come over

OHMYGOODNESS!!!! this is a post i've wanted to write for awhile - it's been in my head for a couple weeks.

OHMYGOODNESS!!!! have you seen kenny chesney's video for his song "come over"?

whew! you need to take a cold shower after watching it!!!!

but his bald head sort of spoils the mood for me!!!!!!

i've never thought he was that good looking, but with his hat on he doesn't look that bad. HOWEVER.......those scenes with no hat! Y.U.C.K.

i like my men with hair!

watch God give me a bald-headed man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! no, God, please let him have hair......& a sam elliott mustache!!!

(and a weed eater.)

the most evil thing on the planet

is this:

it's the most evil thing that man could invent!!!!!

why can't a man make a weed eater that is "woman friendly"?????????

i don't mind mowing the grass. heck! i even do it with a SELF-powered PUSH mower!!!! and i LOVE it!!! i don't mind edging.

but i dislike hate detest loathe abhor do not love weed eating. it's not the eatING, it's the eatERS.

i have never found one that a woman can use. men seem to have no problem with them. well, then, MEN should be the ones weed eating!

for the last few years when kevin & sarah lived next door, kevin would mow & weed eat & i would babysit for them. it was a good great arrangement. i didn't have to worry about fighting with the stupid weed eater & they got "date nights" every week.

(i wish i could have a date night!)

back to the subject at hand:

this spring i bought a new weed eater since kevin quit being my yard service moved. it came "loaded" with a spool of "line". worked just fine 2 or 3 times. then out of the blue it started to wrap the line around the motor thing underneath the spool of line. tightly.

it would wrap a TON of line around the thing. until the line was gone. to get it off, you'd have to cut it which meant it was no good.

when i bought the evil thing i bought 2 refills - preloaded refills. i followed the directions, put the contraption on exactly like they had the 1st one. what happens? the line wraps around the motor thing! i cut it off & start over. it wraps. i cut. it cuts off long pieces, too short to reattach. it wraps. i cut. it wraps the hole thing til there's no more line. it's so tight & tangled that it's almost impossible to get it off, but i persevere & get it all off.

makes me mad!!!! looks kinda cool without a flash, but still makes me mad!

i put the 2nd refill on. it wraps. it cuts off long pieces & short pieces & wraps. as many times as i get it untangled, it tangles. til there's no more line on the 2nd refill.

by this time it's 8:30 pm. i have been fighting with this stupid evil thing since 7:00 pm. all i wanted to do was mow my grass & weed eat around the fence & the flower beds. all i was able to do was this:

one side & one corner of the flower bed.

AND THEN THE THING EVIL THING BIT ME!!! right through my jeans!!!!

it hurts.

real bad.

i have never written to a manufacturer & told them how dissatisfied disgusted i was with their product, but I AM GOING TO NOW!!! gonna give them a piece of my mind!

so i just mowed. i got about 2/3 of the football field yard mowed before it was too dark to see & i wasn't totally eaten by mosquitos. and while i was mowing & sweating up a storm, i was thinking about this:

when every baby girl is born, she should be given the name of a baby boy & that boy should be given her name. when the baby girl & the baby boy are 22 years old, they should meet, begin to court & make plans to be married. the boy should take care of the girl. he should build her a nice house for her to take care of while he goes to work so that when he comes home he will have a nice calming place to rest & relax. the girl should spend her days making the home a lovely place, washing the boy's laundry, ironing his shirts, cooking his meals, & raising beautiful babies for the boy. she will make him blackberry cobblers & rub his back. he will love her & protect her & hold her & kiss her & scare away monsters. AND WEED EAT.

or how about this scenario:

whenever a woman's husband decides he doesn't love her anymore & leaves her in the middle of the night with no warning & divorces her, she should wait about 5 years during which time she will heal. she will realize all the mistakes she made, ask God for forgiveness, promise to do things differently "the next time", & come to the point she is ready for another relationship. she will meet a handsome man, they will fall in love & get married. she'll do for the man all the things that girl above will do and the man will WEED EAT FOR HER for the rest of her life.

