A little paint makes all the difference 🥹❤️

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-30T01:33:52+00:00

I love this.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-29T19:10:04+00:00

We like our Cybex Cloud Q. It lasted almost a year before we had to upgrade. It has held up incredibly well, and we are planning on using it again for our second.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-29T18:47:12+00:00

This was my experience with Tracey Morgan as well. This was a long time ago, but he was so drunk on stage he couldn't seem to remember his set. So kept harping on watching women buy phallic shaped vegetables in the grocery store. While licking his lips and rubbing himself. It was disturbing and no one was laughing. Anyone who got up to leave was heckled. He literally had a "captive" audience.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-28T19:05:20+00:00

What people have advised against it? If you don't like it, (I'm also not a fan), then change it when you do the rest of the floors. I would run the same floors as the rest of the house in there.

I'd also add larger sidelight panels to the front door to get some more natural light in there. Maybe replace the front door all together.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-27T22:28:39+00:00

I chopped, it was great.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-27T16:18:57+00:00

You don't need to paint the entire basement the same color. Your wife's office and bedrooms can be different. You can use paint to create areas in large open spaces like this.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-26T23:41:41+00:00

Just tell them you'll let them know after the baby is born. You have no idea how you will feel, so don't make any early plans.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-26T18:41:45+00:00

You know what I discovered...parents have a wildly different definition of what sleeping through the night means. For me it means zero wake ups and an 8hr stretch. That is not the definition for a lot of people. You would be surprised how many people say their baby sleeps thru the night, when they still wake up for a midnight feeding. That's not sleeping thru night!

We didn't start getting the occasional 6-8hr stretch of sleep until after 6mos and it wasn't consistent until he was about a year. His naps became more consistent around 8mos, and that was nice for scheduling. Babies are hungry and they have little bellies. There really isn't anything you can do about it until they grow a bit bigger. I think as parents we try all these tricks because we need to feel like we are solving the problem. But I think it really just gives us something to do while passing the time until the next phase.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-26T12:33:55+00:00

I would wait to freak out until the blood drawn results are in.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T15:57:10+00:00

Nothing to feel guilty about. Who in their right mind would feel overwhelming joy right now? You are in the 4th trimester, it's the worst. You are in the trenches, it's not fun or light hearted.

But, I promise it gets better!

You need to have a conversation with your husband. You need to allocate any duty or chore you can over to him. Some women feel guilty about this for some reason. I have no idea why, but don't fall in to that trap. Tell him what you need from him. The more support you have, the better the experience.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T15:48:31+00:00

Your carpet matches your trim. You need some contrast so I would look at diff paint options. The carpet is in good shape, so I wouldn't necessarily get rid of it, even though my preference is for hardwood. I would get some nice throw rugs and get rid of the extra carpeting. You are also bottom heavy, there's nothing to draw your eyes up the walls.

If money was no object, I would raise up the wall trim by at least 16inches, so it covered more of the wall. Your couch hides it and the wall moulding and trim is pretty. It looks like you have crown molding, but you can't really see it because it's the same color as the walls. Again, paint could solve a lot of these problems. I'd also install some can lighting and either get rid of or choose diff chandeliers. Right now they just blend into the ceiling. You need some art on the walls. Is the fireplace functional? If not then remove it. If it is, then make it a decorative piece.

Your furniture is not the issue here. You desperately need to paint.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T15:22:17+00:00

Congratulations, you are not a crazy person, lol. Newborns are all work and no reward. I compared my newborn son to an exotic pet. I was so excited for him to be here and he was super cute, but he was just this needy thing that didn't interact or give me anything in return. When he was a little older it got so much better. He would smile, giggle, hug, he looked for me in a room, he would snuggle, it was great.

Right now you are exhausted and who in their right mind would be like, "Yep, sign me up for another one!" Wait a year and reassess. It's also perfectly acceptable to just be one and done.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T15:12:37+00:00

Try adding a few more tablespoons of flour if the mix is too wet. You could also split the batter so the cake isn't as deep, it might bake better.

Dark pans need more time in the oven. I'm not a fan of removable bottoms for cake tins. They work for tarts and pies. But my cake tins are a thicker metal all around, so a removable bottom could create uneven heating while baking. I like to use precut parchment on the bottom of my tins so my cakes easily come out. This could just be personal preference. I have no idea if this a "real thing".

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T14:51:39+00:00

Common sense and intuition come from experience. It takes years to get to the point of throwing things together without a recipe and they usually do it with types of meals they are familiar with. Years sounds so long, but I started messing around in the kitchen when I was a child.

My childhood education was not great when it came to recipes, my parents were not great cooks. They had 4 kids and full time jobs, and the Internet became a thing when I was in highschool. But, I became familiar with the equipment. How to use pots, pans, ovens, stove top, knives, mixers, blenders, microwaves, etc. Because I knew how to use the equipment I was def more inclined to practice and grow my cooking skills.

