I'm figuring that Dagleish could help Hamlet solve the mystery and bring Uncle to a legal justice, then Ophelia wouldn't go mad, Hamlet wouldn't go all whiny and navel-gazing, he and O would get married and rule a peaceful, prosperous Denmark. I think Dagleish is dreamy, but I am honestly too tired for a dalliance. So he can just retire with honors after all is neat and tidy. I'd also like to smack some sense into Romeo and Juliet. Talk about leaping before you look! How about inviting R&J and Dr. Phil. Oh-he's sort of real. Never mind. About the alarm clock-I do love it, especially the hypnotic "go to sleep" countdown...but in the interests of full disclosure I should tell you that the case is plastic.

Whatever colors you choose, get a sample pot and paint a large piece of board or cardboard in that color. Look at it at different times of day since the light changes. We see too many sad posts on Houzz where people have been disappointed in the way a color looks over larger areas, and in outdoor light. When you do your plants, make your beds at least 6 feet deep. That may seem huge, but you need to have the first foot along your house bare, so you can access it for maintenance. Then, any decent size shrubs will probably be about 4 feet wide at maturity. (Check your tag on online where you'll see this information. ) That leaves you a foot in front of the shrubs if you want to plant any annuals. When you plant a shrub that's 4 feet wide at maturity, the center of the planting hole should be 3 feet from your house (2 feet from the center to the edge of the mature shrub, plus one foot space to house.) Before your shrubs are mature it may look a bit bare. Just plant self-seeding annuals in between and you'll plant fewer every year as the shrubs grow. I like annual white sweet alyssum which doesn't have deep roots and won't interfere with the shrubs' growth. Or use native plants that behave the same way. (We don't know where you live.) It's less expensive and more beautiful than mulching a large area with bark chips, and it will come back from seed next year. Google "green mulch" and you'll see what other have to say about this idea. If there is someone in your neighborhood whose front garden you admire, stop by when they are outside and ask about it. I have given so many cuttings and divisions of my garden plants to people. https://www.houzz.com/magazine/new-ways-to-think-about-all-that-mulch-in-the-garden-stsetivw-vs~25100660

Jennifer, maybe you'd like to elaborate, or verify with the builder if you're not sure, what exactly can be changed at this point in construction, and whether you are even willing to spend money to change something. These schemes do require some (pro bono) work and thought by commenters, so it would be a disappointment to see yet another thread of ideas be an exercise in futility.

You asked about landscape color and whether to add a trellis. I don't know why people feel compelled to critique your home and suggest structural changes. It's a charming home and as functionthelook said, ignore suggestions to turn it into something cookie cutter. You don't have to defend the choice of the front door to anyone. Sheesh! You can bring in so much color simply by using plants with different color foliage...you don't need flowers, esp in the winter. Maybe reconsider some of the boxwoods. They are getting a bit crowded and, while the green is nice, I think you can do better. I might consider, instead of a trellis, reworking that line of boxwood by the truck and plant a tree that would add some color and interest year round. Maybe like a coral bark maple that has nice foliage 3 seasons and beautiful bark and twigs in the winter. I don't know if they grow in your are, but something similar surely does. It's hard to tell from the pics if that's far enough from your house for a small tree or not, but a pro landscaper could help with that. I'm not suggesting this style landscaping, just showing how much color you can get with foliage alone and a few flowering shrubs mixed in. There are winter flowering shrubs, too, tho again I don't know about your area. coral bark maples...