By "my place" I assume you mean my house, not necessarily the exact place where the wall will be built. I have already moved the stones to my property. If you read the post carefully I estimated their weight based on the number or truck loads it took to move them. Also if you looked at the pictures you can see the hill I will be putting them up against. Also can you clarify what you mean by the Roman Style wall being "a crock". I usually use that word to mean someone is telling me a tall tale but I am not sure if you mean it the same way. thanks

I mentioned the borders to dh this morning and he likes the idea. Each of the long sides is about 14'. The shot side is about 10'. The other short side is there the 'bridge' is. I'll look at it tonight with dh and see what we can work out. As far as the layout of the living room. As the furniture is now. Looking at the back of the chairs, you are stading by the dining table and behind you, the kitchen. That opening is about 10' wide. Still looking at the back of the chairs, next to the chairs is the couch. And in front of it is the fireplace and the stairs that lead to the upstairs. The couch is about 12 feet long. I would love if it could put the couch where you could see the back, but it is just too big. We did every arrangement we could think of when we first got it so that we wouldn't have to close off the door way (the blank wall that is now behind the couch). Just to give you a little background of the house. When you stand looking at the back of the chairs, you are standing where the carport used to be. We added about 40' to the end of the house about 6 years ago, doing most of the work ourselves. So that is why the layouts ended up a little strange. The now TV area used to be the dining room and kitchen.

Grover - I'd love to have that balcony - my unit doesn't have nearly as wonderful of view (I overlook the pool, and look across at that unit actually) What I'm trying to figure out is how to set up a set of rods or track or something, that allows me to reinstall curtains in the nook (my sister will sew up the curtains for me). Track that mounts to the top of the nook seem to be able to pull down rather easily, and the only rods I can find extend out like 8" or something ugly and horrible with hooks that hang the curtain over the top. As far as the contract went, it was silent on the issue, and the selling agent disappeared deep into the swamp he came from upon sale (bank foreclose).

Sage green is one of my favorite colors. I wish I could find a photo of it with hickory. Since your cabinets are still open stock, buy a door (or two) to test different colours and see which one you like best for your island. Pictures on the Internet will only help you so much because we can't trust colours on our screens. For the windows, best option will depend on light exposure and how you use the room. For example, if there will be a TV in the living space, there might be glare during the day in which case you'll need something to block that. You might be best served with blinds and curtains. Or solar shades. Might start with inexpensive temporary solutions while you shop around for "best" solution for you. Quality window treatments aren't inexpensive so be prepared for possible sticker shock. Congrats on your new home and all the best with your kitchen!