computer crash

my computer crashed last week, so i'm just lettin' ya know that i won't be posting until i get a new computer or get the old one repaired (if that can even be done!). and there are so many posts being written in my head right now!!!!! it's sad that we're so tied to computers & that when they aren't working everything comes to a standstill.

the really bad thing is just a few days before i thought "it's been awhile -- i need to do a back up" but of course i didn't do it right then!!!! all those pictures.......lost!!! not that any of them were really important, mostly just taken for the blog. i miss the old days when we got pictures developed & scrapbooked them!!! now with digital, they either stay in the camera or on the computer & then they're gone in the blink of an eye!

i keep telling myself "it's just STUFF. none of it will matter for eternity."!!!! (i just wish eternity was already here!!!!)

sooooooooo, i'll be back, but i'm not sure when. i don't have email access right now either, so if you want to reach me, you'll have to call me!!!! on the phone. i don't text. maybe one of these days i'll be up to speed technologically, but i doubt it. they keep changing things & there are never any instructions. i'm an instructions kinda girl. i HATE just pushing buttons & waiting to see what happens. because i usually push the wrong buttons & get everything all messed up!!!

how do kids just KNOW what to do?????!!!!!!

back soon - i HOPE!!!

it's freezing!

there are 1/2 started, 1/2 done projects all over the house & a bunch still in my head that i want to start, but it's almost 9pm & it's freezing so i think i'm just going to go snuggle in bed. i hate this weather!!!! i wasn't made for this kind of weather!!!! summer, i miss you. please come back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

what a difference a week makes!!

last sunday i was sitting out in the "virgin islands" in my swimming suit getting what will probably be the last tan of 2013. the temp was in the high 80's.

when i posted this picture on facebook last week, i got quite a few comments about it!! my favorite was: "are you naked?" ha ha ha!!!! sorta looks that way!!!!!

this weekend has been cold & rainy. yesterday the rain was a mist that almost felt like sleet! today the temp is in the low 40's & i'm wearing socks, boots, jeans & 2 sweaters!!!!

after church i took geronimo to the dog park. (i wish i had taken my camera! -- next time!) i promised him the other night that we would go this weekend. suzanne has taken him quite a few times when she's been home & i went with her a couple weeks ago. my 1st time. i didn't even realize there was a dog park so close to home. i think suzanne took ME to the dog park so i wouldn't be scared to do it so i would maybe do it on my own. i really liked it & am looking forward to taking geronimo more often. he loves running loose & playing with the other dogs. (it's funny how the big dogs are intimidated by the little dogs!!!) he'll come back to me to "check in" then he's off again. when he comes to me i ask if he's ready to go & he takes off as if to say, "not now, mom!!"

when we got home i made a big pot of potato soup. my living room looks like "santa's workshop"

-- making christmas presents,

sorry, that's all you get to see for now!!!

& i finished a wedding present for my friend cindy's son. (i'm pretty sure he doesn't read my blog, so i'll post the picture now!!)

it's different from any of the name frames i've ever done. it's HUGE & has a burlap background. the "flowers" are the paper flowers that cindy & i & several others made for the wedding. they were on the reception tables. i scooped up a bunch -- felt really conspicuous doing it too!!!! -- & hot glued them directly on the glass of the frame, so it has a real 3-d effect!!!! it's pretty cool looking, if i must say so myself!!!! i hate when i make these neat personalized things that i want to keep but can't because they're personalized!!!!!!!! it would be a real conversation piece though......"why do you have the name 'stadler' on your wall?" "because i like it & didn't want to give it to the people i made it for!!!"

i just got done talking to my little sister -- we don't talk much. for as long as i can remember she hasn't been a very happy person & it was very difficult to talk to her. i've been thinking about her a lot the past couple days so i called her this evening. we only talked for about 5 minutes, and i didn't really say much because SHE was talking up a storm!!!!!! her husband died last spring and this might not sound very nice, but i think that's the best thing that ever happened to her!!! he wasn't very nice to her & i think that had a lot to do with how she responded to others. she couldn't help it because she was miserable. well, now she's like a new person!!!!!! she couldn't talk long because she was about to go to a meeting, but i wish we could have talked a lot longer! i can tell she's happy now & i got the best blessing of all -- she's been going to church!!!! my sister who said she'd never set foot in another church again because christians were hypocrites, is going to church!!!! thank you, Jesus, for answered prayers!!!

AND she has a male friend!!!!!! we didn't talk long about him, but he seems nice & 180 degrees different from her husband. i'm happy for her. happy that she's happy.

we hung up & i shed a bunch of happy tears.

i have this big urge to put up the christmas tree!!! (i'll do a post later about one of the reasons i'm so anxious to put it up!!) but, i'm going to wait & go back to the sewing machine, pop in a few movies & hopefully knock out a bunch of christmas presents.

