Sorry to get everyone focused on your bath. But, it is something valid to consider (Lyfia makes it more clear than me--your office IS a bedroom, which you are choosing to use as an office). Also, we just did almost a very similar addition 2 years ago. It will be very handy to have access to the half bath from where you primarily spend your time downstairs. For your kids, this will be in the informal areas of your house (ie, the family room). It is a long walk/run to the bathroom from the family room. (I know you said that the LR will be the playroom for now, but I am thinking that functionally, it will end up the other way around... If you are like me, we spend a lot of time in the kitchen--preparing snacks, meals, etc. And, to keep an eye on your kids, your layout doesn't allow that for the playroom space/LR. It does though, for the FR.--so in this case, another useful tidbit might be if you/your spouse is a SAHparent or if really the kids occupy the space only a few hours a day). Also, while I am discussing my experience with our addition. Are you sure you can do this addition? Are you on septic or sewer? What we learned in our addition is that septic systems were historically built out the back of the house behind the kitchen sink/bathroom. Since your former house plan has the kitchen and baths in essentially the same location as ours, you may want to make sure you are able to build without covering your septic tank (or moving it). Or, if your house was converted to sewer from septic like ours, you may find that you will still need to decommission your septic tank (an added expense to plan for in budget that will pop up when they start digging if you didn't already know about it.) I will think on your kitchen concerns, but in the mean time, can you tell us what is under your stairs, and why there is the cutout in the kitchen wall between the kitchen and stair/hallway?

rhome410 - thanks for the suggestion around flipping the fridge / pantry area. I had considered it early in the process, but we were hoping to avoid in order to prevent changes to the dining room (wallpaper and paneled.) However, as you will see below I created an updated floorplan and included your suggestion. I think it helps with the overall functionality of the space. We considered the full range over the rangetop / wall ovens. We really like to idea of an oven that is up off the floor for both easy access and distance from small children. Also, the fact that the oven + rangetop combo is actually significantly cheaper is a factor. On the other hand, the full range makes the floor plan easier to arrange, provides ventilation for the ovens and also has the benefit of providing an excellent "centerpiece" to the kitchen appearance. I'd say we're undecided at this point. Do you think I have the right pro/con list? kaismom - thanks for the thoughtful feedback you've given on the overall flow and interaction of the spaces we're designing. I completely agree that this is one of the most important aspects of the design process and is also one of the hardest to figure out since it can be difficult to visualize. Let me give you a few more facts that I haven't already provided. First, we live in the Boston area (not VA). The funny thing is that we used to live in VA - up until about five years ago - so I know what you are talking about! Given the combination of relatively few truely hot days and the fact that our backyard has mostly indirect light except for in the early morning, we aren't to concerned about to much light heating up the house. The back wall of the kitchen that faces the backyard does face southwest, so I'd expect great morning light and then indirect light as the day goes on. Second, your suggestion about casual family dining is an excellent point. We were thinking that the island would be the center of family life in the evenings (homework, dinner prep, dining, clean-up.) You will see below that I've created a revised floorplan and added a placeholder for a table to the plan. My thinking right now is that we wouldn't add the table - but it gives us the option. You make some excellent points about how as the kids grow older, all being seated facing each other might be a valuable habit - I'll keep them in mind. Third, you suggested I consider how we interact with the house / yard today. I'd say 90-95% of our entrance / egress from the house happens via the garage. This is in spite of the fact that we have three other entrances (including two in the backyard.) Now that you've suggested I give this careful considering - I don't expect this to change much - so this is probably the most important entrance to get right. The second priority would be the backyard, as the kids get older I envision more time (especially on the weekends) being spent playing in the backyard. In fact, this consideration is why we are having so much consternation about giving up the side view. While not having direct access to the mudroom from the backyard isn't ideal, I'm not sure we can have both the side view and this access. Adding a door from the backyard into the garage or coming through the kitchen wall adjacent to the garage won't work because there is a bulkhead access to the basement in that corner that cannot move. That's unfortunate since this would have been an excellent solution - thanks for the suggestion! palimpsest - you asked about the right front room. It is currently a room that gets little use. We'd like to eventually turn this into a library / study of sorts since the idea of a formal living room doesn't appeal. Adding the powder room of the central hall would reduce the room dimensions from 17x18 to 13x18 - I was thinking this was still adequate space for the use we envision. Perhaps a little more of a rectangle than would be ideal, but still a space we could make work. What do you think? bmorepanic - Excellent point about the double french doors. The more my wife and I think about it, the fact that they swing creates space problems and also makes it difficult to have screens on the doors. I don't see that much opportunity to have both of these doors wide open with no screens as it's either darn cold or there are to many bugs around. Given this, we're leaning more towards a sliding door. The fact that it isn't centered on the hallway isn't all that big of a deal to me, but I'll keep an eye on it when I can get some renderings and make sure it doesn't look strange. I'm still thinking about the idea of moving the fridge to the wall adjacent to the garage. Biggest concern about this is that it moves it farther away from the family room and backyard entrance. Maybe this reduces the convenience factor? However, it does create some benefits around allowing open counter space across the whole backyard wall and what feels like a more convenient work layout. I'll keep this in mind. If you get a chance, take a look at the layout I'll provide below and let me know what you think. sundownr - it's great to hear the dimensions of your space and that you find it functions well. Very encouraging that we will eventually find a solution that will work for my family. Also great to hear you eat at the island and enjoy it - this is what we envision today. Also, the photos are helpful - thank you for providing them. As you mention, I see you went with the full range which solves the wall oven problem. We like the idea of wall ovens for their convenience and also like the ideas of deep drawers under the cooktop for pots and pans, but both the convenient floorplan as well as the asthetics of the full range certainly appeal. We're still undecided there. New Revised Floorplan: I've incorporated some of the suggestions everyone has provided in this update. Still isn't perfect, but I'd be interested to see what people think. Thanks again for all the helpful suggestions!

