background image in row not working

Hello
I seem to be having trouble again with the same issue. I pretty much know by now how to set a background image in a row but it’s not working. I’ve copied the settings from other sites I’ve built so not sure what the problem is.
I understand not to put padding in the row settings but when I add the image, it doesn’t show unless I add padding. I want some text over the image so I had to put padding in that column with negative #’s so to push it up. I know this is not the way to do it but was the only way to show you want I’m trying to accomplish.
I also notice that in a text block, the dropdown for choosing headings isn’t working. The only way for me to set size is in text mode.
thanks for your help!
Nancy