Thanks. I never had a problem with Dells, so I guess I'm lucky. I have had problems with an HP laptop, and decided I wouldn't deal with them again. Could have been bad luck, but it does turn you against dealing with a company you had a hard time with. My experience has been that most businesses use Dell computers so they must be doing something right. I guess its sort of like Chevy or Ford. I am looking for a desktop. I was tempted to get a laptop which I could hook a monitor to, but it costs more than buying a desktop. I want an I5 or I7. I want memory and hard-drive. I want HDMI and lots of usb ports. I want a good monitor and I want a machine where I can stream video and not worry about it. And, I'd like to keep it under $1,200.00! I'll keep looking. Doing a lot of research because I would be replacing our main computer. We do have lots of laptops, XP and a Win 7 and Win 8 (never use it). I still have concern about the upgrade option to Win 10. Might be better to wait until the compters come installed with it. Hopefully the bugs will be worked out by then. I'm glad to hear I can use my older version of Office on a Win 8. So glad our XP's are still going strong and all our security software still updates without any problems. Jane

Hi All, Many of you will recognize me from the Newbie Seed Project. We offer a variety of seed packs to newbies here on GW/Houzz their first year, and/or if for some reason they are starting over. I putting this ask out early, as people are starting to collect/save seeds, and I would appreciate any extras you have to donate. In the past couple years, there seems to be a higher request for veggie seeds (maybe 3 to 1) than flowers, tho we get requests for both. Questions, please message me..and/or for my mailing address (which is new..just moved this summer) THANK YOU in advance! Val

I don't have a lot of saved veggie seeds right now, but I've got some big packs of commercial seeds I could share. What are you interested in? When I started I hooked up with a great (gone) trade group that got me to try all kinds of new plants. It was great & I'll be glad to help get you started!

Welcome Jennifer! Could you please post a sketch of the entire floor? It helps to see how the Kitchen & Dining Room relate to the entire home as well as shows us how traffic flows in, around, and through the Kitchen & Dining Room. I also have a few more questions.... Do you plan to leave the table in the Kitchen space (b/w the Family Room and Kitchen)? If keeping the table, do you really need more seating in the Kitchen? They'd be on top of each other. You might be better off just adding a table in the Playroom/Dining Room -- use that one for meals and keep the Kitchen table for homework, etc. You might make the table in the Kitchen into an island so you get more storage. Do you have a pantry elsewhere? Can the exterior door (6'8") in the Kitchen be moved? In addition to Garage access, does the 31" doorway lead to a Mudroom, Laundry Room, etc.? Where does the 29" door lead? Directly into a Bathroom? Or, a hall that also has a door to the Bathroom Where is your front entry? What is the material of your exterior? Brick? Siding? Other? Is the Family Room at the same level as the Kitchen? (I.e., not sunken) What is the room "above" the current Dining Room? (It's accessed via the 122" archway) How high off the floor are the windows in the bay? How deep is the bay? In your drawing, it appears to be 24", but I wanted to verify. What appliances and their sizes are you planning? I assume a 24" DW. Refrigerator? (36" is standard for most) Counter-depth or standard-depth refrigerator? Range/stove or cooktop? (30" is standard for both) Hood? (6" wider than the range/stove/cooktop is standard) Other? Right now, the main constraints I see are: The door in the Kitchen -- it can be tricky trying to put something permanent (e.g., island) that blocks access to the door in that space. Could the door be moved to the Dining Room, maybe where the bay window is now? Could it be moved to the Family Room (probably the better of the two locations)? Basement stairs, primarily b/c they limit the depth of your Kitchen. For an island with seating you need more depth than you have right now. Bay Window...it's too deep to put anything in front of it and the walls on either side are too shallow to put in counters...that really eliminates moving the Kitchen into that space without significant $$$. Regarding merging the Dining Room with the Kitchen...Do you have another room that can function as a Dining Room close by (other than the Kitchen)? Just putting an island in the DR and leaving the Kitchen in the other room is really not advised as the island would have no real access to the Kitchen and the necessary fixtures and appliances. All you'd really be doing is replacing a (future) table with an island. A table is much more flexible and much more comfortable to eat it. Recommendations... Convert the Playroom to a Dining Room and start eating your meals there (see below for how we did it) Move the exterior door to the Family Room (or Dining Room) Change out the exterior door for a window that matches the other window (48") and 36" off the finished floor (i.e., a counter-height window) (Optionally, it could be a 60"W window) If within budget, make the other window 36" off the finished floor as well Expand the Kitchen into the entire space Add an island in the deeper part Put in a shallow pantry (either built-in or shallow cabinets; built-in is much cheaper) along the wall with the stairs. I think the above would give you everything you need as well as want. See below for the result of the above recommendations. Note the Cleanup Zone and Dish Storage are next to the Dining Room, making it easier to clear or set the table without getting in the way of someone working in the Kitchen. There are two Prep Zones with direct access to water -- a KEY component to a functional/successful Prep Zone. The primary one is in the island and a secondary is b/w the cleanup sink and range. There are other areas that can be used for prepping, if needed (e.g., during a party). Nice separation of primary work zones in general so multiple people can be working in the Kitchen at the same time without getting in each other's way. There is plenty of storage in both cabinets as well as the Pantry. The Pantry is a "reach-in" pantry and is 105" wide (8'9"). It has plenty of room for food as well as small appliances. The island seats 5. The long side has an 18"D overhang to not only give you plenty of leg room but to also provide plenty of space for homework and other projects while meal prep is going on. . How we did it... We did exactly what you did...we used the DR as a Playroom until our children grew out of it. We had a tiny eat-in Kitchen space that we grew out of at the same time. We converted the Playroom to a Dining Room and then redid our Kitchen as a non-eat-in Kitchen (we had a tiny bay area in the middle of the Kitchen). We took down most of the wall b/w the two rooms and put in a peninsula b/w them for some separation. The Dining Room became a more formal Kitchen table/less formal Dining Room table -- in between. It was probably the best thing we did. It allowed us to have a place to eat without having dirty dishes from meal prep, etc., in our faces while eating and provided our children with a bit more formality. Interestingly, their table manners improved when we started eating in the DR. Our Kitchen is similar in depth to yours (11') and while I tried very hard to shoehorn in an island, I eventually realized (with the help of folks here) that my Kitchen could not support an island...thus the peninsula was born. I ended up with a shallow "U" shaped Kitchen with counters on both sides of the Kitchen. You have more space to work with than we did as well as a deeper part of your Kitchen – so an island is a possibility, especially if you can move the door. . Another option, but not as functional. . . Blank Slate: