another noob, is my setup correct?

[Craiga 01453]

so two days later and all of the substrate is wet still, i can push on it and i see water so it is pretty well saturated. i also picked up the grapevine and it has mold growing so its no longer in the cage . . . fml . . . im thinking a complete substrate change this weekend (mondays and tuesdays are my weekend lmao)

You seem to be doing a great job of putting in the time and effort to make things right for your snake. Keep up the good work, it'll be worth it. It DOES get easier. You're in good hands with Zina and Sully guiding you.

I would definitely take Sully's advice about a substrate change due to the over soaking (lesson learned) if you haven't already done it.

I see you have the Mon/Tues "weekend". Are you in the restaurant business? I am a sautee chef and I used to have the Mon/Tues weekend for a while until I changed my schedule.

Experience and a permanent enclosure will definitely make things easier, but keep in mind you're doing a great job. Take some time to enjoy your awesome new animal, you deserve it