Well it turned out DH read the sign at the bottom of the street wrong and it was not the next door neighbor's house but one further up the street. We all walked up there, including DH, DS and dog. Tip to self: Don't take DH with me next time. What a pill he was, "we don't need that, we are suppose to be saving money not spending it" etc. DS and the dog were more fun and we met a lot of the neighbors we hadn't seen in awhile. We all live on 2-5 acres so don't see each other much. And it turned out to be estate sale because the very old man (90 YO maybe) who lived there had a stroke and was going to a nursing home. He pretty much kept to himself and only met him once maybe in 22 years. The wife was nice but she died 5 or more years ago. I wanted to buy some of her watercolors of the yacht harbor but that was when DH started going on and on about money, and where would we hang it, blah, blah blah. Most all of the good stuff was gone by the time we got there in the afternoon except for the watercolors. It was kind of sad too to see someone's life laid out for everyone to pick through. Clare

To stay neutral, but have more character, I'd stay away from beiges and other blahs, and go deeper in color, especially for counters...Either medium tones (chocolate brown, deep olive, etc.) or into slate grays or classic black. Staying with earthy tones (browns, golds, grays, burgundies, greens) should still allow someone to jazz it up for themselves, or leave it and still have something rich. The other end of the spectrum, which can be very elegant, I think, is light counter on light cabinets, but that doesn't appeal to everyone. Is the kitchen open to the house (which I'm assuming) or more closed? For cabinets, I think a medium toned wood (except for regular oak) is 'safest,' with the broadest appeal, and might have the least chance of becoming dated. Something that is an environmentally conscious choice could also be a better investment for resale consideration. Painted cabinets are also pretty classic, but it depends more on the style of the house. If you went that route, it'd be nice to see something other than white...dove gray, light sage...Light, but with some character of its own. This is difficult, because you are giving us a pretty large, blank slate. But these are my opinions, and I hope it helps.

Because the print means so much to you, it's worth it to get exactly the frame you want without repainting or making do, especially if you don't like the profile of the moulding. A decent frame can only enhance it and you'll always love it. My brother used to own two frameshops and always framed items for me at cost with no labor charges. Because he bought quality supplies, was, himself, a perfectionist, and I could get very nice frames with the discount, they still cost as much as retail. Since then, I've had numerous prints and original paintings framed at Hobby Lobby and found they were more reasonable than Michael's and have been totally pleased. It's kinda like the cost of eyeglass frames, without the glass-it's hard to explain the huge difference in cost for basically, plastic frames.

bpathome - i totally know what you mean, why put the 1/2 bath in the garage if they can just use the great outdoors...although neither of them really do that unless if they're desperate and a bathroom isn't around. considering how many times they pee on the toilet, i might rather them pee outside anyhow ;) j/k yes, the hanging space in the laundry room is for clean clothes, but one of the most things we hang up is our jeans. i just can't see that fitting above a counter unless if we folded them or if we have the rod super close to the ceiling; in which case i would need a step stool to access it. so i felt like having full drip dry hanging was important to have in the laundry. the desk in the mudroom is really a 'drop zone' and place to sort through mail - not really working from home in there or anything. it might end up being just a counter top and no space to sit. yes, the vacuum could definitely go in the laundry room too - I wasn't sure if I'd like it in the laundry room or in the mudroom more. girlguineapig - do you have the linen closet dividing the two sinks in your bathroom at home too? do you think that'll feel too separated? mommytoc - i prefer the laundry off of the mudroom too! glad you do too. with the boys' sports, i think taking really dirty clothes off in the mudroom and straight to the w/d will be a good idea. I was opting for us to have a closet instead of lockers. the main reason being because we have so many coats. in the pacific northwest you end up having a TON of coats - and they typically clog up the hall closet by the front door. With this layout we can keep those just for guests and put all of ours (plus our shoes down below) in the mudroom. for the downstairs bath - a hutch style is a great idea. i thought of that but also wondered if we'd end up spending more on countertops since it would have to be a pretty big slab to run that entire length. maybe it's less expensive to divide them with a closet. Know what I mean? Thank you so much for all of your input - it's really making me rethink our layout!!