I’m in a such a pickel and need advice.serious advice.

By on December 18th, 2008

Okay.here’s my sob story. Last April I bought a house, the house is in ONLY my name but my boyfriend lives with me. We pay 535 a month, and then we have a 16 month old and we have to pay 480 a month in day care. I have a car payment thats 206 a month and then car insurance on that is 120 a month. I make approx. 1120 a month with taxes/health care/401k taken out. All those bills add up to 1341 and his paycheck helps alot, I mean that’s not including gas/grocereies/electric/cable. What my deal is, him and I. aren’t working. My hearts not there, his isn’t either, all we do is fight fight and fight some more. My thing is, I have a daughter and my two little dogs that I’ve had for years that I’m NOT willing to give up. The gov’t won’t help me because I make 10 dollars to much a month. What kind of crap is that. And that’s because they counted the month I get paid 3 times instead of 2. Whatever. Anyways- I don’t want to sell my house but that’s the only thing that looks like I can do. Now granted I havent added in child support but I added all my bills and I’m still short like 860 a month with out his paycheck or child suport and I know there is no way on earth I will be getting that much in child support. Does anyone have any ideas on what I should/need to do. My mom said I could move back in at home but that’s a 3 bedroom house and I have 2 little brothers and a step dad. So that would be 5 people in a 3 bedroom house and with 4 dogs. AHH. I just don’t want to sell my house, one I havent even lived in it for a year, I would have to bust my butt to get the kitchen done because it’s in the middle of being remodeled and with the market being so bad it wont sell. I dont want to get forclosed on, and I want to put a roof over my daughters head and get food on the table. ughh. I just don’t know what to do. Please give me some advice.

How to cover gap between kitchen countertop and stove.

By on December 17th, 2008

I am looking for something to cover gaps between kitchen counter top and stove/kitchen counter top and refrigerator. I see that there are silicon strips available online but not sure which one to buy. Also I would prefer to buy it from a store rather than online. Can you please help. Thanks

I’m having some trouble finding a nice dress.

By on December 16th, 2008

okay so we have this fancy smancy thingy coming up and i dont have any money fora dress.well i have 5$ but that wont get me anything and my parents dont have extra cash becuz we r getting a kitchen remodel. All the dresses I have are not allowed because they r short or to showy.

HELP.

question about toddler “stimming”.

By on December 15th, 2008

Hi all
I have a little boy just turned 2 in October, who is exhibiting behaviour which after research, I have found out is called “stimming”. I looked it up online because it was beginning to worry me a bit.

Basically, he spends a lot of time doing this eye-rolling thing, walking up and down our hall looking at the walls in a kind of sideways glance. Also he spends an unusual amount of time filling and emptying boxes of bricks he has - I’ve since found out these repetitive behaviour patterns are known as self stimulatory behaviour.

I’m a full-time mom, very hands-on, and spend hours with him encouraging interactive play with me - reading books (he’s slightly behind with his speech), doing puzzles, drawing, etc. and he’s rarely left to sit and play on his own during the day, but when I go to the loo, when we have a visitor, or go out to the kitchen to get his lunch ready, he’ll start this behaviour and act like he doesn’t want to be interrupted.

Otherwise, he’s very social, affectionate, and is making good progress with his words.

Of course when I searched this behaviour online, “autism” came up in a lot of results - he’s clearly not at the extreme of autism, but should I be concerned. I mean, will he grow out of this, or should I look for an advice from the Dr.

What is the resale value on high gloss kitchen cabinets.

By on December 14th, 2008

We are remodeling our kitchen for resale in a few years when the market goes back up. We found an amazing deal on a big selection of light maple cabinets ($1750), but they have a high gloss laminate on them.

Anyone have any experience with showing kitchens with similar laminated cabinets. I think they are custom and were expensive (compared to the $3000 we were willing to shell out). But we live in the suburbs of Chicago in a Tudor-style home and I’m concerned the modern kitchen might deter those looking to buy a more traditional home.

Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Advice / ideas for 6.5 month old weaning schedule.

By on December 13th, 2008

Hi, I have an almost 6 and a half month old daughter who has been having solids since just over 4 months. I built the solids up to 3 times a day over 3 weeks and always gave her them after her bottles. Now she is 6 months old the heath visitor advised me to start giving solids first at one meal a day then build it up over a couple of weeks. So, for the last almost 2 weeks I have given solid first at lunchtime and some days she is okay with this but mostly she is not a happy baby until she gets her bottle. She has 7oz of milk just after 8am, then a little (about 6 or 7 mouthfuls) breakfast just before 10am. Lunch is just before 1pm (she will drink between 4 - 6 oz of milk) then I give her another bottle approx 6oz just before 5pm then some solids. Tonight she had half a pack of Ella’s Kitchen followed by a third of a Little Stars yoghurt. Then, after her bath at 8pm she has a 9oz bottle and is in bed for 8.30pm.
She has a nap directly before her lunch and directly before her dinner (normally just over an hour each).
I took her to weighed at the beginning of the week and she only put on 4oz in 3 weeks, she is now 16lb 5oz (was 8lb 12.5oz at birth). The HV asked what I was feeding her, how much milk she is taking etc. she said this was not very good weight gain for 3 weeks.

Can anyone advise a different feeding schedule I could try. or any other ideas.

I think I may now be getting a bit stressed about increasing the solids to help her put on weight. She is just not too keen on them, but adding up her milk intake she is taking between 25-29oz per day plus the little drop solids she does take. I’ve made her loads of homemade things and she just spits them out, I’ve tried different jars some are okay some get spat out. But she seems to really like all the Ella’s Kitchen variety. I’m now getting conscious that we’re nearing the 7 month mark where we should be introducing lumps,,, arghgh how do I do that when she seems to prefer her bottles.
Yes, I have tried finger foods from pear, banana to brown toast with unsalted butter and the baby rice cakes. It does make her mouth but she also loves to squeeze it between her hands. an adorable little monkey.

Thanks for any advise or your schedules.

where is the cheapest place to find kitchen cupboards .

By on December 12th, 2008

in our new house it has a really old kitchen
i want to put in some modern cupboards and rip
the old ones out
where can i find some that are nice modern looking but not fairly expensive

How to charge for a autocad drawing.

By on December 11th, 2008

How would one charge for an autocad dwg in the field of interior designing. For example, doing a furniture layout or electrical layout. Also, the detailed kitchen and bathroom dwgs.
I have been working on Autocad since many years now, and have decided to do freelancing, but cannot decide on how to charge.
Can someone help.
Thank you so much for all your help.

need help with color and decorating ideas.

By on December 10th, 2008

i’m getting a small, basic apartment soon and am starting to think of ideas, but i’m all over the place. i’m almost positive i want a warm, earthy, bedroom. problem is my living area and kitchen. i was leaning towards an asian inspired black and white kitchen with green/turquoise accents. i will have black furniture (tv stand, bookcase, and coffee table) in the living room and couches haven’t been purchased yet. i want the apartment to be bold, modern, and cohesive. i have to make decisions on couch color, area rug color, living room and kitchen paint color. ideas for the bathroom would be wonderful also

i need help with my kitchen. any ideas to combinate a medium to dark blue color.

By on December 9th, 2008

i just moved to a new house and would like to add some color to my kitchen and dining room.i want to coordinate colors with the living room which is painted a nice blue with white trim.i just dont want to have disruptive colors i want something that makes a smooth transition from living room to dining room to kitchen. or how can i do this. is there a website that lets you upload your own picture and add colors to it. i have seen a lot of kitchens painted mostly yellow and colors like that but i want something different.i have honey colored oak cabinets and mostly black appliances. Any suggestions. thank you.