Kenzie you have the perfect kitchen for hand-painting kitchen cabinets. You are going to be amazed at the improvement if you follow Christopher's directions. Just don't skip any steps and take your time :). You will see a little grain since your cabinets are oak, but that helps eliminate the look of brush marks also. I am one of those people who don't mind seeing the grain of oak - at least they look like real wood. I have one question for Christoper: How does the BM Impervo and Advance compare to SW Pro-Classic as far as ease of applying?? My reason for asking is that I have used the Pro-Classic on a vanity and was very impressed with the quality of the finished product - just would like to know for future projects.

What does your husband say? Do you pay CS to her? Is DH in favor of buying the gifts? I am a firm believer in whatever you want to do at your house, is your business. And the same goes for the BM at her house. She may be able to put in her two cents but it is your house and what you do there, is up to you & DH and he needs to communicate with her and the kids about this touchy situation. If you want to compromise though this is what I might do in that situation: Keep a list of the things you want to buy the children on hand so that at Christmas, birthdays, Easter, or other holidays that you buy for, you can purchase those items for the kids while hopefully keeping mama bear's mouth shut. I think it was right for your husband to talk to the kids about the divorce and mom's behavior; I would have *him* talk to them in the same way anytime she puts the guilt trip on them. I'm in the opposite situation as you: SS lives with DH & I full-time and BM doesn't pay child support and NEVER buys the child anything or if she does, she demands it be left at her house or be returned to her washed and pressed.(What a bunch of crap! Like she's going to wear a 12-year-old boy's hoodies, pants, and shoes.) She has never called to complain that we're trying to outdo her. I actually wish she would. I also never had much when I grew up and my parents always made sure I knew the value of a dollar. I've raised my daughter the same way. My child and SS are completely different in that when we go grocery shopping, my daughter will go for cereal that is on sale while SS goes for the box with the highest price tag be/c he's never been taught the value of a hard-earned dollar. I fight with DH quite a bit over his spending habits as well as frivolous spending when it comes to his precious son be/c he's doing a disservice to the child by not teaching him there's more to life than a namebrand label or an expensive pricetag. Take for instance, a recent trip to Walmart to buy sleds resulted in a $40 bill for TWO sleds be/c the boy didn't want the round plastic saucers that only cost $4 a piece. He had to have the $20 board and $20 tube, which are now laying on the garage floor NOT being used. I guess I'm trying to say that I can understand BM's feelings although she's going about it in the wrong way by guilting the kids. I also don't know her financial situation: Are her feelings unjust? Does she have a lot of money but squanders it? Does she receive CS? Is she being deceitful or can she quite honestly not afford to give them nicer things?

DH and BM had mediation today. SD has asked him three time is she was going... she wasn't even supposed to know about it. DH said it went fairly well. The mediator started to give him crap over the pants... (my jaw hit the floor when I heard that!) but I guess BM wrote that DH intentionally threw away the pants BECAUSE she bought them. He told them they were too small and didn't fit her, we buy her most of her clothes and he thought it was petty to fight over a pair of pants... then said we had to throw away her pants from last weekend because they came back ripped. BM jumped up and asked him if he was accusing her and he told her no, but it IS in your nature to do something like that and it might be retaliatory because she angry about the other pants. He basically said SD goes through clothes and we buy new ones every few months as she grows, seasons change, etc. Other than that, BM lied her ass off. She said SD was injured when we took her on a serve at 10pm. We never took her to do a serve at 10pm. I went to serve a subpoena on a guy that was expecting it... it was scheduled so no chance for conflict and we were coming home around 8pm when our window broke out on the side of the car. SD was sitting behind the driver seat and the passenger window shattered. We think it was a rock.. maybe kids using a slingshot because we were passing a ball field when it happened. It had nothing to do with being on a serve, we could have been on our way to dinner. She said SD was cut up from the broken glass. It scared her (it scared ALL of us) but no glass got on her or cut her. We stopped at a firehouse to call 911 and waited for the Sheriff to make a report for our insurance. While we were waiting, DH took pictures of SD in front of the fire house for her school project on CA. She was wearing her coat (yet BM said it cut up her arms) and smiling (yet BM said she was hurt & terrified). That was the only other thing DH had to really explain but BM tried to explain why her other DD does not live with her, why she has waited 2 years if this was 'temporary' and then BM told the mediator that SD absolutely wants to live with her. That got the mediator's attention and she asked BM "How do YOU know THAT?" Well, it was in the paperwork handed out before mediation that the child should NEVER be asked where they want to live because no child should EVER have to choose between their parents. I guess BM didn't read it or didn't think it applied to HER! BM also lied when DH said he believes she only filed for custody because BM doesn't want to pay support. He said it is a coincidence that she was served shortly before she filed... BM said she filed two weeks before she got served by DCSS. lol, the mediator can easily check that out in the court case because DCSS served her on 4/13 and BM filed for custody on 4/16. I really hope her lies bring her down! I guess the mediator wanted to see SD so when they left mediation, they went into the clerks office & I went in with DH so they could schedule it. The mediator looked a little annoyed and BM was right there next to her. Then the mediator said when SD comes in, there is no parental involvement at all so it does not matter who brings her in. DH asked if I can bring her in so he didn't have to miss work and BM volunteered to pick her up from school & bring her in. The mediator again said it didn't matter who brings her. So, they set it up for 4pm after school and I said (and it just came out without thinking) that she can pick her up from the house at 3:30. BM practically snarled at me "WHY?" and I said so she can do her homework since she gets out of school at 2:20 and BM nearly bit my head off.. snapping at me that SHE can help HER daughter with homework. I said fine. The mediator said "there will be none of that in here!" So, in hindsight I should have said nothing. Of course, it shows the mediator that BM really has a huge problem with me. I guess at one point, DH said I am available to talk to her too if she needs to and BM jumped in and said "there's no need for that" or something like that.. basically saying the mediator does not need to talk to me at all. The mediator jumped on BM saying she'll talk to whoever she wants in order to make a recommendation but I am guessing BM did not impress the mediator. BM stormed off down the street and when we were getting on the freeway, BM got behind us and then drove around us really fast and sped off. She was pissed. She does not like to be called on her lies and she also told the mediator she had an email where DH agreed she was to have SD on her birthday from 9-6, not 8-8. Well, she is supposed to bring that back when they see the mediator the week after SD sees her. It doesn't exist. They did not email each other about her birthday, it was discussed when we picked up SD. Besides, even if it WAS 6pm... she left SD at 4pm to go back to her BF and left SD with grandma! DUH! She is also supposed to bring letters she says SD has written about how terrible I am to her and how she doesn't like me. When BM told the mediator how SD and I don't get along, DH presented a stack of letters & cards SD has made me over the last two years. She gave me one yesterday that said "Happy early Mother's Day". I can only imagine she is going to make SD write letters to 'prove' what she says is true. If she does, I can't believe she thinks the mediator is going to buy that! She is something else!!!

I’ve been hoping for SW Silverpointe and SW Passive to have a color baby and I think BM Oystershell just might be that offspring! Maybe. :) Oystershell lands deeper into the Green-Yellow (GY) Hue Family. It's closer to Greeen (G) and it's lighter and brighter - look at Value and LRV to compare lightness and brightness. Passive has the least amount of Chroma out of the 3. Which could explain the blueness. Chroma quantifies colorfulness/grayness, clean/dirty, vivid/dull