well, it's too late for me for the 1st scenario and i am SO READY for the 2nd one!!!! i've got the wedding vows all written -- he'll say: "i promise to love, honor, cherish & weed eat for you in sickness & in health, for richer, for poorer......for the rest of your life, so help me God."

so now i just need to find a man with a weed eater! i've shortened my list of criteria. he must love God & have a weed eater!

didya miss me?

i know some of you did!!! cuz ya told me!!! but like i told you, i might post every day, i might not!! so today's your lucky day!!!

sometimes i've got posts running through my head. lots of them. like tonight i was driving home from work & i "wrote" the best one IN MY HEAD. and now that i'm sitting here in front of the computer, do ya think i can think of that GREAT beginning, or those scripture references to back it up? or the cute ending???

nope!

but there's hope.

hope. i like that word. it's on my pinkie ring.

i have it written on my wall.

that says: "you must believe He is faithful. don't let the days slip by in fearful doubt, no matter how long this hope is deferred."........

(sorry, when i cropped these pictures, i couldn't for anything make them bigger!!)

i found some cute letters in the dollar bin at michael's -- i got h.o.p.e.

i've got hope.

i'm workin' on patience.

i've gotta get over jealousy.

more on that in a future post!

take care &

hey everyone!

just want you to know i'm fine & everything's ok......i'm just busy doin' a lot of stuff & a lot of nothin'!!!! i'll write soon. i promise! it's hard work catching ladybugs!!!!

playing with pictures

my friend laurie (the awesome blog maker!) came over this evening & taught me how to edit photos & do a watermark. we laughed our silly heads off til we cried & had a nice relaxing evening. here are a couple photos i played with---- it's gonna be a busy week - hope i can get back here soon.........

catching ladybugs

i've got several posts started that i need to finish, but it's been a crazy, hectic week & i haven't had a chance to sit down at this blog & do all that needs to be done for those posts. so here's a little post, just to hold y'all til i can git a chance to finish those others! last night i watched "under the tuscan sun" for the bazillionth time. last night i got something out of it that i've never gotten before. the lead character frances (diane lane--i love her almost as much as sam elliott......ALMOST!) gets some advice from a friend----the friend says: (paraphrased) "it's impossible to try to catch ladybugs, so just lay down in the grass & don't worry about it. when you get up, you'll be covered in ladybugs." that hit me like a ton of bricks! i've been worrying about something & i just need to "lay down & not worry about it" -- i'll catch those ladybugs yet!!!!! it's just gonna take a little patience!!!! so if you need me, i'll be layin' in the grass, waitin' for the ladybugs!!!

a big decision

i'm not even going to apologize for the length of this post or the lack of pretty pictures! but i do pray that you'll read the entire post - clear to the end!!! you'll be blessed. even if you don't realize it at the moment!!!

i've been praying that God will reveal some things to me & some things have happened that made me think a lot & pray more. yesterday at lunch bruce & joyce & i had a good discussion & idols was one of the subjects that came up. God revealed to me that i've got some idols in my life that i need to get rid of.

i've made a very big decision in my life.


remember about 1 1/2 years ago when i "cut" the cable? i've gone a year & a half without tv & i don't miss it a bit! in fact, the few times i've been at grandma's or elsewhere & have been around a tv, it sort of bugs me! gets on my nerves! i've joked that "everything in my little world is happy, there's no news, no crime, no killings, etc." some people have said that i'm living in a fantasy world. well, if that's how you feel, so be it, but i'm a lot happier, more relaxed, & i get a lot more accomplished. tv had become an idol & i'm not worshipping that idol anymore.


1 samuel 12:21 says: "do not turn away after useless idols, they can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless." (niv) the king james says, "vain things", the nasb says "futile things".

psalm 78:56 says: "...they aroused His jealousy with their idols" (niv, kj, nasb) (made God angry)

i john 5:21 says: "....guard yourselves from idols." (nasb) the niv & kj says "keep yourselves from idols."

so what's an idol? it doesn't necessarily have to be a little golden statue like the hebrews made when they got impatient waiting for moses to come down from the mountain when he was talking to God. an idol is anything that takes the place of God & our time with Him.

