I was all ready to say "get the 66" tub", but if it's only for the toddlers and you never use it, a case could be made for the large sink/small tub setup. If it were for you, I'd choose a small but elegant 24" sink and go with the larger tub. Maybe it's a good idea even if it's just for the kids. Something like a vessel sink vanity (pic below) takes up only 24" of width, but has plenty of storage space, and you and everyone else who sees it will think "wow, nice sink!" instead of "gee, the sink is too small". If you're on a smaller budget, Ikea's Hollviken or sinks look and work great, and cost under $100. Another good option is a which makes the sink feel much wider than it is by extending over the toilet. Get one of these, and every time you stretch out luxuriously in your 66" tub, you'll be glad you didn't get a 30" sink....

You know, I think there are actually more people who want just nice spacious walk-in showers but put in a tub when remodeling because they've run up against the real-estate wisdom that the house won't sell one than there are actually tub users. :-) Just my guess because it seems that whenever I pop over to the bathroom forum there is a question on page one from someone who says just what you are - we don't take baths, we'd like to retire the tub for a nicer shower, why can't I do it? - and a chorus of responses of "for resale, for resale!". I'm one of those former kinds AND I put replaced our tub with a new one, but I badly wanted to remove the tub of our main bathroom for a nice - er - make that decent - -sized walk-in shower. Eventually, didn't do it. I put in a tub but I just couldn't get enthused over what tub to get, what tub to get, what tub to get the way I did over the tile, the faucets, the countertop, and yes, even the WC. There is a tub there - it is still uninteresting - I think it is the Kohler Tea-for-two or the Kathryn or something. Whatever. This is my first house, resale was a consideration, and if when we sell the house the next set of buyers aren't bathtub people, I will hurt someone. So, basically, I don't know what to tell you. I badly wanted to pop the hatch on the tub and not put one in again. But I did. Is it the smart thing to do? At the moment, it continues to be an annoyance. At resale time, who-knows coz that hasn't happened yet. So, how do you factor in the cost of having to put in something you don't want for some future anticipated benefit at some indeterminate date for an unknown buyer who we expect will fit a certain mold in terms of their bathroom preferences??? Dunno! Take from this what you will.

Well, phooey. I taped it out in the bathroom with blue tape last night and it looked like it would fit, but with too many nos, I'm back to the drawing board. Interesting thought, Vix. Right now we don't actually have a toilet room, so much as a separate toilet "area" (there's no door, and the closet takes up too much room to add a door), but it's on my agenda to create one. In our house, it's very necessary. I generally use that bathroom to try to FIND privacy, only to have 3 people (and sometimes the dog) follow me into the bathroom. I'm looking forward to having a door that locks and a fan so that I don't have two little people handing me the TP and asking whether I'm doing number 1 or 2 (oh, and the 1 year old likes to flush while I'm ON the pot; so I've got my own special cold water washlet), while DH decides that he absolutely has to shave and brush his teeth at that exact moment. Now if I take a hike to the guest bath on the other side of the house, all three just follow me AGAIN. Sometimes when I have insisted on locking the door in the guest bath (no way to do that with our LOUVERED -- why??? -- pocket door in the master), my one year old plopped down prostrate outside the door and cried until I open the door. For my W/C, I want to put in a LOUD fan; no whisper quiet for me. Maybe I'll even add a radio. :) The way I'm seeing it, I can either get rid of the long vanity altogether and live with a fairly small vanity, plus a tub and shower, I can skip the tub and live with the kids' bathroom on the third level as the only room with a tub, or we can bump out that weird corner jog, which would give us an additional 49'' X 27'' space -- enough to fit a 5X3 tub, 5X3 shower and keep the two vanities. But that sounds very expensive and will require carefully removing and replacing the siding to match the existing. DH's response to all this was "why do we need a tub?"

Our carpenter/foreman is married to our real estate agent. She (agent) said that we should definitely have a tub in our MB for resale - b/c people will want it, even though they may never use it! Carpenter said to toss the tub - a larger shower would be better. We tossed the tub, replaced it with a large walk in shower. Shower will have a handheld shower head - one of those on a sliding bar - and a built in bench, also "nonhospital" grab bars. We found some *great* tiles for a small tile mural with matching accent tiles - should be very nice, and much more attractive and useful than a tub. We did agree to a tub in the second bathroom - a tub/shower combo. If I had my druthers, I'd switch that tub to a shower as well. Oh well. This is a one story house, so both bathrooms can be reached without stairs. We're putting a bench in the extra space in our master bathroom. You know, for sitting on after your shower, drying your toes off, etc. Although we did also consider a cabinet for towels. Extra storage. Most people we've talked to say that they rarely use bathtubs as adults. We feel good about our decision.