I don't know from the seller's experience what tips to give you but I sure can tell you from the buyer's experience. How to get me there ... I really like dee54's idea of the signs. When you make signs that are meant to be seen by motorists, PLEASE make the print BOLD and BIG! I don't know how many times I noticed a sign, only to be unable to read it because the print was too faint and/or too small. dee54's idea of a different shaped sign like the watering can is a great eye catcher. People will follow the signs just to see where they lead. How to get me to stop ... have things for sale in front of the house. My girlfriend and I won't bother stopping at a home where the driveway is too long and we have to walk to get to the sale. We are both more apt to stop if the merchandise is near the curb. And have a lot of stuff displayed. If I see a sale that looks like a carnival with a variety of merchandise, I will stop and look. Colorful flags, balloons and signs all catch my attention. Make sure you have some big pieces that will glitter and twinkle in the sun or are bold and colorful. You got me, now what to do with me? Offer not only a variety of different merchandise but also offer a variety of prices. I might not be able to buy a $50 birdbath but I'd really like that $8 whirlygig thing or a $10 flower pot. Even small items selling for a couple of bucks will draw sales. And please clearly mark the price on the merchandise! I have no idea what unique handmade items are worth. To me, a glass totem is a good buy at $15 but you might be expecting $35 to break even. If something isn't clearly marked, I just assume it is too expensive. I find that a lot of people aren't hagglers so they won't bother negotiating a price with you. If you are unsure of whether your prices are good put up a sign telling people you are willing to haggle or are flexible. Do you want me to come back next time? Hand out inexpensive business cards or flyers letting people know when your next sale is or at least it will help them remember where you are and what you sell. Plus it is a great way for them to share your location with others if they have the address. People might not be able to afford something you are selling now but will come back to a future sale with money in hand. My problem is, I forget the address! If some of your garden pieces shouldn't be kept outdoors year round or if it requires special care, be sure to let buyers know. I hate when I buy something, not realizing it requires special care, only to have it break or come apart. You could include care instructions with the purchase. But for me? All you have to do is email me the date, time and location and I'll be there with my wallet! lol Good luck!

imwillow You have just described me to a "T". I have been to so many Dr's with regards to it. The condition is called "hyperhydrosis". The day after my hysterectomy I started to sweat till I was soaked and have been that way ever since. There is no quality of life whatsoever with this condition. I take Estrogel (this is an Estrogen gel - 2 squirts each day from a pre-measured pump (rubbed into forearms or upper thighs) and I also take one prometrium each evening. This does absolutely nothing to ease the sweating. Surgeons will suggest having certain sweat glands removed - however it is not advised as the sweating will just move onto other sweat glands. Have you had your thyroid checked? The thyroid is the thermostat of your body - I do not have thyroid trouble. I am scheduled to see an internist on July 8/08 - hoping he can help me. My nephew's friend is a doctor in Oklahoma and he was saying that if a person is overweight (which I am), the fat blocks the heat from exiting the body - therefore sweat profusely. It's a terrible condition, and everything you described is me, right down to the total hysterectomy 3 yrs ago. I am 49 yrs. old. If I find anything out at my appt. on the 8th of July, I will post to let you know. Sue

Thanks so much for the encouraging comments! I'm really happy with how they've turned out so far. I hope you guys will provide me some assistance with the accessorizing them part, I'm much better at the building and more clueless when it comes to accessories. Kitchendetective .. this is an auto body paint. I'm going to give you all the info on the can, because I'm not sure how it's pulled up at the store. The number is 43814 Prime. The OEM code is MX704966,WT7010. It's labled Ford ( N America ) Light Green. The actual brand we bought is Omni AE (MAE ) .. which is an inexpensive auto paint, the quart only cost $24 and it did all three cabinets inside and out. Lynn, I have a 1 1/2 inch wood countertop that I'm going to recycle into this project. I just need to paint it a satin black, then I have some flat BM poly hanging around that I'll put on top for durability. I'm going to have my DH cut it to size, then router out the middle a bit, so it sits down on top of the three cabinets and provides a lip to cover just above the drawers.

Oh JNM this sounds very hard :-( I can understand why you can't move past it, for now anyway. When you give so much to a person, and they poo all over it, it comes to a point where you've just had enough. It's not that you don't want to reach out/try again/make the effort/put the energy in/etc etc; it's just that you can't anymore. Right? I really understand that and there's nothing wrong with it, don't feel guilty or bad about it! The apology that your SD should give you is a big deal to me; when you do something wrong and you know it, you should apologise. No need to tiptoe around SD and let it slide, why would she have a different set of rules apply to her? Because there's bigger fish to fry? Because of BM? No way. SD knows she's wrong, she'll need to make it right. A heartfelt apology is a good start, and essential if you ask me. My SD15 cannot apologise either, she has never apologised for anything, ever. Over the past year she's done the wrong thing by us several times; loving it when we run around for her, and running back to BM's whenever she doesn't get her way. I haven't posted much about it, because what is there to say about it..really. As long as BM encourages this behavior (this is our situation) SD will not see the need to change. She can run away from problems, go there if something doesn't suit overhere, no need to own up, apologise, nothing. When she comes back she pretends all is good again, just because time has passed. And by the way; we should be thankful for her visit.. One of the biggest reasons that FDH and BM got divorced is because they were never able to work anything out. Any problem they had remained unresolved, so stuff piled up which created bigger problems. BM is not capable of looking at her own behavior, the part she might own in a problem, nothing is ever her fault and an apology is something she only wishes to receive, not give. (This has a lot to do with mental disorder). It was her way or the highway, and that is just not realistic. SD15 seems to adopt the same attitude, maybe because of BM's example, maybe because of situation (2 homes to play out against eachother). Not to say it's all because of BM though, because SD knows very well that BM's behavior is completely unacceptable, selfish and self-destructive. We have also had plenty meaningful conversations just like you guys. SD's understanding of the dynamics even impressed us, but she still continues to behave this way. Therefore we know that she 'owns' it, blaming BM is not going to fly, just like it doesn't with your SD. I'm also at a point where I find it hard to keep going. I want to stay engaged and make the effort, try and talk with SD's, be there for them, guide them, poor energy into all of it, and I too cannot seem to give it at the moment. I've given this a lot of thought because I don't want to give the skids the wrong message. There's a big difference between a bit of disengaging and 'turning your back on them' and I don't want them to misunderstand what's happening here. It's not that I don't care anymore, it's that I don't agree with what they are doing. I cannot change it, I cannot force SD15 to apologise or to behave different, but I can choose my own response to that. So I've decided I do what I normally do (as in tasks around the house) but I keep to myself and I'm not running around anymore. It's simple; I don't owe them anything. If they make an effort to treat us better, I'll go above and beyond for them as well. If not, then I will perform my daily tasks as normal, but nothing more. I don't walk around angry, I just do my own thing and I'm not getting very involved in things they do. They come, they go, that's it. I used to put up with a lot more when they were younger; they were manipulated by BM, they did not understand, I had to try and be the bigger person and suck it up for their sake. But not anymore; now they are old enough, they need to own their own choices and they need to realise that a relationship goes both ways. If they don't invest, then I'm not going to be in it anymore either. I wonder if your SD will be back, I can see where you're coming from when you say you don't think so. How are your boys doing now that SD is out of the house? You gave the impression that they aren't affected by it too much, not in a negative way anyway?