Flip it, Flip it Good: Fixing up a Foreclosure

So, we are in the process of fixing up a foreclosure. Yep, switching out appliances, getting matching ceiling fans, door, knobs, painting, seriously this list could go on FOREVER! 

Warning: This post has A LOT of pictures! These are the "before"... i.e. the first time we walked in the house.  The "after" will come when the work is done! I may post some progress pictures at a later date. 

Front porch.

Front view of house.

 

 

 

Front entry room, living room to the left, dining room to the right.

Dining room, standing in the front entry room.  Door you see is to master bedroom on far right side of the house.  We are keeping it this color.

Master bedroom

Master bath

Master bath

Master Bath WIC

Master bed WIC

Kitchen

Walk in pantry

Dining knook in the kitchen

Laundry/mudroom off the kitchen

Mudroom side of laundry room

Part of living room

Other side of living room.  Kitchen to the right, 2 beds and a bath to the left.

Steps leading upstairs, hallways to 2 beds and a bath.

Front of living room, entry room, hallway pantry to kitchen.

Coat closet under the stairs

Guest hallway bath

Bathroom #2 linen closet

Bedroom #2

Bedroom #3

Bathroom #3

Upstairs awesome room connected to bathroom, closet and other bedroom.  Could be bedroom #4.

Bedroom #5 or office/craft room.

Another view of my favorite room, from above i.e. awesome room :)

Upstairs hallway with linen closet leading towards bonus room.

Bonus room at the top of the steps.

Door to close off upstairs from downstairs, looking into bonus room.

Steps to downstairs.

View from bottom of the stairs, whole living room, entry room, dining room and kitchen.

Driveway/side yard.

Two, working AC units

Rickety ole deck on the back porch, leading into kitchen.

Back of house.

Detached 2 car garage.

Nasty ole shed.

Shed filled with CRAP!

2 car garage filled with CRAP.

I still cringe remembering the HOURS, SWEAT, and MANY trips to the dump to get this thing cleaned out!

Back of garage with extra storage... yes allllllll cleared now.

Back property line.

 What's been done so far:

• Pressure washed house and garage.
• Painted exterior doors and faux shutters navy.
• Cleaned out garage and shed.
• Mowed the lawn and prepped front for a flower bed (just putting in bushes)
• New back deck
• Ripped out old carpet
• Primed and first coat on ALL interior walls (Valspar Hopsack with white trim and doors)
• Repainted all interior doors.
• Changed out all ceiling fans to match
• Took off all old door knobs (have new ones to put on after painting is done)
• Took off all old cabinet pulls (painted brushed nickle, will show on another blog post)
• Replaced the microwave.
• Fixed a few leaks in the roof.
• Fixed holes/cracks in the walls (obviously before paint)
• Put up a new mailbox
• Baseboards upstairs
• Cable/internet and phone upstairs
• Changed out exterior door knobs/deadbolts on house and garage.

What still needs to be done:

• Front flower bed/bushed planted
•  Finish painting
• Lay new carpet and vinyl (upstairs bathroom)
• Put on new door knobs.
• Put on painted cabinet pulls.
• Check/replace outside motion lights on house and garage.
• Install upstairs bathroom fixtures (sink, toilet, vanity).
• Install 2" plantation blinds upstairs (to match downstairs)
• Rake gravel driveway/bring in more gravel (maybe)
• Get a mosquito spray treatment or two.
• Give it a good cleaning.
• Put in on the market... 
• Pray it sells...
• Make a little cash...
• Or live in it because it won't sell!

I probably missed something important, but other than that... we're definitely on the short end of the list now (PRAISE THE LORD) It's an adorable house, that we love! On a little over an acre on a private lot with only a few neighbors around.  The biggest problem is really poor cell phone reception.  The biggest advantages, plenty of room for family, friends, and future babies!  Not to mention we can shoot on our property, yeahhhhh! haha Alright, that's all for now.  More updates to come soon!

From our kitchen to yours: Turtle Cheesecake

Well, Charles and I finished the last slice of cheesecake last night... so I thought I'd put up the blog post now so I didn't rush home and finish off whatever was left :) 

I got this recipe from Pinterest http://www.momswhothink.com/cheesecake-recipes/turtle-cheesecake-recipe.html

(I think I only changed the crust, one bag of fake oreos, 1 stick of butter) 

But the desire and inspiration came from:

 http://www.atlantacheesecakeco.com/gallery.html

 Sorry no picture but Walmart carries 2 slices of this companies Turtle Cheesecake in the freezer section for less than $2... and it was amazing!

I'm not going to post the ingredients list and stuff, because it's on the link above, but here are some pictures of my creation in the making!

Most of the ingredients

My favorite tool to make cookie crusts!

Pour in the melted butter...

Now it's all combined! Dump it out and put it in the springform pan!

Cookie goodness :)

I use a smaller pan (this was a 6" in a 9" pan) to help evenly spread the crust.

