Thanks everyone. I was definitely leaning towards the equidistant columns plan. Holly, that's a great idea, but my concern with that is two fold--first, these columns are bloody expensive, but second, our porch isn't terribly deep, and if these are 18" x 18" at their base, it does not leave much room behind each column. Four columns would leave little space for chairs between the columns, and I'm afraid would look a bit busy. Thanks Autumn, we are thrilled with the little girl! But there are definitely some bright spots form the house planning, as well. Frankly, the plan we're getting is not clearly worse than the one I created, and in a few ways is better. And, had I not struggled over that plan and received acres of great advice here, I would not have known what to change about the plan to make it really work well for our family. Here is a cut out of the floor plan of the front. I know this builder has had problems with people copying this plan illegally, so I'm not sure I'm comfortable posting the whole thing without his approval. The plan is scanned a bit crooked, but assume it's straight (and I had to reverse the plan to match our house). I've drawn in the lines and measurements to the center of each 18" column base, the window, and the door. Off to the left is the garage; the room on the front right is the living room, and there is a 6' deep entry hall as soon as you enter the front door. See how I really don't think it changes too much to have the door move the door around--it might change the view through the sidelites and what you see when you first walk in, but I think that is minor compared to how the house will look from the street.

Walstreet Journal article: Trying Out Photo-Transfer Services Benefits of Saving Family Pictures Can Be Worth Risk By SUZANNE BARLYN March 1, 2007 (See Corrections & Amplifications item below.) Slides these days are about as useful as eight-track tapes. But that's changing now with the spread of digital-transfer services available through national retailers and on the Web. Such services convert slides, photos, videos, and negatives to DVDs and CDs. We worried, though, about sending our family treasures to unknown technicians. To find out if our fears were justified, we tested five digital-transfer services. We found the benefit of reliving our family history -- in funky hues that are characteristic of 1960s photography -- was usually worth the risk. A stained photo circa 1943 (left) was cropped and restored by a transfer service. We learned it is important to organize old photos in advance, since the ordering process is confusing. We also benefited from speaking with phone representatives at mail-in services, instead of store clerks who weren't as knowledgeable. They advised us on scanning resolutions (measured dots per square inch, or dpi). We found that increasing the resolution costs more. Scanning slides at a minimum of 2000 dpi and photos at 600 dpi is generally adequate. A telephone representative from Brite Pix in Miami answered our questions about scanning resolution. The company alerted us via email when our order arrived for processing and sent a price for our restoration ($30). We received CDs of our slides and old photos and contact sheets (75-cents per page) three weeks later. But we were surprised when the completed order, including original slides and old photos arrived from Costa Rica. A Brite Pix manager said labor costs are cheaper there, but we weren't aware that our pictures would be making a second journey out of the country. Our digital images from Digital Memories Photo & Video in Orient, Ohio, were worth the trouble of an eight-page order form. We received follow-up questions via email and an estimate for digital photo restoration (in our case, $45). Our images arrived on CDs in separately labeled cases. A custom DVD slide show proved worth the money as we relived the 1970s to our favorite classic tunes. DigMyPics! in Mesa, Ariz., delivered prompt service and email that alleviated concerns about our photos' whereabouts. But our own haste in reading the instructions meant ordering a JPEG DVD instead of a DVD video. (JPEG files don't play continuously. We had to click "play" to view each one). We would have understood the difference if we called customer service ahead of time. But the reasonable price and processing time were good reasons to order again several months later. At Wal-Mart, two clerks assisted customers while operating photo machinery. We wanted our slides scanned and burned onto CD. But after waiting 10 minutes, we learned the CD burner wasn't working. We ordered prints instead, which wouldn't be nearly as versatile as digital images. The pictures were fuzzy and some were printed backward. We returned to transfer a video to DVD and