I just finished it!! that screw driver and "spanner" idea really helped!! thank you so much!
I still ran into some issues once I got it rotated trying to pull the dang thing out.

I don't know if this will help anyone, but I took some real fine tipped needle nose pliers and grabbed onto one of the plastic tabs sticking out of the side of the housing. Once I had a good hold (and the rim had been WD-40'd) it popped right out.
Thanks again for the help guys!