guilt is something that you have to work through- the letter was, incidently, a brilliant start. telling her during your quiet moments (and taking time for quiet moments) will be another step. after that, the best thing to do is to atone for the mistake by proxy- literally, paying it forward. if you used to cook with your mom, bake in her memory, and share the food with people who valued her- or total strangers, who would benefit from the kindness. if she sewed- make pot holders out of an outfit she never liked on you any way, or start a quilt from favorite garments, and think of her while you work. (you can do two- one for the memories, one to 'sacrifice' by donating it to a shelter, or to a church raffle) if she gardened- plant a perennial, and express your love for her by tending it until it is big enough to share with other gardeners. if you're church-going, instead of paying for masses or candle vigils- give of yourself, donate TIME, or the skill of your hands. I know too many churches that seem to frown on this- if they're greedy, find your local Unitarians or Society of Friends (or habitat for Humanity, or women's shelter) and give of yourself there. then... start a scrap book of you and your mother as you were without whatever family nonsense parted you. rebuild that relationship, and carry it forward. that will allow you to tell her story to your children (or your god-kids, if you're like me, and non-breeding) without the shadow of the feud. it's not easy, and take some effort- but it pays you back over and over again. trust me. it's people like my brother that worry me- he simply doesn't care. not only is he not feeling guilty- if I suggested such a thing, he'd be somewhere between amused and offended (well, more offended, since he's not a fan of mine, either)

Looks like a post I wrote when my son (now 4 1/2 months) was 4 weeks! I am no doctor, only a first-time mom who can say I've been there and it does get better! I thought Cole would have gas forever and he'd never sleep alone in the crib and he'd never like the bouncy seat, carseat, swing (what baby doesn't like the swing?!), etc. His temperament improved around 9-12 weeks. Please be encouraged. Your little one is so small and depending on you for familiarity. It's VERY hard at first, you both are getting to know each other, but when your daughter is a little bigger and able to see you better, smile back, laugh and coo you will look back on this time and know it's all worth it! (of course) Also, I recommend learning more about sleep and its importance to a baby. Our son was fussy mostly because he was tired - could only tolerate 1 to 1 1/2 hrs of wakefulness before becoming cranky when he was that young. Not to say this is your issue now, but in case your interested later. . . this info helped us a lot (thanks to another member here): Here is a link that might be useful: Dr. Weissbluth

On the first point if you are going to dig on the outside of the house I would go ahead and sleeve the pipe and patch the holes while you are there. They make some quick setting cement patch that sets up quick and it comes in a gallon bucket. I always use it to patch holes like the one you are talking about. Im a little confused as to why the plumber busted a 3-4" hole for a 1" line, none the less it needs to be patched to avoid another "accident" I would get straight in line with the copper buried below and dig down to it. Dig enough where you can work easily and make the hole bigger if your cramped for working space. By code it needs to be sleeved, should have been done on installation. Part 2: It being 5 years old water might have leaked by the valve or meter. When you get ready to do the work, take a cordless drill with a 1/4 bit chucked in it or smaller and drill the line. Will have the same effect as putting in a needle valve just a little cheaper. Drill it at the bottom and that will tell you if water is in the line or not. If there is water in the line and the meter is leaking by then there is a few ways to deal with it. I have never had luck with the bread trick.... The thing about the bread tick is you only have a limited amount of time before it disolves and water is back on you. They make jet sweats that go inside full port ball valves. Not sure if you can purchase them where you are at.... or if they even sell them to the general public. If not you could Shark-Bite a valve in. Since it is in the basement it is in an open space I presume and able to be worked on. Even though Shark-Bites are a mechanical fitting they work wonders if you cant get the water off of you long enough to solder. They make actual Shark-Bite valves here in Louisana... Might want to check on them. The only draw back is they are rather exspensive. If you can not find them a Shark-Bite male adapter and a threaded ball valve will work just as well. Not sure why you would want 2 valves on the same line before you tie into the house cold water piping. Double valving seems like extra work with no added reward. Flushing the line would be a good thing to do as you said. A question I have is did the plumber silver braze the lines inder the ground or did he use roll cooper?

i'm so sorry to read you will be losing molly. this is such a hard decision to make but in the end, we must lay our pets to rest with dignity. i commend you for seeing that it is time to send molly over the bridge. each time i have done this, i have made a special day happen. i take my pet with me everywhere i go, we go to favorite places, just the 2 of us. we walk through the woods for some quiet time, go through the drive up window for a cheeseburger, just spend the day together making memories. on the day i take my pet in or in some cases, have my vet come to the farm, i choose a special treat, one i know my pet would love but has always been forbidden to have. usually, it's a hershey bar. when i know the time is near, we go outside and sit under a shade tree or out in the sunshine and we share a hershey bar. i get one little square, my dog gets the rest. it seems to help me come to terms with it all. maybe you could make a special day for just you and molly to spend together this weekend. it can be a celebration of her life. and on monday, hold her close to you and let the love in your eyes be the last thing she sees and your soothing voice be the last thing she hears as you ease her pain. (((hugs))) i am so, so sorry.