restore a family photo. Our DVD worked well. The restoration was lovely, but pictured another customer's family. Fortunately, a technician scanned our original photo and returned it when we placed the order. A manager was supposed to call about the mix-up, but never did. A Wal-Mart spokesperson offered free reprocessing. We tried YesVideo, a service available via drop-off points at pharmacies and discount stores. An Eckerd clerk didn't know the service existed. We eventually spoke to a manager who vaguely recalled the service. We felt uneasy about leaving our slides and video, and with good cause. They arrived at YesVideo a month later, but we don't know where they were during that time. We received our completed order six weeks after drop-off. Eckerd discounted our order by 25%. A spokesperson said the employees would be aware of YesVideo in the future. * * * COMPANY/WEB SITE PRICE PER SLIDE SCAN/ PRICE PER PHOTO SCAN* APPROX. TURNAROUND TIME COMMENT BritePix www.britepix.com Slides: 39 cents for 1500 dpi. Photos 19 cents for 150 dpi. Transfer to CD or DVD extra. 3 weeks Phone reps answered our technical questions, returned calls and emailed. We sent our order to Miami, but learned the company sent it to Costa Rica for processing. Our slides and photos were neatly organized upon return. Free online gallery. Digitial Memories Photos & Video www.digitalmemoriesonline.net Varies depending on level of color correction. Mid-level pricing for slides: 85 cents each for 2000 dpi (first 100); Photos 75 cents each for 300 or 600 dpi (first 100).** Transfer to CD or DVD extra. 4 weeks Owners answered our questions throughout the process. The work was performed in Ohio. We added extras to our DVD, which was worth the $61. Our completed order, including our originals, was well-organized. DigMyPics! www.digmypics.com First 500: Slides, 59 cents each for 2000 dpi (first 500); 49 cents each for 300 dpi (first 500, original photos up to 5X7) ** Includes transfer to CD or DVD. 3 weeks Prompt service and email communciation about order status. We ordered the wrong type of DVD because we read hastily. But the reasonable price and U.S.-based service were reasons to use the company a second time. Free online viewing. Wal-Mart 28 cents per slide (minimum 10) for 1300 dpi. Includes disk. Self-service photo scanning available at $2.47 per CD at 300 dpi (about 300 4X6 photos per disk). Slides were promised in about 1.5 hours but we went back the next day. Our video to DVD transfer was uneventful. But we couldn't get a CD of our slides because the CD burner was broken. We got mediocre prints and a restoration of another customer's family. YesVideo www.yesvideo.com Suggested retail: $49.99 for first 80 slide-to-DVD transfers. (1800 dpi). Or print-to-DVD transfers 300 dpi. Price varies by location. Transfer to CD not available. Usually 2 to 3 weeks, but more than 6 weeks for us. Same-day in-store service at some locations. Our drugstore clerk didn't know about YesVideo. Our slides and video disappeared for a month. YesVideo processed our order within two weeks following its arrival. U.S.-based processing. *Higher resolutions may be available for extra charge. ** Volume discounts available Write: Cranky@wsj.com  Corrections & Amplifications: Dpi means dots per inch as a measure of resolution in photography and refers to the number of printed dots per linear inch. This column incorrectly says dpi was dots per square inch.

I so want to do that with my slides. I have 10 years worth that were taken mostly by my 12 DH. I am cleaning out my mothers house and keeping finding huge boxes of slides my Daddy took. I should really let go or some bucks and buy a slide scanner. I also found an 8MM projector and home movies at Mama's house. I meant to bring them home. Thought I'd try to watch them. They are so old they might just break but if they play and are any good I might have them transferred to a DVD. I think the guy that videotapes our seminars at work does that. Maybe he will give me a deal on it. Linda

My DH was angry to see that Medicare was charged $300 for a PSA test from his physical last month. He's mid-seventies. His PSA numbers were never 'interesting' back when the test was appropriate for his age (prior to 70). We did our physicals at the same time. The lab gave me the option of declining the cholesterol test because I would have to pay the entire cost for it. I did decline it. (Perfect cholesterol is my only health claim to fame.) I wish DH had known he was getting the PSA; he would have declined it as inappropriate. Just because a test or procedure isn't Out Of Pocket doesn't make it appropriate. Jasdip -- Why is your DH having this test if he has no prostate? Is it indicated because he DID have a problem? (I don't understand.)