Help please - can't login to windows

[welshTerrier2]

here's the sequence of events that led to this idiocy ...

1. my "other" laptop (windows xp pro) was setup to run in a domain (the username/pwd was setup as an admin in the domain)
2. the domain exists in mrs. wt2's office - the laptop is currently being used at home
3. i tried to switch the laptop from using the domain to using a workgroup
4. after clicking the "Workgroup" radio button for the laptop and typing in the workgroup name, i clicked "OK" and was prompted to "reboot before changes can take effect" ... i clicked "OK"
5. when Windows started again, i was prompted for a username/pwd and the default username i always use appeared in the username box
6. i entered the password and got a message that the system could not log me on - check username and domain
7. i tried to log into the admin account using the domain admin password - same error
8. after considerable research, it appears i need to login to the LOCAL admin account ... i'm trying to obtain the PWD for that now
9. i've also found a number of utilities that can reset the local Admin password but i'm a little concerned about the risks they may cause

any ideas on how to get back into windows? on the windows login screen, i'm only prompted for username/pwd - not for a domain

would it help to put this machine back on the network in mrs. wt2's office? would that allow a login?

any help would be GREATLY appreciated ...

[welshTerrier2]

1. UPDATE

Ok ... i actually guessed the local Admin password and can now login to the laptop ...

the next question is, is there a way to transfer the profile I was using on the domain to a user account on the local machine ... i understand i can create a new user and copy all the files from the "domain account's" My Documents folder to the new user account ... i've been able to rebuild the Firefox profile (minus extensions and toolbars) ... how about Desktop settings? other settings?