

But, if you are still here, I guess things have been going on in my "non-productive" life. My biggest thing is that my girls are really getting older, and it makes me sad but happy too (crazy, I know). Ariel had her 50's day at school (which I can post a few pictures of) and Honors Day. We are very blessed that the Lord has given her a GREAT mind. She received Honors in all of her subject areas except math (even though she made A's--they take the top 4 letter grade in each class). So we are happy for her. She LOVED E.R. Dickson. It was such a blessing for her. She actually cried on the last day of school because her teacher, Mr. Baker, pulled her aside and told her what a great student she was and that he would miss her. She has had some great teachers! The slide show that was put together for the kids since kindergarten brings me to tears still! I can't believe how much my "little girl" has grown. Plus, Ariel got accepted into the Mobile Strings Academy this year. She plays violin. Still debating if she want to go back next year, since Phillips is more rigorous and she is going to play the flute in the band. If not, we are going to make her practice to try to keep it up as much as she can.

Cecily has jumped leaps and bounds in reading this year thanks to her teacher, Mrs. Burden. We love her and are going to miss her so much! Plus, we received exciting news that Cecily got accepted into the gifted program (PACE). Even more impressive is the fact that she scored REALLY high on her test. The PACE teacher said, maybe as high as Ariel (but, we'd have to go back and check the scores on that one). Cecily is also really doing great at her piano lessons. She has almost tackled, "How Firm a Foundation" thanks to her great teacher, Philip Jones.

I do really miss blogging. When I was blogging, I think my mind was a little sharper and my writing definitely got better. Plus, the fabulous friends I have made in the blogging world can't be beat.

So here I am. Trying to get back in the blogging groove (again), and give myself a little FB intervention (trust me, it can be a little addictive, especially when you get in touch with friends you have not seen in 15+ years.

And I said, I had nothing to blog about....Yeah, right! I hope this fits on one page. lol

The next one will be shorter. Promise. :)