I need to warn you. I'm not one of the talented design gurus here, just an interested amateur. I think Lisa was working with the wrong dimensions, correct? I wrote them on the diagram. Please let me know if they're correct. If so, cpartist is right. You don't have room for an island. I left off your peninsula only because you never answered the question Lisa asked: If a peninsula is put in the location in your original plan, will you have at least 60" from the edge of the peninsula to the edge of your dining table? That is the minimum needed to have seating at both and still have room to walk if people are seated at both locations. Anyway, the best I could do is this: First, let me know if the dimensions are accurate. I didn't bother to draw uppers in on the fridge wall. The blue line will be about 117" fro the end of the counter to the edge of the kitchen. The yellow line measure will be about 86" from north counter edge to south counter edge and about 81" across where the fridge is (unless you get a true counter-depth/built-in). A lot of people do something a bit different in kitchens like yours that adds counter space and storage. They go with 30" deep counters. This adds a lot more counter space and, if you get custom cabinets, also a lot more storage with the deeper drawers. It will allow you to make a regular fridge look more built-in as the counter-depth will come out to the fridge door (you do need to allow for door swing). It also gives more space behind the range for less grease splatter on the backsplash and behind the sink for cleaning items (or pretties). If you do that, the north/south green line would be 74" and the east/west will be 105". Without an island or other blockage, there is plenty of room to walk from fridge to sink so crossing over the cook's area isn't a problem. It's not the most creative layout but it is a functional one. I know your wife wants some glass uppers. I wouldn't recommend them right next to the range and hood due to potential grease collection in that proximity, harder to keep clean. Also, keep in mind, your hood should be larger than your cooktop. I think you're going for a 36" cooktop? If so, you need a 42" hood. With a 30" cooktop, you need a 36" hood. If you go with the wider hood and have a couple inches clearance on each side before the upper cabinets start, then glass doors there should work fine. Hope this helps a bit. Have you read the "New to Kitchens? Read Me First" thread? If not, please do. It kinda bounces around from pages 1-3.

So after following along and reading and reading all the good advice and then OP's responses I did myself wonder a couple times (with a few head slaps really????) - are you reading AND THINKING about the advice posted or just posting more "I am totally out of control help me right now" questions that seemed to not take into consideration any of the advice. It was more I have to have 10', I have to have it large, I have to have it.....HELP regardless of the solutions posted. I kind of started to wonder if you are a college student in design school trying to get someone to draw up a kicking design for your homework assignment and it was the 11th hour. But I am no design expert just a learner myself. If nothing else there are some good designs in this thread with lots of elements that many would enjoy (well maybe not the topiary IN the kitchen). Oh wait a minute - THE TOPIARY IS THE SHRINE! You are all set!

damiarain and mama goose - thank you for those bold and beautiful layouts! You've found a graceful solution to a lot of my wishes. I'm on the fence about windows to the fridge/stove side of the house, because it faces our driveway and the neighbor's (not so attractive) yard and house. But the natural light would be wonderful! Great food for thought, thank you again. I'll have to check the space to see if there's room for dining table in kitchen. What's that great layout software you're using? rantontoo - We don't absolutely need two spaces to eat, and I had thought about shifting that door as you describe -- it would be between kitchen and DR. That way the traffic lane wouldn't go through the kitchen. I just couldn't figure out a good way to do that. Unfinished crawl space is underneath the whole main level where kitchen, etc. are.

A few thoughts/questions: 1. The kitchen itself seems pretty good sized, but it seems like the cabinets/island only take up the leftmost two-thirds of it, and there's a fair amount of unused space on the right where you could extend the cabinets and the island. So, I don't think you need to push the kitchen into the morning room, but rather push the kitchen into the poorly utilized area on the right. 2. Where do you plan to eat meals? The dining room seems to be a long haul from the kitchen, and I can't imagine wanting to eat every meal in there or at the island. So, I'd consider putting a dining table in the morning room. 3. Also, since the morning room is full of windows, I'd want to open the wall between the kitchen and the morning room to get more light into the kitchen. 4. The builder's layout is pretty awkward. There is a barrier island between the sink and the fridge that you'll constantly be walking around. The sink should be on the exterior wall so you can have a window above it rather than the cooktop. The cabinet to the left of the double ovens is going to be weirdly claustrophobic. With all that in mind, I'd do something like this. I eyeballed the measurements as best I could off the floorplan, so while not perfect, I think it's in the ballpark. I think it only ends up pushing into the morning room by about a foot or so. (And that's including a 48" fridge/freezer, so if you go with a 36" fridge, you can save a little space there. If you do that, you might need to make the two pantry cabinets on the bottom wall shallower, too, to have enough clearance for seating at the island). The island contains a 24" microwave drawer on the top right. And the Gardenweb crowd that can't stand island hoods will object to the cooktop on the peninsula, but I think it's probably workable, and I'd like having the view out the back windows.