Full disclosure: I have granite, because I had a rock collection as a kid and I just love stones. On the advice of my fabricator, I still use trivets or hot pads under hot pans. I don't cut on the granite, because it would ruin the knife. So I don't think I'm getting any more function out of my granite that you would out of Formica. There is nothing wrong with laminate, IMO, in fact there are many lovely new patterns and textures as well as some great vintage ones they have brought back. I lived with the PO's pink-with-gold-flecks Formica, with a full BS and that chrome trim, for over 20 years. I thought it was pretty. New laminates don't seem to have what I saw as the biggest drawback, that gunk-gathering chrome strip. Stones are beautiful and durable, but I think they also have a lot of snob appeal. All that House Hunters "I must have granite and stainless" nonsense. But I have seen beautiful kitchens on here done with laminate. Get what you like (which will prove you are an individual and not a sheep) and what you can afford (which will prove that you are wise). No need to apologize.

You should wait to fertilize until you've mowed the lawn at least once, or 30 days have passed since you put seed down.. Which ever comes first. Mow when it's 3 inches tall, and cut it to 2.5 inches. After that, I would not mow it until its 3.5 to 4 inches tall, and I would not cut it below 3 inches. I would only fertilize 0.5 lb of nitrogen per 1000 sq ft the first time you feed the new lawn. For example, if you have a 12.5lb bag of 32-0-10 fertilizer, there are 4 lbs of nitrogen (12.5 x .32 = 4) in the bag. If your lawn was 8000 sq ft, you could apply the entire 12.5 lb bag and achieve the desired rate of 0.5lb/1k sqft. (4lbs / 8ksqft = 0.5 lb N per 1ksqft) If your lawn was 4000 sq ft, you would apply half the 12.5lb bag and achieve the desired rate of 0.5lb/1k sqft (6.25 lbs of fertilizer * 0.32=2 lbs N.. 2 lbs nitrogen / 4ksqft = 0.5 lb N per 1ksqft) if your lawn was 2000 sqft., you would apply only a quarter of the bag --- 3.125lb. (3.125*.32=1 lb N.. 1 on N / 2k sqft = 0.5 lb N per 1k sqft) After you have mowed four times, you could think about applying a weed control product. Use a pump sprayer and spot treat. It's pointless to spray entire yard if ther weeds are only in some areas. about 4 weeks after you have fertilized at the half pound rate, you could probably doma follow up using a full pound rate.