i had been watching too much useless tv = 2+ hours of news, the same old news repeated over & over & it was stuff i had no control over & could do nothing about, so what good was it doing for me to watch it? do i really need to know about the traffic pile up on the southeast side of town when i don't EVER drive over there? do i need to know about the drug busts & shootings & all the other crime? no! and then i'd watch all sorts of useless tv programs or reruns over & over, hour after hour. sure, i've learned lots of diy stuff on diytv or hgtv, but do i need to watch hours of people trying to sell their house? or weird looking people making cupcakes? or rough old ugly men catching crabs near alaska? one sunday afternoon i watched "deadliest catch" for 6 hours STRAIGHT!!!!!! they threw the basket out, pulled it in, for 6 hours!!! what did i learn from that?! how did that change my life for eternity?

so i got rid of that idol. and i read books instead. oh, yeah, i had lots more time to read my bible & i did. but somehow it's a lot easier to read a 300 page novel in one evening than it is to read a few chapters of the bible. why is that? satan has such pull on our lives. we have so many fun things to do instead of just sit with God, talking to Him & reading His word. stamping & scrapbooking had become an idol for me.....to the point that i just had to stop for awhile. i have tons of scrapbooking to get caught up on & i will someday. i'm not worried about it like i used to be. i thought, "i HAVE to get these pictures scrapbooked so they'll be preserved forever for generations to come." but now i think "not gonna have these scrapbooks or pictures in heaven, so what's the urgency?" now i stamp when i want to & if i don't stamp a card in time for some occassion or someone's birthday, i tell them "happy birthday, i didn't get a chance to make you a card" & i don't buy store-bought cards anymore.

busyness can also be an idol. if you're so busy doing stuff, you're not sitting with the Lord. oh sure, i do lots of talking to God when i'm busy doing a project, but i'm the one doing all the talking. i'm not listening to Him, not reading His word to see what He has to say to me.

people can be idols. it's not right if i'm concentrating on someone more than i'm concentrating on God. if i think about someone more than i think about God, then i'm making that person an idol.

and lately the internet & facebook have become idols to me. it's so easy to spend HOURS on the internet.....even when you say you're just gonna check emails & get off, then you look at the clock & 3+ hours have gone by in what seemed like minutes. and during that time i could have been with the Lord.

i can't get rid of the internet - at least not yet!! these days so much happens on line - paying bills, email, etc. but there are parts of the internet that i need to get rid of. facebook is one of them!

i've been praying a lot lately that God will show me things that are hinderances to my relationship with Him, & things that i need to work on & fix in my life. remember awhile back when i wrote about how my prayer life was suffering & i didn't even want to talk to God? satan was using so many things to drive a wedge between me & God. well, that ain't gonna happen!!!! my relationship with God is too important!!!! i want that relationship to be #1. i don't want to get to heaven & have God say to me, "look at all these opportunities you had to spend time with me & you chose _________." i already feel like i've wasted so much time!

one thing God has revealed to me is i have a problem with my tongue. and my fingers. and my brain. and my heart. in this age of communicating electronically it's so easy to "say" something that you mean one way but it's interpreted a totally different way. i've "said" some things that i thought were funny but people "took" them a different way & it's caused friction or grief. last week i sent a friend an email & told this person several things he needed to do -- all in light fun - at least i thought so. the email i received back slapped me in the face & stung! he didn't say anything mean, but what he said sure hit me & made me re-read my email & i realized i sounded very bossy. i don't want to be a bossy person. i don't want to hurt friends. i sent an apology email but there has been no response. no "it's ok, don't worry about it." i'm praying that this relationship hasn't been damaged because of my tongue & fingers. another example is a fb post just yesterday where i told someone how much i appreciated them & instead of leaving it at that, i said something that could have been read by many people as not very nice even though i meant it to be funny. meant it without even thinking about it. or when i say something "funny" or jokingly to suzanne & she gets offended. & hurt. sometimes my tongue flaps without my brain being engaged. sometimes my fingers type things without my brain working, without thinking. and in all these instances my tongue, fingers, brain are not in line with how my heart is or should be. you'd think after all these years of living that i'd be a smarter, wiser person!

proverbs 16:23 says, "a wise man's heart guides his mouth." (niv) in luke 6:45 Jesus says, "the good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart." (nasb) i don't want to have an evil heart! i don't want to say things that hurt others. i want wisdom.

AND GUESS WHAT MY PROVERBS31WOMAN DEVOTIONAL WAS ABOUT THIS MORNING?!?!?!?!?!!! i swear those ladies peek in my windows!!!! but it's really God peeking in my heart. guiding me closer & closer to Him!!

it was titled, "did i really say that?"
so convicting!!!! go read it!

here are a couple more verses that i read today that have convicted me.....

proverbs 12:18 & 23: "reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing" "....the heart of fools blurts out folly." (niv) notice how the heart blurts out folly? i don't want a foolish heart.

so i've prayed about this all day long. luckily what i was doing at work gave me the opportunity to pray! and i came to the decision that i need to deactivate my fb account. maybe for awhile. maybe forever. who knows? only God. it's become an idol. i HAVE to turn it on & see what everyone's been doing. i have to post when i shouldn't. i even admit that i've been looking for gratification when i post something. & when i post something that i think is monumental & no one answers but when someone else writes some silly thing that i don't think is "newsworthy" & they get tons of replies, i get my feelings hurt!!! i want to be as popular as they are! it's satan using that little "pride card" to get my walk with the Lord all out of whack, make me feel unworthy, unloved, unaccepted.

whew!!! i'm really being transparent tonight!!!!!! well, it's just one step towards my becoming more of the way God wants me to be. i guess if i'm gonna pray & ask God to reveal areas that i need work on & to fix, when He reveals them, i have to acknowledge them & then do something about them or my prayers are futile.

i've also been praying that God would give me such a strong desire, a hunger for His Word. i want to search the bible & take it all in & learn it like never before. i've wasted so much time & don't feel like i've got much time left. i don't think we're gonna have a chance in heaven to "get caught up." we've gotta read it NOW 'cuz we'll be so busy worshipping Him that we won't have a chance to read it then!!!!

it's late & i got started writing this post late, but i wanted to do it tonight so y'all would have the opportunity to read it before i "disappear off the face of the facebook world" so you're not wondering what's happened to me. (even that sounds a little prideful---like i want you to wonder & worry where i am. i truly don't mean it that way!!!)

so if you need - or want - to talk to me........

1. come over & see me..............
2. email me ........ dmerdely28@clear.net
3. call me - i only have a cell phone now, so email me & i'll send you my #
4. send me an old fashioned letter or card!!!
5. follow me on my blog. you can "follow" (see the right hand side for the "follow link") & you'll get notifications of when i post on my blog. or bookmark my address www.texascountrygirl28.blogspot.com & just check in every day or so to see if i've got a new post.

i'll try to post everyday or every couple days or every week. can't promise how often it'll be - it may vary, just depends on what the Lord puts on my heart to write about!!! but you can be sure i'll be spending a LOT more time with the Lord & reading His word & hopefully growing more like He wants, not what i want.

thanks for being my friends----you still are & always will be!!!

what i did this weekend

i've rec'd a couple emails asking me why i haven't posted anything this weekend & another asking if i'm ok because i haven't posted anything in a couple days!!! jeepers people!!! don't you think i have a life? well, you're right, i don't!!!!! ha ha ha!!! so here's what i did this weekend: thursday: (yeah, i know it's not officially the weekend yet, but i finished painting the window shelf my sister in law gave me & hung it in the "flower bed room") here's how it started: and the finished product: now i've just gotta get those "nightstands" planted!!!! friday night: had the 1st of a series of 6 weeks bible studies on the book of colossians. we had a house full & even had room for one more!!! there was one empty chair, so if you were that one person that was supposed to be there & wasn't, well, you get another chance this coming friday!!! our pastor is a very gifted teacher & we're so blessed that the Lord brought him to us. i love sharing the home that God gave me 22 years ago with the people i love. it was a little lonely after everyone left. saturday: got up early (on the ONE day i could have slept in!), mowed the grass in both the front & back yards, pulled weeds in all the flowerbeds, trimmed the oleander bushes, chopped off the oak tree that INSISTS on growing outside my kitchen window no matter how many times i've dug it up. i need to dig it up once again. it was a beautiful little big tree but it was growing too close to the house. why won't any of the trees grow in the back part of the yard where i want them too?? if anyone wants to come over & dig out this "stump", yer welcome to!!!!!! THEN i moved this: to the backyard & cleaned up the driveway. then i did THE MOST exciting thing a single girl can do on a saturday night......... i took a shower & shaved my legs! (you people ARE right, i DON'T have a life!!!!) sunday: got up early again, went to church - SS & church were both terrific! and after church i took pictures of the congregation for the new directory. i jokingly said whoever was last to get their picture taken had to take me out to lunch!!! well, my sweet friends joyce & bruce were the winners!!!! (i think they did that on purpose!) we'll see who it is next sunday!!!! i spent the rest of the afternoon in the bahamas, came home & watered the grass & folded laundry & here i am!!! wish i had somethin' more exciting for ya, but, well, that's my life!!!! sometimes it's pretty boring!!! but i'll be sure to tell ya if anything exciting happens!!!!!

