I’m Nicole O’Dell.
A child of God, a wife, a mom,
a friend, a writer, a speaker,
and a lover of teenagers.
I have a burden for families,
and want to do whatever
God has for me.
You can find my books to
purchase under the store
tab at the top, or:
You can also find me on Goodreads
where I’m usually giving
something away.
It’s all about choices!
check out some recent posts
Top 10 Must Have Items for Your Spring Wardrobe
Top 10 Must Have Items for Your Spring Wardrobe
Spring Wardrobe, Donna Roland
Earlier this year I attended an event where Belk debuted their Spring 2013 Women’s Most-Wanted Fashion Picks and I have to agree with their selections. As I have been shopping in all the stores for spring wardrobes for myself and others I am seeing these 10 Most-Wanted items everywhere and they have fast become some of my favorite things! Take a look at these and see how easily you can work them into your everyday wardrobe for the spring season. All photos are fashions from Belk.
First is the “Bold Print Dress”. You are probably seeing prints everywhere and on everything right now. What says spring like flowers!? This is a fun dress for church, graduations, baby showers or weddings. Prints are a great way to camouflage some of your more “fluffy” areas too. Notice this dress has a peplum also. The peplum dresses were a big hit this past fall and winter and are still a hit this spring.
Next is the “Silky Top”. This is a fun way to dress up a pair of jeans or cropped pants with a silky, flowy top. The key is to make sure you get it in your proper size so that it just skims the tummy and doesn’t fit too tight or too loose or it can look sloppy. Remember ¾ “length sleeves is the most flattering for everyone!… continue reading
On True Beauty: Cleanse
On True Beauty: Cleanse
Cleanse – v. to rid of impurities by washing, meaning to purify
The first time I heard about doing a “cleanse” I was in high school reading my first copy of French Elle (feeling tres chic and sophisticated, I might add). It involved eating only raw foods, like carrot sticks and almonds, for a couple of days and then consuming just juice for a couple of days. The idea behind a cleanse is to wash your body of all the grease and fat and food coloring and high fructose corn syrup that it takes in on any given day, week, month, year. It sounded alluring. It sounded French. It sounded like something I wanted to do, except I loved chocolate chip cookies and French fries entirely too much to actually give it a try. But for all these years, the idea of a cleanse has loitered in the back of my brain.
French Elle cover, the one where all the stars posed without makeup, showing their “Beaute Verite”, True Beauty.
And then a few weeks ago, my husband had dinner with a guy who started an organic, cold-pressed, raw, (translation: Californian), juice company. The man generously shipped us a box of his juice to sample.… continue reading
Travel light: Working together for good…without fear
Travel light: Working together for good…without fear
Without Fear by @LauraKurk
The post you’re reading right now was written in April. A week and a half after the Boston Marathon bombings and a week after the tragic explosion in West, Texas (one hour north of me). At the moment, our nation is still reeling. Maybe by the time this post goes live, we will have had some good news, some optimism returned. Maybe. I pray that’s so.
Right now, this is the past me talking to the future you, and, right now, I’m sad.
I’ve had a hard time coming up with any news about Hollywood that feels important enough to matter to you. It’s difficult. Because you 
don’t want to hear about celebrities living large and acting silly. Just ninety miles north of me, families in West are laying their loved ones to rest and they’re having to worry about members of the Westboro Baptist Church who’ve threatened to show up.
I want to celebrate the heroes from Boston. Like Carlos Arredondo, the man in the cowboy hat who saved Jeff Bauman’s life. Did you hear the story behind Carlos? He was only at the race that day to honor his sons–both fallen soldiers who had fought for our country.… continue reading
Do you have a Plan B?
Do you have a Plan B?
Plan B? By Sherri Wilson Johnson
The FDA has approved the Plan B emergency contraception pill for fifteen year olds without a prescription and without the permission of their parents. If a pregnancy is suspected, a quick trip to the local pharmacy can “take care of all worries” and those in authority will be none the wiser. President Obama said, “I’m very comfortable with the decision.”
