We're not done yet, but a few things have surfaced along the way.

I had to move one window about 6" to clear the garage roof.

Our old dishwasher didn't have a protruding handle, and I didn't have the new DW when I built the kitchen cabinets. The new DW has a big handle, so the top drawer had to be trimmed so that it would open past the DW handle.

Our old house only had 8' ceilings, and we love our 9' 6" ceilings in the new house. But- the tops of the windows are at 8', so the little plunger to remove the screens is so high you have to climb on something to reach it. Had I thought of this, I would have ordered (if possible) the windows with the screen plungers lower down.

The tamper-resistant outlets are a pain, as are the arc-fault breakers that trip when you try to run power tools, but both are code requirements.

Our hallways and master bath are bigger than they need to be, but I like them.

Zorrowslw139, I completely understand what you're saying about the kitchen being too wide. My galley kitchen is about 1' too wide, and the two sides "don't play together nicely". Bigger isn't always better!

When I had my girls' tub pulled out /made into a walk-in shower last year, I wish I'd requested either TWO storage niches or an extra-wide niche. One isn't quite enough; thus, they always have bottles sitting on the floor of their shower.

We aren't done yet. But I had a seating area built into my master. It was a dumb idea. I wish I had squared off the room. It has an angle wall. It doesn't look like my vision. But it's fine....in the long run. I would have also added 2 ft in width to my bathroom. I also would have increased my lighting budget. And mortgaged my pool. We are paying for the pool and in retrospect. Makes more sense to use someone else's money.

As part of the cost control process we eliminated the powder room and pulled in two bump outs. The guest bath does double duty but it is a bit small due to the shrinkage. I think I would have kept the guest bath larger and shrunk the one bedroom instead.

Still in process... but 9 foot ceilings will mean a bit of challenge to paint the interior myself -- but I'll do it anyway. I'm tall -- it is just the extra foot that concerns me. Not sure I have enough room for a 5 or six burner range, but we will see. The main thing is I wish I lived 30 minutes away rather than 2 hours -- and it is looking like I will need knee surgery in the next week or so. I'm trying to get as many things in place before I' m out on disability!! (It's the right knee, so also driveability...)

Zorro- so glad to see you are almost done! Yes, there are things that happen that don't end up like we thought they would. I would have hired a different granite company. Their attention to detail was lacking and that is something we will live with for a long time.

I let the "guys" push me into darker wood stains than I would have liked. I can see having to paint a particular area in a few years to brighten up a room.

If we'd have had more room on the lot, we'd have extended the summer porch on the back of the house. It's a really nice place to sit and we've been living outside all summer.

Also, I would do granite instead of quartz. I have decided I don't like the quartz so much.

jn3344 - What do you not like about the quartz?

Two things : for one, my "Zen White " marks easily. It doesn't stain but all those marks it collects need daily attention. Also, I was thinking I missed the movement and randomness of a natural stone even though I have a more modern kitchen.

1) HVAC outside units on the other side of the wall from the bedroom, 2) shoe molding (installed baseboards before the engineered flooring, does not go with our modern style), 3) did not measure the amount of foam installed in rafters- probably have less than we should, 4) should have added ethernet to the extra bedrooms, 5) should have said okay to the irrigation system.

Agreed that quartz marks easily. Any metal object that touches it leaves a mark. Must use the magic eraser daily to scrub off marks.

My quartz counters (Cambria Somerset) don't show a thing - to the extent that DH never thinks to wipe them down, because he can't see anything on them!

We bought our house new, and planted grass. That first season is a pain in the neck, trying to keep baby grass watered with sprinklers. But in the 25 years since, the only time we've watered the lawn is when we plant new grass. During dry periods, our lawn goes dormant, and we don't have to mow; as soon as it rains again, our lawn loos as good as the irrigated one next door, and we've saved a lot of money on water and mower gas.

I would take back my foolish words, "Just spread that extra dirt over the back corral, it'll help with our drainage issues." That extra dirt was red clay, and the early spring Oregon rain made it too wet to pack down; the mud squished out from either side of the bulldozer treads and we were left with two-feet deep ruts and an unusable corral for our miniature horses. To add insult to injury, the clay turned from a boot-sucking muck to cement seemingly overnight. We had to wait months to have it repaired, and by then bringing a bulldozer back would have been ridiculously expensive. Fortunately, I found a local guy with a tractor who tilled, sloped and packed it perfectly.

Our only regrets with the actual build is that I wish both kitchen and bathroom windows werelarger. Perhaps someday...

1. The color of the tile in the master shower is off. It is more warm beige tone when the rest of the bath is cool tones. Chose it in a rush without seeing it in person. By the time I saw it it was already installed. It doesn't look terrible but it keeps the master bath from being amazing.

2. We put the utility sink in the mudroom. Should have put it in the garage. I was worried it would make the garage crowded but instead it takes up valuable real estate in the mud room. I'm tempted to call a plumber and have it move to the other side of the wall into the garage.

3. I would put a hose bib in the garage instead of the side of the house. Now when I want to use the hose in the front of the house (wash my car) I have to run it from the side of the house.