I sent off my notes plus the link to your kitchen, eliz, to the cabinet designer for a quote (she loved your kitchen, btw, big surprise, who wouldn't?). She also thinks an undermount, not an apron front is the way to go. I should hear back the end of this week or early next. In the meantime, I'm playing around with ideas. I did broach the idea of replacing the window to hubby in an offhand, oh by the way manner. He laughed. Got it. Make it work without replacing the window. Sooooo.... I started looking at the molding around the window. We already plan to redo some of it. They placed standard 2.5" molding around the window resulting in a ridiculously narrow strip (less than 1" of gap molding to molding) of wall between the two windows. Solution: remove the existing molding and replace with primed MDF flat boards so that the corners meet. That same molding is at the bottom of the window also resulting in narrow strips of tile only 1" tall under the windows along the counter. We're removing that molding and plan to replace with a sill-type shelf to allow for about 3" of tile here. But we can still do more. The builder's carpenter added fluted details to flat boards of MDF between the windows and French doors in our DR and nook, also between the side lights and front door in our entry. When we added a pair of windows to our DR, we repeated this detail. We plan to do the same for our LR windows. So why stop there? We can repeat the detail for our FR and den windows *and* the kitchen windows so that all downstairs windows and doors share the same design element. If we copy what we did in the DR, we expand the molding around our sink windows from 2.5" to 4.5". I also asked the cabinet designer if we can overlap the 2" spacer with the sink. They cut into our corner cabinet for our corner sink so it's possible they can do that here and cheat the sink as far to the left of the sink base as possible. If we can cheat the sink so that the bowl begins at the very left edge of the sink base, I can do the Franke Orca and perhaps come out okay. One 24" (blind corner cabinet) plus 2" (filler cabinet) plus 27.625 (sink) is 53.625. If we replace the molding, we'll have 54" from corner to molding edge. Talk about squeaking it! If we extend the sill beyond the trim detail, we can eke out another inch of wiggle room. Another designer commented that you were smart, eliz, to have space to the left of your sink for elbow room when you're facing the cooktop wall. This would prevent dishes and glasses piled on the counter from flying into the sink if someone turned quickly. But that's for an apron front. Maybe not a big deal with an undermount that sits 4" or so from the edge already? Dunno, have to think about that. Or I can just pitch a hissy fit if family members can't bother to put dirty dishes and such either in the DW or in the sink. ;-) Oh! Another thought just occurred to me. When the time comes to replace windows, I'll have an easier time installing larger windows if I put beefy molding around them now. I won't have to worry about tearing into tile backsplash and moving cabinets. Am I forgetting something? Am I deluding myself? That's always possible!

Fun, did you have more than one living space growing up? We had a formal living room and a family room so the family room is where our toys were kept. However, we didn't have nearly the same amount of toys as kids do nowadays! The way our family room was laid out, there was a corner where all the toys were kept. I shared an average size room with my sister, so we didn't have much room for playing in there. I'm sure we did a bit but for the most part, we were in the family room when we were young or outside. I also can't imagine having kids' toys in every room. That would drive me nuts! Most of the houses around here have basements or more than one living area so the basements store the bulk of the toys and then the family room, which is typically open to or next to the kitchen is where the main floor toys are stashed. Having four kids has relaxed my anal tendencies but I still go a little nuts with crap laying around. The peninsula in my kitchen becomes the drop zone but I can't stand having that clutter. And dh is the worst b/c he will leave his stuff there and never come back for it but then get annoyed if I move it or ask him to. He's used to clutter from his childhood. I used to have complete order in the house b/f I went to bed, but now I'm so exhausted by then that I have slacked off a bit and then get all stressed when I come downstairs the next morning to clutter and have to clean up b/f I can function. I'm like that with cooking too - I can't start cooking unless the counters are clear, no dirty dishes out, etc. DH looks at me like I have two heads. Am I the only weird one like that? Oops, sorry, I have a habit off going off on a tangent!

Well to begin with, let me say how much I dislike working with a "decorator from a furniture store". His or her focus will be using items sold by her store, and unless you want it to look like a furniture store display room, you need to branch out. My family room is a big box...it's 24 by 22 with a 1950's "picture window" on one wall, 3 double hung windows on another wall and a 3rd wall covered with built in cabinets with shelves above and 2 smaller windows in the middle of the built in's. The 4th wall is pretty well solid wall but for a doorway into the den. I have chosen to decorate with an eclectic, collected, early farmhouse, for want of a better word, style. What I have learned is that with a room that big you can' just line up furniture along the walls. At one point we divided it into 2 spaces with 2 back to back sofas, then at one point we discarded one sofa in favor of 2 over stuffed chairs and 2 wooden rockers. The space has always been the TV room....and home work and craft table room....so it always has included a good sized table and chairs and a TV and all it's add ons. Because it's also the "rehearsal space" for some sort of production that one or another members of the family have been involved in, it also has a piano. Currently it has a leather sofa, love seat, matching ottoman and a different color leather arm chair and 2 antique wooden rockers, an antique round oak table and 4 signed Hitchock chairs. The piano....an old Baldwin spinnet, an old walnut very primitive dry sink, an oak commode, and the coffee table is an old square oak table cut down to coffee table height. There is a blanket chest behind the love seat which serves to bring it more into the middle of the room and as a place for a few plants and a spot for the dog's perching pillow. The shelves on the one wall house books on plants and gardening, my cook books and various books on other subjects that are of interest. In between the books are my "stuff"...mugs, pitchers, bowls, plates, Indian baskets and pottery, sculptures....things I have collected over the years. I can't imagine putting together a room all at once, for me a space has to evolve. By the way this room contains 7 lamps LOL! One which I am currently trying to replace...it's always something! Linda C

htnspz, the OP didn't post any pictures and I wasn't asking for advice, although it is always welcome. If you are referring to my pics, we don't need or use the room as a formal living room any more. Our two spaces are separated by the fireplace/chimney, so they are not one space despite a feeling of openness. To add some size perspective, the corner cupboard is 54.5" wide. We have more than three feet of space behind the chairs on the sides of the table when we are sitting in them and they are pushed away from the table after eating and there is more than nine feet on the end near the wing chairs and five feet at the other end with all three leaves (is that what you meant when you said 'sleeves'?) in the table as in the pictures. We don't always have three leaves in-usually only one or two. It looks and functions very well for us IRL. The small sitting area also works because we have two large dogs and a grandpup who tend to run through the space from the kitchen/family room to the doors to the deck/backyard on a regular basis! :)