Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus syriacus. This looks like a cultivar known simply as "double pink". FYI, rose of Sharon is considered a shrub but is often trained into a tree-like form, like your relatives'.

you have our permission.. to do whatever you want to the plants in your garden ... what more can i say??? i dont know what else you need to know.. get saw .. apply to bark.. and continue back and forth motion.. until the top is severed ... it will not kill it ... who knows what it will look like in 10 years ... no one has that answer ... worse thing you can do.. is make it so ugly.. you actually decide to remove it some time ... personally.. i wouldnt do it.. but who cares what i think about your tree ... perhaps a picture will get you alternatives ... have fun.. teach it a lesson on who is in charge of this house.. ken

Lots of possibilities. We have a similar nook (was a dining area) right off the living area … we have chairs, a china cabinet (for storage and pretties), lamp, rug, and small game table (we found a vintage end table and painted a chess/checkerboard grid on it). A couple of chairs, table, lamp, etc, would work well. Or bookcase with chair and ottoman (seen on Pinterest): Another idea is a chaise lounge area … chaise, bookcase, lamp, small table, rug, pillows, throw. I have no idea of your decor style, budget, etc — that’s just a general idea of items. The bookcase would go on the right side wall and art on the other. Lighting of some sort should be a priority, as it looks pretty dark. Floor lamp, hanging fixture, something.

Your layout is almost exactly like mine in that area except i have the entrance behing my sofa separated by a wall where i put my smaller desk. Ignore the tons of decor I have..I'm a little maximallist..lol....Keep your sectional..no sense in wasting money when you could use it for other things you need. Move that tv off of the fireplace! It is way too high and it never looks good unless its a very modern setup with a lower mantle. Put the tv on the wall or on its feet on the sideboard. It can be used as a media cabinet. If you move it to the very left you will have room for your lamp and whatever other decor. Put a chair next to sideboard in the corner by the window with a small table and lamp. it doesnt need to be facing the tv...not all seating needs to face a tv. You could put a dresser or bar cart or another matching table in front of the window opposite the fireplace to balance out the area. Or you could use your sideboard for its original purpose in that area to function with your dining space and buy a real media cabinet for the tv. Also a small round coffee table looks good with a section or 2 small round nesting tables. Mine is too big but i'll get around to replacing it with something a little smaller one of these days. I would definetly put something behind the couch separating the dining area from the seating area...a slim bench? a slim sofa table? you could put 2 small ottomons under the sofa table for extra seating. Put a lamp on sofa table for lighting and some decor, and use the floor lamp somewhere else...i use mine in my office. The area to the right of the sideboard is too much space so if you could, slide it over a bit to where its still comfortable to view tv which shoud work if you put the tv on the left side. Then you could put a plant or ? and put a small grouping of art. you could also put shelving on each side of the tv but i put mine above because i have alot of art and collectibles that i love. Anyway, just a different perspective and some ideas. Take care