well, this day is done!

among all the other things i accomplished today, i succeeded in making BOTH my children mad at me!!!

guess this mamma can go to bed now!!!

i need accountability

bible study & prayer meeting were FANTASTIC tonight!!!!!! it's neat how no matter how many times you've studied the bible, God always has a message in there for you if you're willing to listen! i've been in a funky mood lately & haven't prayed much or even WANTED to pray -- even told God last night that i didn't want to pray, well, i wanted to talk to Him, but it was more like, "You talk to me, but i don't want to talk to YOU because i'm mad at You & even more mad at myself" & i felt God wasn't working in my life.....well, the proverbs31woman devotional this morning said "He's working in your life even when you can't see Him working" & our pastor said something that really hit me between the eyes & straight to my heart: "don't forget to pray" - no matter what! there were times when Abraham didn't pray, but God was still working out His plan. And when Abraham remembered to pray, God blessed him. i've seen that so many times in my life. i just need to remember to pray & remember that even when it doesn't seem like God's doing anything, He is. He's got it all planned out & i just need to be patient & wait for His timing. it doesn't mean He's answering with a "NO". i need to wait & accept the fact that I'M NOT GOD & i'm not the one with the plan. i need to continue to pray & let God know my desires (even though He already knows them) & let God know that i love Him & am thankful for all He does for me - it's the 2-way conversation He's looking for, He wants me to actively be a part of His plan, not just sit back & pout because i'm not getting my way. He doesn't want me to give up or pull away, He wants me to draw closer to Him. so tonight at prayer meeting i asked for prayer for my prayer life & attitude - & people prayed. AND i prayed!!! lots! as in many times. our pastor ends the prayer time by being the last one to pray. he usually waits some time after the last person has prayed to see if anyone else is going to pray. after a "lengthy" silence, he prays. well, tonight he jumped right in & closed!!! i think he did it so i wouldn't rattle on some more!!!!! not really, but it made me giggle!!! i'm sure God was smiling too!! (even at night these blackeyed susans look happy!!!) so, friends.....i need accountability! hold me accountable to praying. ask me periodically if i've done it. & if i say i haven't, kick me in the butt pray with me right then!!!! starting this friday night, at MY HOUSE, at 7pm dan's leading a 6 week bible study on the book of colossians! everyone's welcome!!!!! even if you're not a member of CBC......if you're my friend, you can come. if you're not my friend, you can come. if you want to be my friend, you can come. if you don't want to be my friend, what the heck's the matter with you?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

here's what i planted in the "flower bed":

1 white oleander behind the headboard

3 white zinnias

purple fountain grass. ruella - purple showers mexican petunia. purple fountain grass

2 yellow knockout roses

2 purple agapanthus

4 purple somethings!!!! there was no tag on the pots!!! they look like bluebonnets, but they're not

a scattering of red, orange, & yellow zinnias

looks like a quilt!!!!

i'm going to plant irises in galvanized tubs on each side to look like "nightstands"

my sister in law gave me this old window shelf - i'm painting it & then i'm gonna sand & stain it & hang it on the fence. i'll take a picture of the finished "room" when i get it up.

i'm loving my "flower bed room"!!!!!