As a teen, you may have heard about this pill and other forms of contraception in school. Here’s the thing: at fifteen, you can’t drive a car without a parent or other responsible adult in it with you. You’re not allowed in theaters to see R rated movies, which often contain the very behavior that causes the need for the Plan B pill.
So doesn’t it seem odd that the FDA and the government would consider a fifteen year old too immature to be allowed into certain movies and not mature enough to drive a vehicle alone, yet you would be allowed to take a pill to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in your uterus without consulting your parents first? I suppose part of the reasoning behind this is that every woman should have the right to choose what to do with her own body.… continue reading
BreAnna Morris: Taking Her Dream On a World Race
BreAnna Morris: Taking Her Dream On a World Race
By Gina Conroy
BreAnna Morris is a soon-to-be Oklahoma State University graduate (with a degree in Strategic Communications and a minor in Child Development). I first met BreAnna swing dancing and fell in love with her smile, zest for life and people, and her awesome swing moves (Let me tell you, the girl can lead!) Her hobbies include partner dancing of any and all kinds, singing, reading, exploring, riding bikes, appreciating the arts, writing letters, traveling the world, and loving people. She says she is blessed to have the most incredible family anyone could ask for.
BreAnna, tell me a little about yourself and your dreams.
I’m leaving in September of 2013 to go on the World Race, which is a program under a nonprofit called Adventures in Missions that goes to 11 countries in 11 months. I am excited for this opportunity to grow in my relationship with the Lord, to be challenged physically, spiritually, creatively, mentally, and emotionally, to travel and experience the third world, and to work hard and make a difference in the lives of those who need it most.
Have you always had this dream, if not, when did you realize it?
I’ve always had missions in the back of my mind but had never seriously considered it or sought the Lord in earnest regarding His will for this area of my life.
… continue readingChoose NOW Radio: Jill Hart, Neta Jackson, Bethany Jett, Ginger Garrett
Choose NOW Radio: Jill Hart, Neta Jackson, Bethany Jett, Ginger Garrett
Choose NOW Radio airs Fridays LIVE from 10-11 EST at www.toginet.com!
Or you can come back here for the podcast, or subscribe on iTunes for FREE to Parent Talk or Teen Talk.
This week on Parent Talk, Jill Hart and Neta Jackson
Getting us started on Parent Talk this week is Jill Hart of CWAHM.com!
Is it really possible to work from home? Does God care about things like business and success? I’ve worked from home for more than 10 years now and I look forward to sharing my experiences, successes, failures (yes – there are many of these!) and lessons learned.
We’ll look at some practical topics like:
What are some of the options available to work from home?
How can we succeed at home?
And some Biblical topics like:
What does God say about success?
Does God have anything to say about women working from home?
Jill Hart’s entrepreneurial career began in her teens when she spent a summer working with her father who ran his own business. When he put her in charge of a Coke machine and allowed her to keep the profits, she saw the benefits of being her own boss.… continue reading
On Friendship: Refrigerator Cookies & BFFs
On Friendship: Refrigerator Cookies & BFFs
By Bethany Jett
I didn’t have a lot of friends growing up.
Unfortunately, middle- and high school is the time where friendships equate social status, likeability, and self-worth. The more friends you have, the better you are. Unfortunately, that’s a lie we too often believe.
One or two true friends are better than one hundred people who think you’re nice.
BFFs
I went to a private Christian school for sixth and seventh grade where I met Kristen. We laughed, cried, occasionally “broke up,” but our bond was tight. She was my best friend, and best friends love you no matter how embarrassing your family can be.
Like the first time she spent the night at my house.
My dad would buy the generic Wal-Mart brand black-and-white vanilla-filled cookies and store them in the refrigerator. They were a staple at our house, and I didn’t think anything about it, until seeing Kristen’s surprise that we kept our cookies in the fridge.