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh geronimoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

the escapades of geronimo, part 733 (or it may be more, i've lost track!!)

THAT DOG!!!!!!!!

i don't know what i'm going to do with him!!!!

we used to have a sheltie that would lay in the house on the floor (on the couch or my bed --neither of which she was "allowed" to do, but at least she was laying down) or lay in the backyard. she didn't dig (except on one side of the house, halfway to china, no less.....) but that's beside the point...............we THOUGHT she was a hyper dog, acting like a puppy right up to her last year. she lived to be 15 & near the end she slowed down a bit.

GERONIMO is only 2 ----- i don't think either of us will make it to 15 if he doesn't SETTLE DOWN VERY SOON. kristi was a very calm dog compared to GERONIMO!

he has to CONSTANTLY be doing SOMETHING. and that something is usually BAD!
he HAS to be chained up or he will eat the house, destroy everything in site, escape....or more!!! he has dug so many holes in the yard that if they were all connected, i'd have a huge in-ground swimming pool!!! add a little concrete & a filter & i'd be all set!!!!!

tonight i had some friends over helping with items for our church's christmas dinner. BOOM! something hit the kitchen window! my friend joyce says, "was that the dog?" i said, "HOW? he's chained up & can't reach the window" i went out to the back yard -- geronimo was LOOSE! he had somehow UNHOOKED the chain from his collar & had had a GRAND OLE TIME tearing up everything in the backyard!!!!

i chained him back up, came back in & not too soon after we heard SOMETHING in the back yard..............and it wasn't a GOOD sound!!!

that MONSTER had somehow unhooked his chain from where it was wrapped around & hooked to the wooden swingset & was dragging his chain all over the yard, running like crazy, jumping on the pallet lounge chair, clanking that chain into everything!!!

i grabbed the chain, he took off running, pulling me behind him like a sled. he would run up to me & jump & attack like i was his chew toy -- he was so aggressively wild it was scarey. (the thought did enter my mind, "you're outta here -- to the pound you're going!!!!" my other thought was "you'd better be glad i don't own a gun or you'd be a dead dog!") i finally got him to calm down & i hooked the chain back up to the swingset, gave him a good talkin' to & came inside.

how on earth does this dog manage to do the things he does???? when i got home from work he was chained up, sitting on top of his house, then he'd stand up, put his front feet on the fence & look over into the neighbor's yard like a nosy neighbor!!!!!!! in a matter of 1 hour he learns to unhook his chain from his collar & then it doesn't even take him 30 minutes to unhook it from the swingset?????????? this dog is too smart for his own good!!!!!!

he's quiet now -- i can't tell if he's in his house or not. it's COLD out. the temp is supposed to get in the low 30's tonight. i put a blanket in his house. he's probably either dragged it out or eaten it. there's no where to put him INSIDE the house because he's like a pinball when he's inside. he would destroy everything, pee on everything, make a lot of noise barking & i'd get absolutely no sleep. i keep telling myself "he's a husky. he'll be fine out there" & the other part of me says, "oh, i just wish he could come inside & lay at the bottom of my bed the way kristi used to do."

it's cold out -- i had better not hear any noises outside my bedroom window tonight because i don't want to have to go outside to deal with him! he'll be sorry if i have to!!!!!!

canton goodies & my project!!!

i went to canton for 2 3 specific things:

1. candle melts from country chunky candles ---- check!

2. doorknobs & plates from "doorknob bob" ----- check!

3. ideas for christmas gifts ----- check! ---not as many as i wanted though!

i had a budget -- i took $100 cash. that was for canton stuff & meals. i was NOT going to use my debit card or go over my budget. i came home with $10. (a friend paid for my lunch at canton -- she's such a sweet lady!! i'm gonna have to do something special for her!)

i'm in love with the leather scented candle melts!!!! and the one called "cowgirl undies" -- it's leather & cinnamon! i keep one in my car in a cut off water bottle in one of the cup holders. the heat from the sun warms the melt & makes the car smell soooooo good!!!! i cleaned them out of those 2 scents!!!! AND i had a coupon!!!

(that's not all of them!!)

i needed doorknobs & plates for a project in my bedroom. got 'em!!!

last year when i went, he didn't have a whole lot of doorknobs -- this year he must have hit the jackpot somewhere because he had a TON of gorgeous glass knobs! i wish i had had more money!!! but i was good & didn't take out the debit card!!!!! i'm gonna have to do something to increase my budget the next time i go though!!!! it was so hard to walk away from all those beauties!!!!!!

and as far as ideas for christmas gifts, well i just can't talk about those just yet!!!! you'll just have to wait & see!

i was so excited to get home yesterday afternoon & get started on my bedroom project! wanna see it????

i JBWelded a screw into each knob & while the epoxy was setting, i figured which plates i was going to use & measured the distance between each of them & screwed the plates into the wall. after waiting a couple hours, i screwed the knobs into the wall through the hole in the plate.

did you know that the black ones & white ones are made out of clay with a porcelain coating? i know this because one of my black ones that i got last year got dropped somehow & broke but i was able to "JBWeld" it back together to use for this project!!