Good ole stand mixer with my favorite scraping beater

Smooth and creamy!

All done! I think mine took about 55 mins to bake (the recipe said 30-40... bah)

I always loosen the cake from the edge with a thin paring knife.

Gotta have the little rim to hold the topping in :)

The finished cheesecake!

Yep, very... VERY yummy! Everyone approved :) Especially baby Brooke!

You Make Beautiful things: 19 Weeks

How far along? 19 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: This is hard to judge because I don't really have my starting pre-preggo weight... I'd say about +6 lbs though...

Maternity clothes? Some pants, but just the all elastic waist type, none with the weird belly panel.

Stretch marks? haha okay, oh my stomach, no. But all the other ones are there with all their pride and glory from my constantly yo-yoing weight (85 lbs to 110 in less than a year due to an eating disorder in high school definitely causes the skin to stretch)

Sleep: Pretty good, I love sleep! Still sleeping on my stomach, but trying really hard to sleep on my side. I have 3 pillows and one little NCSU roll pillow... I like pillow right now, and Charles is jealous and rolls over and sleeps on my side in the mornings (I wake up before him).

Best moment this week: haha having friends at church try to cover up the fact that they wrote to another friend of mine who's having twin boys (and already has a 14 month old son) "no, you're lucky... boys are so much easier! Girls are needy, and expensive and high maintenance" haha and then "oh Kim, you'll be fine... girls are great!" haha thanks guys... thaaaanks!

Miss Anything? Cold sandwich meat... a turkey sub from Subway would be divine right now!

Movement: Yep! A few flutters here and there :) I feel her the most if I'm standing up and eating or right after I eat and stand up.

Food cravings: Cheesecake, I made a really awesome turtle cheesecake I'll share on here later in the week. And anything salty!

Anything making you queasy or sick: No, Brooke's been so very nice to me! Really, I've only thrown up twice (if that) in the past 19 weeks... bless you sweet child!

Have you started to show yet: Barely :( People at Zumba just think I'm getting fat... thaaaaanks again!

Gender: A sweet little lady, Brooke Grayson!

Labor Signs: Nope, but definitely some sharp pains in my lower pelvis when I stretch.

Belly Button in or out? In, and it better stay in!

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy happy happy... I do get annoyed pretty easily (I hate people that drive slower than the speed limit, and people who are rude and sarcastic)

Size of Baby: She's 8 1/2 ounces and 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato.

Looking forward to: Hearing her little heart beat at our next appointment! I think it's in about a week or two, I should check that :)

Pregnancy: Food

So these past 18 weeks have been very easy... too easy in my book. 
I have maybe thrown up twice...
No big problem with smells...
I sleep great...
I wake up to pee a lot (but I already did that pre-baby, 2 times a night is now 4)
Not much acne...
And I like, but I'm not abusing food.

You're only suppose to have 300 extra calories a day.  Yep, that's really not much.  Since I work 45 mins from home, I have to wake up early to eat breakfast at home, or I just eat in the car.  I like to pick something and stick to it for a while, it makes it easy as a routine in the morning.  Right now I'm stuck on...
 

2 waffles, toasted, with a little bit of margarine, a glass of skim milk, and a little saucer (about 3 tbsp) of no sugar maple syrup.  Could be better... but it could be worse!

Lunch, once again, I'm at work, is normally a frozen meal $1... 

$1 and pretty filling

 Or my most recent favorite... Wendy's .99 cent Monterey Ranch Crisp Chicken Sandwich!

I'm pretty obsessed with these suckers right now... yep, probably my lunch again today!

haha okay, I know all you health freaks are probably cringing right now!  Sorry :)  It's easy, cheap and it tastes good. If I were better, I would prepare extra food to not only have as another leftover meal for Charles' lunch, I would make enough for me too... but I don't.

A snack at work is normally a banana, string cheese, and almonds.  Yes, I keep snacks in my drawer at work... I hate our vending machine options!

Dinner is anything from a frozen pizza with celery and carrots, salad with grilled chicken,  some kind of Italian pasta/sauce/chicken, or any combo of grilled chicken/rice/veggies.  That's kinda the norm around our house... Chicken, chicken, chicken.  Can I prepare other meats? Sure I can! Do I want to spend the extra money for seafood, pork or beef... nope! I we get those when we go out to eat (which is ehhh maybe once a month, pending coupon or gift card) haha we're a hoot.

Oh yes, and I have "craved" as Charles would say... Cheesecake, apple pie, regular wavy potato chips, and french fries! But friends, those have, and will always be my favorite foods, nothing abnormal for pregnancy!

The only food I really don't enjoy right now is...

Peanut Butter

Yuck, I can't stand the stuff! In a sandwich, on a cracker, or even in a granola bar.  It just doesn't taste good to me. Not that I loved it before, but I at least liked it, now, I steer clear of it.  I don't even think I'd eat a peanut butter cookie!

Okay, that's all for now!