From the parent thread:

"Met with our builder last night and he's definitely a master builder, not a master architect. No big surprise there. :) I set up an initial consult with one architect today and am waiting to hear back from another one. I'm not sure if our small potatoes build will be worth an architect's time, but I suppose the answer is no until you ask."

Ways to go but looks like it's headed in the right direction!

Sitting down with a local person of talent to give you a second pair of eyes doesn't have to be a big deal nor expensive. I'd try to set the meeting up in a brainstorming type format that may last three of four hours. I do these all the time and briefly highlighted one here: (Not my first post in this thread but the second one with a bunch of attached photos): http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3178541/question-for-architectrunnerguy-or-others

I think the best designers are fast on their feet anyway and if a person has to go back and huddle up in their shop to look at something like this probably isn't that creative. Just my opinion there however . And face to face you can work through quickly many, many issues.

Good luck. Exciting times!!

Today's meeting will probably be a quick consult to see if we're compatible. For a 4 hour brainstorm session I'll need to find a babysitter. Which is much harder than finding land in a new town!

arch-runner --- So if I wanted to do that (a brainstorming session, as opposed to full services) --- that would be an acceptable suggestion to the architect? And I'm assuming they would just charge an hourly rate and we would walk away with some ideas and possibly a rough sketch showing the basic layout/flow of the house...and then we could take that sketch to our builder and his draftsman and take it from there? Someone needs to write a "working with an architect for idiots" article. :) I have read some of the articles on the life of an architect (and saw that you're a contributor there!) and it really helped me frame the conversation with my husband (who is kind of anti-architect, possibly because he's an engineer and can't fathom a career that melds science and art LOL).

This seems much better! I like the kitchen location :)

Just a few small changes...and turned the picture for you. It needs some more polish, but I think you are going in a much better direction!

The good/bad news is apparently in this region because of the constant freezing and thawing, we have to keep the garage. So that will be expensive, but the upside is I bet we can get away with storing hockey gear in there!

Lavender, did you change anything other than the storage by the mudroom?

Bumped the dining room out maybe a foot, made the kitchen pantry a bit bigger, and added a little width to the bedroom hall.

Also added the closet and moved door into master. That's not perfect, just can't have the two bedroom doors on top of each other. Like I said...just needs some polish.

At some point, add in the rest of the master suite, so we can see closet, bath, etc.

Is that a piano? If it is important to you don't forget to let the architect know.

Good luck and enjoy.

Met with an architect firm today (two architects sat down with us) and they've never done a "charrette" before, but they're willing to try! All of their previous work has been the typical percentage fee structure (~8% for builder drawings, ~12% for the whole enchilada). Their usual process would be time prohibitive (basically move our move-in date 6 months too far). This process should be faster and cheaper...exactly what we're needing.

We are on their schedule for 2 hours Sept 8 and 2 hours Sept 9. They thought that breaking it into two days would give us the opportunity for us to go home, digest what we've worked on, discuss between ourselves, etc. My mother is going to drive down and babysit the kids so we can give the meetings our undivided attention. :)

arch-runner ... do you think it'd be too forward to send your http://www.lifeofanarchitect.com/design-in-a-day/ article to the architect, along with the other info she requested?

I have to ask, are the drawings that you 'cut and pasted' drawings by the architect?

No, they are bits and pieces from our previous floorplan, which I traced into floorplanner.com 3 years ago when we first built. When we came onto that build it was a builder's spec home, so we got to pick finishes but couldn't modify the floorplan.

Arail......go right ahead. The reason I wrote the article was to help my fellow designers. I've had a few contact me with follow up questions and she can do the same if she wishes (info in my profile). And then some report back with good results. I'd reference the post I put on Aec1013's thread too.

Unless you are planning on putting hooks for hanging dry clothes on the doors, I would prefer one door opening into the laundry area with a corner designated for hanging clothes after I take them out of the dryer.

I am so glad to see a foyer. I promise you will appreciate this space as your children grow. There is nothing more frustrating than coming through a tight space littered with kid crap and walking into another mess.

The arrival point is at the corners of the living room, kitchen and bedroom hall. I respectfully suggest you start over and let your architects suggest an alternative organization of spaces.

I moved the kitchen/dining area a bit and tried to make the entry a little more inviting. Also placed a bench with hooks by the front door.

Maybe add a message center on the end of the kitchen wall? It would give you a better view coming into the home, than the side of the fridge :)

Also, do you have your sink and dishwasher on the island like this, now? It looks a little awkward.