TA DA!!!!! sorry - it's really hard to get a good photo of all of them & still be able to see them all.

my doorknob border is complete!!!! some of the plates are rusty & some are chippy -- i love them!!!! and the knobs!!!! i don't have a favorite! love 'em all!!!!

got these little boots from a friend in tyler. gonna do an outside project with them.

well, i just took an almost 3 hour lunch with a friend -- don't worry, i'm off today! the best thing about taking off on "turn the clocks back weekend" is you get an extra hour of vacation!!!!! so i'd better get busy & not waste that hour!!!!!! it's been raining all day, so i'm working on inside stuff. so glad the other 3 days of vacation were beautiful!!

(this was written yesterday, monday, but blogger wouldn't let me upload photos yesterday!)

an apology

i've gotten so many emails about my last post. many were concerned about me. lots said "noooooooooo! don't quit your blog!!!!"

i apologize for writing a post when i was in a state of emotions -- some personal things weren't going well & i should never have written a post when i was so upset. in the days since, things have settled down -- thanks to some good counsel from some very good friends -- & things are fine.

AND i've thought about 25 or so things that would make fantastic blog posts!!!!! i love my blog & i don't want to stop writing it. i enjoy writing about my thoughts, my projects, the crazy things in my boring life. and i don't care if i'm not one of those "famous" blogwriters, i don't care if people all over the world read my blog or if just one person reads my blog. i don't care if i'm the only one who reads my blog. i'm writing this for me -- & i like sharing it with you. i like writing about the projects & things i do & this blog is sometimes like therapy, so i'm going to continue writing it.

i'd be lost without it!

i made a whirlwind trip to tyler & canton this weekend. went to THE most beautiful wedding saturday evening!!! forgot my camera.

went to canton saturday morning -- wish i could have gone friday & sunday too. didn't get to see all i wanted to see but had 2 specific things in mind to get & i got them. plus i got a few good ideas for some christmas presents!!

the next time i go to canton, i'm going on a day when i don't have to be at a wedding later & i might even go by myself so i can go at my own pace & see everything i want to see -- even though it's fun to go with friends, sometimes it's better to go alone!

(for those who don't know, canton is like the world's biggest, greatest flea market/craftshow etc etc etc in the whole world!!!!!!!! it's only open on the 1st monday weekend of each month. november & december are CRAZY months to go because of the gazillions of christmas shoppers, but it's still fun. definitely NOT a place to go if you don't like crowds, can't walk very much, get hungry quickly & can't stand a 45 minute wait in a long line or can't hold your bladder!!!!!!!)

you also have to either have TONS of money or put yourself on a strict budget & stick to it!!! i took $100 cash & told myself i would NOT use my debit card. i got the things i specifically had in mind that i wanted & came home with $15!!!!!!! well, $10 actually -- i spent $5 for lunch today on the way home!!

i'll show you tomorrow all the goodies i got!!

for now -- here's a picture of me SMILING.

because life ain't so bad......!

goodbye

goodbye.
that was the word i heard as my broken heart was ripped from my chest. thrown to the ground & blown away like dust when that door shut.

goodbye.
that was the word, along with WHY?, that played over & over in my head.

goodbye.
that is the word that i say now, in this final post on my blog. my final post on facebook. my final pin on pinterest.
i'm tired of trying to pretend that i'm the strong one. i was strong. i wanted to be strong. but i'm tired of lugging around all the broken pieces, trying so hard not to let anyone see how broken they were.

i'm tired. tired of .....tired of forgetting what i was going to say......tired of trying to hold it all together. tired of wanting so badly to be loved (by friends, by my kids, by a man.) tired of feeling so all alone in a crowd of people, whether it be at work, at church, in "blogland".

i'm alone right now. and that's the way it needs to be for now. i don't have a broken heart anymore. in its place is an empty hole. i know Jesus is the only one who can fix that, fill that hole. so for now it's gonna be just Him & me. i don't know if i'll ever write again. maybe. maybe not.

only time will tell. goodbye.

it's friday eve!!!

mowing the grass by the light of the full moon was pretty cool!!!!

