I vote for the bathroom. If you are "looking ahead", here's our story. In 1989 we bought a 2bd 1ba cottage with an illegal 2-room apartment on the ground floor/garage level. After taking a hideous 18 months to remodel it in fits and starts, in 1991 it became a 2bd 2ba with a master suite downstairs to replace the apartment. When the RE appraiser came to look at it, he criticised us for putting in such a "disproportionate" and "huge" bedroom suite. Remember this is 1991 - very few people had ever seen big remodeled kitchens and master bedroom suites in our (older housing) city, let alone HAD them. We didn't get the appraisal amt we hoped for and couldn't refinance. Fast-forward to 2003. Neighborhood is gentrifying fast, old people moving out and young couples moving in. We decide to take out some equity and try the refinance again. Appraiser comes out, walks in the door, and says, "Wow, great job!" (tall cathedral ceilings, big picture windows looking out towards the hills). He goes downstairs and says, "And you even have a master bedroom suite! Gee, lots of people want these nowadays and so few of the houses around here have them!" We got an incredible appraisal, in fact he pulled comps on 3bd homes because he said so few 2bd homes in our area had the features we did. My niece and nephew, both of whom own homes and are getting married this year, would kill to have a master bathroom ensuite. Go for it!

Again, thanks a lot to everyone for sharing your thoughts. Below layout is what we settled on. I know it's by no means the best design, but it will be functional, and it required compromises from all parties involved (yes, that includes the cats too). The wall cabs are bumped out 2 inches. With the cover panel covering the doors and slight over hang, the cats will have a 15" deep platform. The counter top in front of the wall cabs will be about 11" deep, which is what my DH wanted ("to set things down on"). Good night and happy 4th everyone!

bmorepanic: Thanks so much for your detailed reply! I'm glad you like the new seating (we do too!), and we will be sure to get an expert's opinion about recessing the fridge (I wouldn't be surprised if the builder did something goofy as we've already found a bunch of weird stuff throughout the renovation process!) Good point about figuring out a "drop zone" so it doesn't end up becoming the counters! We will need to figure that out. It sounds like DH and I really need to do our best to mock up and test out the different options. (As much as I wish the answer was cut and dry, this totally makes sense. Everyone will use a kitchen differently.) I love the "folding table counter" idea and would like to try that. Also, we will put more thought into where things will be stored and what our traffic patterns are. I found the gardenweb info on "kitchen zones" and it was Really informative. I started mapping out where our zones would fall in each plan. So far, Plan U, with the long counter, is winning for a few reasons: * I like the idea of having a spot for appliances as you mentioned (like a toaster and coffee maker) that is away from the cooking zone. I can keep coffee making supplies here. And we can store more seldomly used appliances in the base cabinet (like the rice cooker). So, it would be a great, "toasting, coffee making, rice cooking, appliance storage" zone. * I also like Plan U since the cabinetry/countertop to the right of the fridge would be a great "reheating and storing leftovers" zone - I can keep ziplock bags, aluminum foil, and tupperware here. * It's also a good place for breakfast cereals, quick snacks like granola bars and cookies, and maybe a nice little basket of fresh fruit on the counter. People can get a snack, pour a drink, or make a sandwhich without bumping into someone at the sink or stove. So, it can be a "breakfast cereal, drink, and quick snack" zone. * Plus, since the microwave has a convection feature, I was hoping to use it for baking - which would make that counter a great baking spot as well. * Lastly, as mentioned, it would be a great serving area for parties (again, away from the "cleanup zone," "prep zone," and "cooking zone" - by the sink and stove.) While the landing space next to the stove in Plan S was nice, (and made it more open on that side which I really liked), DH said that he would rather not have to reach across the aisle when cooking - he would rather use the counters to the right and left of the stove. Wow - maybe we don't need to put up a folding table counter after all! It seems like our family has a Ton of uses for the long counter and its cabinets. (Perhaps too many, lol.) Thank you ALL again so very much for your replies! They were extremely helpful and really got us to think hard about how we will use our kitchen. You are the best!!

Robin, I haven’t installed it yet. It’s on backorder until April, we will be installing in May. I have been living with the full size plank samples I ordered in my kitchen for a couple months now and they are wonderful. No scratches, cleans super easy, no stains or fading, no dents although I haven’t really dropped anything large on them yet.