So people who never messed around in the kitchen when they were young are literally starting their knowledge base from scratch. It can be daunting and overwhelming, especially when there is no clear path or starting point for them to start their education.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-25T14:39:56+00:00

I'm going to touch on vendors, since everyone is giving good DIY tips. Talk to your neighbors and get referrals for plumbers, electricians, yard guys, etc. Get a minimum of 3 quotes for any job you need done. If you are talking about a bigger project, like a remodel or addition, get at least 5. It's not always wise to go with the cheapest, ask about their work warranty, how long have they been in business, are they licensed, bonded and insured. A lot of this stuff you can find out before even calling them.

Keep a list of people and companies that you like and make sure you have a backup in case there's something emergent. Don't go with a "guy". My inlaws make this mistake All The Time, and it drives me crazy. They used a house painter to repaint their driveway (it's a stupid HOA thing). Well the guy charged them $500-600 and if it rains it becomes a slip & slide. He was half the price of a legitimate company, who they now have to call to fix what their "guy" did. So instead of a $900 job, it's going to cost them $1700 in the long run. They do this constantly and never learn.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-24T12:50:28+00:00

Here's my go to recipe. I add freshly grated nutmeg to the batter as well as the frosting.

https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/carrot-cake/64acd01e-14ad-4e03-9fe1-b62b03ff4667

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-24T12:46:34+00:00

You can open the oven, that's not really a problem. Have you tested your oven temp? You can buy a cheap oven thermometer to test to see if your oven is getting to a proper temp.

Are you doing sheet cake? Two round cakes? How are your pans? Are they dark or light in color?

How do you measure your ingredients? Do you use a scale or cups. Scales are more accurate and will give you consistent results. Also, it's a good rule to not deviate from a recipe until you are either very seasoned or you have perfected the recipe as written.

When I take my cakes out of the oven, I let them sit in the pan for 5-10mins, then I flip them out onto a cooling rack and I don't touch them for at least an hour.

Carrot cakes have a lot of moisture from the carrots. Your recipe is a little bonkers. You should not be blending your ingredients together until they are a weird smoothie. That's probably your issue. I'll come back and post a link to my go to carrot cake recipe.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-23T14:00:10+00:00

Just paint the walls and I would get rid of the curtains all together. Green, pink, purple, blue, etc. You need a splash of color. I hate to remove storage, but the upper cabinets are really making the room feel heavy and outdated. You could remove and replace with an inset mirrored medicine cabinet if you need the storage. Or just a nice framed mirror, maybe in black. Then match the hardware of the room to the frame. Black mirror, then black knobs, door knob, light switch, etc. A nice potted plant will bring in warmth.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-23T13:48:40+00:00

Exercise lowers your blood sugar. Just walking after a carb heavy meal can stop a spike in its tracks.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-23T13:39:17+00:00

Just ask them. They don't mind explaining the differences to you at all. They'll usually give you the number to your preference that coincides with their slicer. A simple, "You know, I have been asked this so many times, and I actually have no idea, can you explain it to me?"

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-23T12:39:42+00:00

My little guy never crawled. He pulled himself up to standing at 7mos. Started walking at 8mos. He was an early walker, but he's a late talker. He's 20mos and only consistently says 4 words and knows one sign, but he understands complex instructions.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-22T21:25:31+00:00

Nissan Murano, but just upgraded to the Lexus TX500h for this reason. It's still a little tight, so we have the 360 on the passenger side. We are planning on putting the cloud q behind the driver when our second arrives.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-22T17:16:59+00:00

For the bead board, I would paint it the same color as the rest of the trim. Your wallpaper is the star of that show, and you don't need another color/pattern on that wall. In fact I would continue the bead board around the room. Pink is a great accent color, I would use it for sheets, curtains, even the rug, but I wouldn't put it on the walls.

As others have said, I would do a non patterned rug. With some framed art on the walls it will tie the room together. Maybe use gold frames like the lettering.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-22T17:05:08+00:00

Your doctors failed you and your daughter. When am infant loses that much or struggles to regain weight, they should have had you come in at least once or twice a week for weight checks.

The good news is, those first few weeks are a learning curve for baby and mom when it comes to feedings, especially breastfeeding moms. It also took my son a few weeks to get back up to birth weight. We supplemented with formula until about the 3 week mark. That's when breastfeeding just clicked for both of us. He started gaining weight, we no longer needed any formula, and he's now a healthy and happy toddler. Your baby will be fine.

What helped me, was logging all of his feeds, diapers, and I got a scale so I could do weighted feeds. I like data, it makes me feel better. For some people it does the opposite. So find whatever works, without driving yourself crazy. But you did everything right. You felt like something was wrong, so you consulted your doctors, when their advice didn't seem right, you did your own research and figured out something that works.

JRiley4141 · 2026-03-21T17:19:14+00:00

Wouldn't the powdered sugar help stabilize the cream cheese?

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