Hi Three, I know your pain!!! All too well actually! But I concur with just about everyone else who has posted, gardens are perpetual works in progress with good days, bad days, good years, bad years and of course none of us post the ugly pics ;) One wise gardener on Gardenweb (actually she answered me on the organic forum when *I* was feeling hopeless) gently reminded me that the main reason I garden is for the journey, not the destination. Might sound corny to some but I think many on here understand what she meant. I know she nailed it for me! Keep your chin up and know you aren't alone. We've all been there and I'm sure we'll all end up there again, at least for a moment or two but it will pass. Its a cyclical thing;) But isn't it nice to know you can come here and share the good, the beautiful, the bad and the ugly? Michelle

I can relate to this post. We chose to use kitchen cabinets for our bathroom vanities because they're only an inch taller than vanity cabinets and three inches deeper. We had the space available to fit them in, and we have teens at home who wanted adult size for their height and more countertop area for their blow dryer, curling iron, electric toothbrushes, shaver, etc. We wanted to optimize the space available for storage, too. We decided to buy a wider medicine cabinet for the side wall so that it's more in proportion to the deeper cabinet sides and opens closer to the front of the vanity so it's easy to reach. We're planning to put a new framed mirror on the back wall with sconces on each side. We've wanted to replace our 4" on center faucet with a widespread but just didn't have enough space behind the old sink even though it was a small one. We're hoping to curve an 8" widespread along the back of the new sink and still have more space to clean around the back of the faucets with the added depth. Although we've tried to think through the pros and cons of each of our decisions, my second guessing is starting to drive me crazy! LOL Whatever you decide to do, it will be great to have a nice, new bathroom. That's what I keep telling myself.

I think you should fully paint a door, and see how you like it, then decide how to finish the rest, e.g. whether to sand the primer coat, apply more primer, use filler, etc. The paint coats will cover more of the grain, and so will the brushstrokes. What look are you going for? If you want a perfectly uniform and smooth, mass-produced look, that is hard (very) to get without a sprayer and maybe sanding between coats. I don't think that is a look I'd aspire to. I think the paintwork in the kitchen should match the paintwork of the rest of the house's woodwork, which was likely brush-painted. You can get a subtler brushstroke using a flowing additive, ask at the paint store. If you paint straight from the can, the brushstrokes will be most visible. If you do decide to sand some more, use a power sander if you haven't already. An orbital sander costs $30. Hand-sanding is the pits. When you DIY, you will be your own harshest critic, you'll see every little imperfection. Step back and look at your finished work like a normal person would - with normal eyes, not magnifying glasses. You'll probably be very happy.

Yes you can figure this out. First of all, buy organic chocolate. Regular cocoa is full of pesticides that cause cancer. At the very least, your liver has to filter them out and it's not getting rid of fats if it's processing toxins. Now the cocoa and the sugar are lighting up your brain to feel great so of course it's positive reinforcement whenever you eat it. Mine is wheat and fat and sugar. That comes in so many forms. What to do..... you're hungry. that's natural. Eat food first. The healthy stuff. Eat some fiber, a palm sized portion of protein and an equal amount of carbs. The rest will be fruits and veggies until you're full or almost full if you're trying to lose. If you still feel that you really want the candy eat a small amount with a meal. Don't eat it before or between meals or you throw your metabolism off. I know it's been popular to eat small portions all day but this is the fastest way to mess up the way your body talks to itself. When you eat all day, you feel hungry all day. Your hunger doesn't cycle on and off like it should. If you eat too many carbs at a meal, you'll be super hungry later way before it's time for the next meal. That's when the candy and carb cravings are worst. Try this to help sugar cravings. Eat a good amount of protein for breakfast and some carbs, not too much, like a small bowl of oatmeal or a few servings of fruit. Eat a good lunch and dinner and whatever you do don't eat right before bedtime. Give it about 3 hours and go to bed slightly hungry and sleep at least 7 hours. That's the way to set up your body to beat the cravings the next day. And it takes 3 or 4 days to get a good rhythm going. Don't give up! Late day cravings are a sign that your hunger signals are off or that you ate too many carbs earlier. Morning protein helps so much to lessen those cravings. I used to crave carbs at night all the time. Your body doesn't need the food but you want it anyway. I never craved a salad or steamed broccoli! If your carb cravings persist, you might try probiotics. Candida sometimes dominates the other flora in your body when you've eaten too much sugar/ simple carbs and this creates STRONG cravings for sugar and carbs. Adding probiotics helps fight that and it builds immunity too. Whenever I eat loads of sugar, I just want more. I think it's natural that your brain likes sugar. It makes you feel good. Try and notice how you feel 3 or 4 hours later though. Do you feel tired or grumpy or just lousy? Then you might crave some more sugar, carbs or caffeine to feel good again. Anyway, don't be tough on yourself if you eat some chocolate. Be tough on yourself if you didn't eat 3 or 4 healthy meals with good protein choices and a MODERATE amount of carbs and a good assortment of fruits and veggies. Be tough on yourself if you deprived yourself of a full nights sleep. You eat better, your body talks to itself better and the treats are less of a distraction. Pat yourself on the back every time you make a good choice. Don't be hard on yourself when you don't. It's a world full of treats out there and man is it tempting at the grocery store. They know how to market it to us. It's just money coming in to them. If they could sell only inexpensive chips,soda and candy to us, they would. They make so much profit on that stuff. Another strategy that works for me is don't take it home. Have a piece of pie with dinner but don't bring a whole pie, cake, bag of treats home with you. Ya, I'll eat that later if it's in the house. Nobody comes to healthier choices overnight unless a doctor says do it or die. It's a path you start on and improve on your whole life. Later on you look back and see how much progress you made, that you feel good about yourself. If you're committed to eating better as a way of life, a few small candy bars now and then won't slow you down.