one TP roll + spray paint = wall art

Hello All! We are officially moving January 2nd! Our stuff will be temporarily going into storage and we will be living in a little cabin in the woods thanks to one of the guys that works with Adam. I have posted all my unwanted furniture on Craigslist, packed all rooms except the master bedroom, and started cleaning up our little casa. Inspection on the new house will hopefully be done by the end of this week and then we can move forward and I can get to work re-doing the new, old house.

I leave you today with a little recyclable wall art that can be made with toilet paper rolls, some spray paint and a little glue. I cannot wait to make it!

To see step by step instructions click here!

Source: Design Sponge

1 + 2 = 3?

For you who have searched for their first home, you know the task can be difficult, frustrating, exciting, and disappointing all in the same moment. Here is a rundown of the homes we have put offers on and didn't get or choose not to pursue anymore.


House #1


We made an offer on this house Saturday, November 14, 2009. This was the weekend Adam went to Trinity in view of a call. It had 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, great location, but a huge yard (1/4 of an acre), it was far from Wal-Mart, no charm of an older home, and we couldn't agree on a price. So...enter house #2:


Beautiful....two stories with an unfinished basement, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, a fireplace in the master bedroom....to think of it there wasn't anything about it I didn't like. However, it was way overpriced (they put too much work into it) and wouldn't come down enough to meet the {aKa love} budget.
Enter house #3:



Gorgeous, stunning, beautiful, built in 1940. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 bath, 1930 sq feet, a den, an office, original wood floors throughout, and a great location. It is a HUD home, meaning it was repossessed and the bank was selling it for a low, low price, however, it comes as is (no mantle on the fireplace, work to do in both bathrooms, refinishing wood floors, fixing where the car port was torn down). For those unfamiliar with buying for the bank, we had to bid and the highest bidder wins. We won this little gem, Monday at 9:30 a.m. in the morning. Pending an inspection, this little dollhouse will be ours and at $37 dollars per sq/foot all the TLC she needs will be well worth it in the end.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

boxes + tape = packing

Started the process of packing today. Although we still have no exact location of where we will be living, the lease is up and we are moving out trusting and knowing that God will provide. To let everyone know how much of a "type A" personality I am, I even organized how I packed. I had piles for everything and even labeled all my boxes so I would know what each contained.


Here was my trusty companion, who completely tore up a toy that was rediscovered during the packing process.
Everything got a good swiffer before going into the boxes. Now when I get everything out, it will be ready to be placed in its new home sans dusting.


Then, each item, if breakable was wrapped in newspaper to prevent breaking during the move. I was all about recycling for this project. All boxes used in the A+K move are from restaurants, businesses or donated from people who recently moved. I know, go green!


Here is my label so I knew what was in each box. Everything could be in boxes for a few months so I may not remember where it all is, this was an easy solution.


This is the stack of boxes that has begun in the living room. It was sad to pack it all up. This was Adam and I's first house as newlyweds and we are both sad to be leaving. However, we are extremely happy, nervous, excited to be first time homebuyers and are excited to see what house we end up buying!