Do you really think the living area and kitchen will be that dark with there being windows on all 3 walls of the breakfast area and lots of big windows on that living room wall???? To answer your question, yes. My last place was a condo. I had floor to ceiling sliders in the living room and dining area. My kitchen had no windows and the layout was kitchen>dining room>sliders to the outside. My windows faced due west. Even in late afternoon with the sun low in the sky, the light didn't penetrate into my open kitchen and my kitchen was only 11' from the sliders. In my second house, my dining room never saw any natural light. I had a 3 season sunroom right off the dining room and it had windows on the south, east and west wall. That room was only 10' deep. No light ever penetrated to the dining room. I think some of you are used to a much fancier life than we are haha 😅 This has nothing to do with fancy and everything to do with good design. My first house was a small (1600 square feet) bungalow on a 40' x 100' lot with a detached garage. The house was built in 1927 and the bedroom/master bath was added onto in the 60's. Even in that small bungalow my bedroom had windows on two walls. And my kitchen had an actual window over the sink. For example I grew up in a bedroom with windows on only one side and I survived just fine. I dont have the time to lay in bed and stare out a window anyway. It isn't only for staring out a window. It's also for cross ventilation and natural light.

I did this for my chicks several years ago, but I sandwiched the heating pad between 2 boxes. The outer box was an easy to replace standard amazon size, it just went in the compost after the chicks had pooped all over it.

A few things that came to my mind.... Depending on what your soil composition is (mine is black clay), DIY-ing a fence could possibly be one of the biggest pains-in-the-rear you've ever had the privilege of inflicting upon yourself, lol. I'm not discouraging you from doing it, but learn the best method/materials for your soil type. :-D Perhaps it's a blessing in disguise that your landscaper quit. Every single tree in my new-construction neighborhood was planted too deeply for our soil, with a mulch volcano as well (no idea if the same company did all of the landscaping; there are at least 6 different tract builders), causing a ton of trees to struggle. It's frustrating and sad. If you do the plants yourself, you will know where the in-ground irrigation is. Bonus if you do the irrigation lines for the flower beds yourself. I have no idea what the heck the landscapers were smoking when they installed the hoses in my mulched area, but good grief it was awful. Depending on your USDA Zone, if your build finishes in February 2022, be careful with new plants. Transplants don't typically enjoy getting new environments and then getting zapped with a late, unexpected freeze. ;-) Wishing you luck!

I'd like to second the recommendation for a home energy assessment. Here, it's a $50 co-pay and the service is funded through fees charged on everyone's electric bill. While the visit was a bit underwhelming, the blower door test was worth the whole visit. It came as a complete surprise that the draft created sucked in the most air along the top trim of all the windows. The contractors applied a bead of clear caulk over many (60+ windows, so it will be addressed when painting is done). I learned that the attic air sealing can make a big difference but it's often a sizable project to do it completely. You should really remove the insulation to get at all the areas. A big benefit in my location is that the assessment qualifies you to have a significant discount for insulation work. If NC has a similar program you may get that crawl spaced addressed for very little cost. In addition to insulation, vapor barriers may help on the basement/crawl ceiling. If your attic is a pull down hatch, it should have an insulation 'box' that fits over the hatch opening. Attic vents and exhaust fans should be checked for proper operation to let that heat out. Any lights cut into the ceiling can have a cap put over the opening in the attic. Vents in the ceiling (bath) should be sealed in the attic around the cut out. In addition to a blower door test, thermal imaging might be helpful. I think you can rent the infrared scanning equipment to identify hot and cool spots. If you're lucky, the energy audit will include that service. Regarding the windows: many new windows will have an R value of 3. Consider that in light of R-30 or higher wall insulation. If the old ones are solid and properly installed and insulated, new ones will not help much. One of the most energy efficient window treatments is the honeycomb cellular shade and the double cells are more insulative. I'm not enamored of them but they sort of disappear when not in use. Other cheap stuff: weather stripping, more caulking inside and out, thin foam insulation pieces that go behind wall switches and plugs on outside walls - plus baby safe outlet covers (shocking how much cold air comes through those unused plugs in winter), well controlled use of expandable foam not just at pipes but also (very carefully done) around electrical boxes on outside walls. link Home Energy Checklist