The small things are embarrassing when you’re a teenager. I totally get it.
But she thought it was cool, and would get so excited to eat them. Every time she came over after that, she’d look at me with big eyes and say, “refrigerator cookies?” So I always made sure my dad bought them before she came over.… continue reading
Three Ways to Be Untouchable
Three Ways to Be Untouchable
by Bethany Jett
What if instead of dating during our middle and high school years, you stayed single?
On purpose.
Because you chose to.
What would people think? Would “not dating” cause you to be a social leper? What would you really be missing out on?
Since most people want what they can’t have, wouldn’t staying single make you more desirable? With each passing year, the mystery would grow, while you protected your heart from foolish teenage boy nonsense.
‘Cause aren’t boys weird?
Most of the time, absolutely yes. Did I hear an “amen” from across the room? So why are girls so boy crazy when we agree that boys are peculiar creatures who often smell, make weird noises, and become strangely quiet or more obnoxious when we’re around?
I think it’s cause when we dream of dating the hero in the movies and transfer that fantasy to our real-life crush. Except our flesh-and-blood man-child will never live up to our hopes and wishes, which will leave them always lacking.
How do we avoid entering a serious relationship while appearing cool, confident, and awesome? How do we remain untouchable?
Be Untouchable: Go on group dates.
The more the merrier, right?… continue reading
Some Stuff You Should Know About
Tuesdays, I post in my Girl Talk column.
You’ll want to check out the Girl Talk Page to see what it’s all about. My two daughters, Natalie and Emily, help me out as we answer reader’s questions about everything from dating, friendships, family, faith, and everything else that might come up. If you have something you’d like to ask us, send your question HERE.
On Wednesdays I talk about the upcoming Teen Talk Radio show. Friday is always a Teen Culture post of some kind. Over the weekend, I might post about my books or something of interest in the book industry.
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And, for FREE download, 101 Ways to be a Courageous Teen is based on my belief that teenagers inherently want to live a courageous life with all the buzz directed toward men and women about the movie “Courageous”, I wanted to encourage teenagers to also take a stand for what’s right. I want teens to know that the choices they make not only affect them now but can affect how “courageous” they are later as parents and adults.
Teenagers are the next generation of “Courageous” men and women.
Teen Talk Radio b
- Bethany Jett on Friendship; Ginger Garrett, JezebelBethany Jett write the On Friendship and the On Dating columns for Choose NOW Ministries. So who better to talk abou this issue? She has some great insight into BFF and Boyfriends. Boyfriends will come and go, but a bff will do life with you! Join us to hear Bethany’s story and her advice to you as you navigate these important relationships. Next up, Ginger […]
- Tricia Goyer, Teen Pregnancy; Erynn Mangum, Paige TornTricia Goyer has written more than thirty-five books, including both novels that delight and entertain readers and non- fiction titles that offer encouragement and hope. Tricia also writes the On Teen Pregnancy column for Choose NOW Ministries! This week on Teen Talk, Tricia and I will be chatting about the good choices teen moms and teen moms-to-be can and […]
- Gina Conroy on Dreaming Big and Nicole O'Dell on Coping with TragedyWhat are your wildest dreams? Does a dream equate to a calling from God? How can you tell the difference, and how can you make it happen? What is a dream detour and how can we cope with them? Gina Conroy writes the On Dreaming Big column for Choose nOW Ministries. In this podcast, we chat about how to deal with insecurities that can get in the way of chasing […]
- Nicole O'Dell with Laura L. Smith, on True BeautyLaura L. Smith, author of the On True Beauty column here at Choose NOW Ministries is my guest. We'll be talking about true beauty, positive self-talk, and what it means to have a beauty playlist. Laura's got some great insights into learning how to see yourself as your heavenly Father sees you...and why that's enough. She'll share info wi […]
- Bethany Jett on Friendship; Ginger Garrett, Jezebel
