Fun to see what you've come up with. How fortunate that you already have a layout that's worked well for you and just needs some tweaking.

I'm personally extremely fond of corner dining rooms, and I really think your family will like yours. Great idea! :) It is a dead-end room distant from the rest of the house, though, and that can be something of a function-killer for a space. This is such a nice one, and a doorway in the lower left corner area to allow circular flow would, I think, create a real synergy with the rest of the house. This would still tend to be a somewhat quiet end, but not so much. Another benefit, if wished, would be that the room would be available for schoolwork projects that need some real spreading out.

Rosie -- thanks for the ideas. Would you put that door from DR to kitchen, or DR to office? I guess we could slide the range down (don't want to lose my 30" pot drawer, so would have to be careful) and the fridge over...or route it through the office....or I could rearrange the office and mudroom a bit to create a little hallway so that traffic wouldn't go thru the office per se, but rather past it (my husband's office is shrinking again! uh oh!) :-)

Thanks, I'll play with it, Rosie.

I agree with what's already been said, so am only adding my 2 cents worth...I'm feeling sorry for DH. His office, I think is already too small to share. Any chance of you turning one side of the bench and hooks area into a kids' desk so the extra desk is out of dh's space? Then he could move into the alcove of the office and through traffic could go through to the DR behind him.

If you didn't need the closet/pantry, I might make the whole front into homework desks and put locker type storage where you have the closet/pantry.

Is your living room your only "family" living space? You mention a family room, is that in addition to the living room? The only reason I'm asking is that it seems like you have alot of desk/message space and alot of seating for eating(peninsual, DR and breakfast room). You have a computer desk, kids homework desk, DH desk and message center. I don't have one "desk" on my 1st floor and both my kids do homework there. Honestly, if you want/need desks in that area, I would personally try to keep it all it that room off the mud room. To me it almost looks like you ran out of space there and had to move it into the kitchen. I think you'd appreciate the space around the breakfast table a lot more if it wasn't pinned in with a desk and message center.

Do you think the bar stools on the far end will be used. I'm assuming that's the frig at the breakfast area end. Seems to me the way the kitchen is laid out that the table will be more convenient to use for snacking, quick meals due to how close it is to the frig. Not sure that someone would carry food from the frig all the way over to the peninsula to sit there. Also, the location of the range to that peninsula doesn't encourage socializing with those people while cooking.

Is that a prep sink to the left of the range?

Is your kitchen 14' lengthwise or width? Would you consider eliminating the peninsula at the breakfast area end? I think it would really open things up. Also, maybe a prep sink between the frig and range. Looks like a long walk across the aisle to the sink and then back again to the range.

Sorry....I realize I threw a lot of ideas out here. It just seems to me that there is alot going on in the space(s) and I was just thinking of some ways to maybe pull it together better and make it more cohesive.

I didn't see the previous thread so forgive me if I'm asking things I should already know. How old are the kids? My girls never did homework anywhere but the kitchen table until they were in eigth grade, then it was in their rooms. Kids have such different study habits, some need the radio on, some need quiet. And before you know it they'll each have their own laptop. Dad's can be pretty quirky about their workspace too so I'd ditch the desk in DH's study and put the computer desk in the family room if you have one. If not, I'd leave it in the breakfast room. Both my high schoolers have wonderful desks in their rooms and do their homework on the bed. Go figure!

Hi everybody, thanks for your comments.

My kids are 4, 8 and 11. A somewhat larger kitchen and mudroom are really what's driving this project. The office was an afterthought by my DH.

What he originally wanted, office-wise, was a big room (10' x 10' or larger) w/ countertop around 3 sides of the walls, so that we can have a couple of computers in there, and some free countertop space for non-computer HW/projects. Right now, the kids benefit from being near me during dinner prep while doing their HW, and they need supervision on the computer (either direct or over-the-shoulder/walk-by). At some point, they'll stop needing my mathematical expertise (ahem) and will probably seek out quieter places to study...their room or the other office desk, or one of the computer place (kit or FR). DH agrees now that the huge office/HW room he was envisioning isn't necessary.

Right now, w/out mudroom, the kit table gets covered w/ backpacks, etc. The floorspace next to it get filled up w/ shoes, DH's laptop, and musical instruments, and the chairs get jackets hung up because we have one small, overfilled closet and some hooks that are too high for 2 of the kids to reach (there's noplace for shorter hooks; our entranceways are tiny).

So the kids do HW at the existing DR table (where the barstools/slider are above). I bring my cutting board in to the DR and chop stuff in there. I don't mind that so much, because I can keep an eye on whoever's in the back yard that way, but it's a little messy.

I love my breakfast-end peninsula. It's where I live! I can prep, pack lunches, and see out the big front window. When we clean off the table for guests, I can chat w/ them while prepping.

In the design, I decided to open up the counter on the back yard side to create a peninsula w/ stool seating because I wanted to have that side open to the slider and big LR windows, and to be able to see/hear into LR a little better. The stools are more for socializing than eating, per se. I'm not big on socializing while at the stove; I don't stand there a whole lot, and when I do, I'm cooking. I'd rather chat while prepping.

We are so used to everybody crossing through the kitchen that I don't envision anyone getting snacks as causing a problem -- right now they're having light saber fights and giving each other horsey rides through that space, and it's narrower than in the drawing. If they snack at the table, fine, if they snack at the penin, fine. I did add a prep sink on the range wall. I will play w/ moving it btwn range and fridge. Having landing space next to the range will be heaven! We have just 1 foot now and only on one side.

The existing breakfast area is two feet shorter than what's shown in the design. We have some free-standing cabinets in that area now, and it's not too crowded (when we move all the stuff that should be in the mudroom).

As far as family living space: we have a FR downstairs w/ the TV and computer. Living room upstairs is not formal, just a casual, comfortable room for conversation/reading/play w/ a stereo and no TV. No TV in the kitchen, either.

I see that I do need another door to the DR in this design. Better put one in!

Uh oh, one of the kids is out of bed...gotta run, thanks for the thought so far, love to hear more!