(with the flash)

(without the flash)
i did the backyard 1st tonight while it was still daylight. we've had a lot of rain this past week, but today was a sunny day & it dried up enough to mow. it really needed it too. by the time i started on the front it was just beginning to get dark & then it was almost like someone flipped the switch & turned out the light!!!!!

i'm pretty sure i did a good job

but we'll see in the morning how it REALLY looks!!!!

THIS is what happens to your yard when dishwashing liquid is spilled on it.

i'm a little irritated, but at least her car got clean. i've gotta do something with it this weekend. it went from a little splotch to a HUGE splotch! my beautiful, green grass -- survived the hot houston summer but not my daughter!!!!

now that the yard is mowed, the dog is walked & played with & fed, i'm making chili.

tomorrow "my boys" are coming over for dinner again. george & clint won't be here this time, but we'll have fun without them. (i didn't blog about it, but i posted on facebook 2 weeks ago when george strait, clint black & several others were here, in MY living room!!!)(not the REAL guys, but one of the guys in my office is a singer - he plays in clubs & can sing as good as any CW artist - maybe even better! and he doesn't just strum the guitar. he PLAYS it -- really really good!!! he was supposed to come tomorrow night, but he has to help his brother move --- poor excuse if you ask me!!!!! but the rest of the guys from my office will be here & well have fun.)

we'll have chili, grilled jalepeno poppers (made from scratch by one of the guys) & s'mores

-- hope the weather's as nice tomorrow night as it is now! who knows, maybe sam will show up!!!

well, i'm gonna go clean up the kitchen & get to bed.

when i wake up (several times during the night!) it will be FRIDAY!!!!!

random musings over the last few weeks

i just haven't felt like i've had anything to say lately.

been busy -- with WHAT, i don't know!!!! mostly work. been working some late hours & then when i get home, i don't want to do anything.

"worked" a golf tournament last thursday. it was a beautiful day to be outside!!!! i learned how to drive a golf cart!!!!!!! i was scared to death -- me, who's not afraid of power tools & saws & can drive a "stick" -- afraid i'd tip it over, run in the lake, drive off a cliff!!!!!

i MADE one of the guys i work with pick me up at the clubhouse & drive me to the 13th hole where we were. and when i had to make a picture run to walgreens, i MADE him drive me back to the parking lot & pick me up when i got back. the next run i drove. what a silly person i am!!!! how EASY!!!!! i had such fun driving it -- i can drive with 1 hand, i can drive drinking a bottle of water, i can drive with my boss in the cart!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (almost lost him once when we hit a bump -- not really!!!!!!)

i had such fun driving the golf cart that i just might get a job driving golf carts when i get older!!!!!!!!!!!


i've been wasting too much time on pinterest lately. my "virtual" life. where everything is beautiful & perfect!

sunday morning while cooking sweet potato cassarole for potluck at church, my oven decided to stop working. i NEVER use my over but now that it's not working, i can think of 100's of things to bake in it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "ain't that always the way it goes"!!!!!

there are millions of yummy looking things on pinterest -- i never much looked at the food on there since i'm not really "into" cooking, but now that the oven is broken, i've been looking at the food!!!!!!!!!!!!

don't have the money to get the oven fixed right now, so that's a good diet tactic!!!!!!!! however, HOW is it POSSIBLE to gain weight just by LOOKING at pictures on pinterest?????????????????????????????

a few weeks ago i reinforced geronimo's pallet house. wouldn't ya know it -- that stinker has already dismantled part of it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! he just HAS to have something to do during the day while i'm at work! wish he could put his strength & brains to work doing something PRODUCTIVE around here rather than destroying EVERYTHING!!!!!!!

my best friend's son is getting married in 2 weeks. had a shower for his bride to be saturday at a little tea room in spring. i've known colin since he was 4. doesn't seem possible that he's old enough to get married!!!

wish i was old enough to get married..............some days i think i'm too old.

friday as i was leaving the office one of the guys asked if i had plans for the weekend. i said "well, tonight's my "geriatric night" -- i'm going to the nursing home to see pa pa & grandma & then to a birthday party for a sweet little old lady from church who's turning 88 years old."

he said, "dorothy, don't take this the wrong way, but you need to get some friends your own age!"

boy is he right.

everyone i hang around with is either way older than me or way younger. either at the nursing home or in preschool sunday school. all the guys i work with are in their early 20's.

i don't think there's anyone left in the world that's my age!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i'm tired of being the "3rd wheel" too.

and we all know from my experience with "match.com" & "eharmony" that there's no one in a 500 mile radius OR THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF THE WORLD that is a match for me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

guess i'll just go plan my pretend pinterest wedding

with my pretend boyfriend

build my pretend pinterest dream home --
front yard:

back yard:

& cook pretend pinterest dinners

or maybe i'll just get pretend pinterest drunk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!