Thank you for all the input and opinions. My husband and I rarely are barefoot-always wear slippers in winter or flip flops in summer, so I'm not sure how hard it will be on our joints. And I understand that tile may not be for everyone. I spoke with a rep for Shaw about laminate and our situation and she recommended vinyl plank flooring. She said that even the best laminate could be affected by cat urine if it isn't cleaned up quickly. And thanks for all the concern for the kitty & links to sites to assist us. She has been checked for UTIs. There was one only 1 time. We have 8 litter boxes that are cleaned daily, 3 with Cat Attract Litter in them. We have placed her on anti-anxiety meds and have 3 Feliway diffusers in the main areas of our home. We recently had an animal behavior specialist come to our home. As she sees it, the problem is territorial; that my late parent's cat lived with them for 2 yrs as an "only" pet (and my folks both died unexpectedly 4 months apart from each other). Cat was only 2.5 yrs old when we brought her to live with us; she is 6.5 yrs old now so she will be with us for awhile. We already had 2 cats that get along fine. Older one is now 16 yrs old and the other is 8. New cat wants to be Alpha cat and our oldest cat want to be alpha cat. New cat on occasion marks areas other cats like to frequent-she's even done it while i'm sitting in the same room.Behaviorist has given us strategies" to recognize and correct the behavior (dominance positioning and recreating the "order of the pride") and ways to improve things (including crating the cat at night). We have seen positive results and things have improved but there are still setbacks. Alot of emotional baggage with this sweet (for the most part) cat-my youngest daughter loves her because she is the last connection with her grandparents. I just want my house to look great and be less stressed by this situation.

I am not a guru but I can give you my opinion. Melanie on the regrets - while trying to minimalize them they still will happen! Flip side is you will likely also have some grrr that ends up turning out different but BETTER than you imagine. IMO stealing the foot makes it much more functional so I would do it in a heartbeat but I am not the expert. It also opens it up and will 'feel' better. I think that's a good spot for a broom closet and charging station and should easily stay tidy. It is about 5' wide yes? That is a nice size space. Measure what you have you want to store in there and then look for pics of what you are thinking. Utility sink in the garage - really in the winter there isn't much dirt and when it's exposed it's frozen too so I'd think the utility sink would get more use in the spring summer fall when it's thawed so I'd keep it on the table too. My opinion - your money. Ha! As far as 'enough room' - it sounds like your kids are younger based solely upon still being in the 'add more' season of life. :) I can tell you only to think seasons, think sports, cleats, basketball shoes, church shoes, boots, hiking shoes, tennis shoes, flops, bats, ball caps, backpacks, lunch boxes, water bottles (if you have girls think even MORE shoes and then purses - ack)........ I will say for my 2 the space we have is more than adequate and it's quite roomy (I just double checked and it's actually 6.5' on a side so each person has 3' plus). That said we also have a closet near that I put off season stuff in and dog food. Winter coats and snow pants and boots are not in the locker area all year. I put them in the closet over spring/summer/fall. As long as you have a spot for that I think you are fine. Off season can closets can always be in the basement as well. There are always sweatshirts hanging and ball caps. Besides that there is always a stray nerf gun, goggles, flash lights and what have you hanging out there. I don't mind it there - it's out of the way and not underfoot! Old house it used to be in their rooms and all over. We had no designated space for outdoor wear anyplace besides bedrooms. If I am feeling brave I will snap a real life pic of it in action. It is easy to pick up and look presentable when needed but typically M-F it's a dumping spot. I like an open bench vs doors because we do use it to sit down to put stuff on and take stuff off regularly. And when our parents come and use that entry they love to be able to sit down to put on and remove shoes. It's comfortable and useful. With your window placement in the bathroom and the exterior door you will find it a nice light filled space. Our exterior door there is 3/4 glass and I love how it lights the hall. It is never a dark space.

While Concrete can be pretty, it will also be super slippery when wet, would be my concern here. Have you considered CoreTec? This flooring is waterproof and has a lifetime warranty when installed in a residential space. It will not be slippery, but will have the look of hardwood. Thats the route I would suggest for this particular space!

My favorite paint colors are Behr Honey Infusion, Behr Honied White and Behr Yucca White. Honey Infusion is a great yellow based neutral which worked to lighten up a red and brown guest room. Honied white was used after the walls were painted with Killz twice to lighten up a bedroom in med blue and puke green. Yucca White was used on the master bedroom gray headboard wall after it had been Killz.