Chisue, yes.. we actually are planning on not going with the vaulted ceilings. I'm torn.. like the cozy look of the lower ceilings, but also appreciate the vaulted. DH is firm.. don't know WHY he seems to be winning all the battles! LOL Our current bonus room's AC is zoned, so with zing and a door. we will not have to heat and cool when we are no longer using it. After studying and study this floor plan along with William Poole's original Eastern Shore Cottage, 2 other plans of his, (which have almost the same layout) and using a tape measure to measure my current breakfast nook.. I think I need to make that nook narrower! It's almost 15' wide!! I think I'll make it move the width of the kitchen, 11' should be more than enough, don't you think? creekside, good option for the colliding doors ( open shelves) or possible could have the door open from the hall..? We are definitely planning our having the William Poole team tweak the plan a bit for us, so I'm trying to get everything down that I want to discuss with them.

My first impression involves light. I don't see any natural for the great room or kitchen. Agree. While we're looking at the kitchen, note that you have a "pinch point" at the entrance to the dining room; that is, all diners must enter through the small space between the island and the back wall. This means entering the dining area will be cumbersome, and the diners at the far end of the dining room will be "trapped". Note, too, that the only backyard access is through the dining room door ... but once you place furniture in this space, you'll not be able to reach this door. You need a backyard door in the great room. I agree about lack of natural light in some areas. If the bedrooms could have windows on two sides they would be much nicer. Windows on two sides of the bedroom are, indeed, very nice ... but I'd rather have those nicest windows in my living - kitchen - dining, the rooms where I'm awake. Do you need the half bath? I would have the guest suite bath re-worked so that it opens into the hall instead of the bedroom, and eliminate the half bath. Doing this would allow for all 'guests' to use it, saving on square footage/money. Being we're pretty much empty nesters too, I want the least amount of bathrooms to clean and maintain-lol! I totally agree. Between the cost of installation and the labor of cleaning every week, I'd rather have as few bathrooms as is reasonable. I'm not sure what your preference style is for doing laundry, it seems a bit far from your master? Instead of moving the laundry, I'd flip-flop the guest bedroom and the master bedroom. Especially since you anticipate being elderly in this house, it just makes sense to place the master near the garage entrance, which is the most convenient place. Put the rarely-used guest room on the far side. Referencing the toilet closet, if the person inside has fallen against the door or is unconscious needing emergency services, how does one get to them? These things do happen. I don't think this particular thing happens all that often, but toilet closets in general are not an elderly-friendly choice. They're too narrow for comfort, especially if you need assistance with mobility, they create an obstacle in reaching grab bars, and they're more difficult to clean. Walking around the house might be fine for someone as they age, add carrying a weighted object and it might prove to be difficult. Had a parent with back/balance issues, lugging anything was no easy task. A wheeled cart could help. Yes, when my grandmother was 98-99 and still lived alone, she could do her own laundry ... but she used a walker, and she could not carry a laundry basket back/forth to the laundry area. A wheeled cart would've been a big help. When I took her out, she often sat in the car and asked me to bring her a shopping cart ... she felt quite confident about walking with a cart in front of her. Thing is, if you intend to use such a cart in your home, you should go ahead and buy the cart (they come in a variety of sizes on Amazon) and PLAN a counter top under which it can scoot. Don't figure that you'll just pick up a cart later and assume it'll fit. - Someone asked if having both the master suite and the second bedroom on the main level would hurt our resale value. Makes sense, though the guest room isn't really big enough for in-laws to live in all the time ... the tiny vanity and modest closet aren't really "enough". - Another suggestion was to eliminate the powder room and have the guest bedroom suite bathroom open to the hallway. I just think that guests would be uncomfortable with others using their bathroom and would prefer a more private space. Disagree on all points. Other thoughts: - Note that you'll have to carry groceries the length of the kitchen, then through that little vestibule room to reach the pantry. I'd lose the half bath and open the pantry from both sides ... that'll be quite convenient. - Lots of jigs-and-jogs to drive up the price ... without any real benefit to the function. - Is that an exterior door at the back of the master? Such a door would be wise: 1) fire safety ... this bedroom isn't near any other exterior door. 2) Bringing furniture in through the 90 degree turn may prove difficult. - I'd lose the bedroom's main door ... and place it in the little bedroom hallway.

Quick question is it okay to have your main entrance into your living area? This was something I was previously told to avoid and to try create a "landing area" where coats etc could be kept and random knocks on the door would not have a direct view to your living area. When doing these things, in order to focus on what I want emphasized, for better or worse, I try to keep as much other stuff the same as possible so the owner doesn't get side tracked and it's easier for them to compare "apples to apples". In this case I was talking about moving the entrance. Sure, the entry could be a little better defined and maybe 5'x5' (1.5mx1.5m) but that's another conversation for another day with your guy/girl. Maybe the front door moves out to the plane of the wall with some sort of entry roof figured out. But foyers don't have to be big to get definition and a visual separation from other spaces. Examples below. Also would the hallways be very dark? This is again something i have tried to avoid. Again, I was focusing on the entry without getting you distracted so I didn't touch that but I'm not in love with that hall either. I'd be getting your designer to take a whole fresh look at that wing which is going to be time consuming. And I do have one question for you....normally the elevations, sections and the plan are developed simultaneously. In your case it looks like you have a well defined hard lined floor plan to the detailed level of different wall thickness shown for the exterior and interior walls but then you drew the elevations on level of what looks like a freehand crayon rough sketch. Does your guy/girl have elevations? If not, they should.

Just remember that OTR MWs are not cheap, while countertop models can be had for < $100. OTR MWs are, at best, mediocre hoods (and often not even that good) and meh MWs. If it were me, I would get an inexpensive hood, vented to the outside, and get a relatively inexpensive MW (1000 watts). The MW in the layout I did is mounted on a shelf under the upper cabinet next to the refrigerator, not sitting on the counter. It would not only make it look more upscale (and maybe increase your ability to rent it out), but it would also help keep the gunk build-up down, which you will need to clean each time it changes renters. Get one that's the same width as the range with lights and a high/low setting. I would try for 24"D, but if that drives the price up too much, 21"D may suffice to keep most of the gunk away. Flank it by uppers to help corral the FOGSS (fumes, odors, grease steam, smoke), and you should have a setup that goes a long way to making it look higher end overall.