Are you wanting to stick with just siding or are you thinking about introducing another material such as stone or brick? Are you doing vinyl siding or cement board? What sort of colors do YOU guys like? Blues, greens browns? You couldnt go wrong with a medium blue gray as the field color, accenting with possibly shake style gable siding in a color such as brown, and maybe introducing a cream colored limestone veneer on the front bumped out section? Creamy white trim and windows would set it off nicely. Select a nice brown stained mahogany style door. That is just my quick suggestion :)

Thanks for the additional info. Bumblebeez, that is a beautiful table. Now I have to share something I discovered this week. I already have a Schnadig chair and love it. I had forgotten who made it until we were moving it out of the living room to install wood floors. I took off the cushion and there was the tag. I know I've seen it many times before due to cleaning under it and we've had the chair for about 3 years. I just didn't file it away in the ol' brain. As for the construction and durability, I'll share another story. This chair actually fell off our truck and onto the freeway going about 60 mph when it was new. One of the tie down straps broke and it bounced around for a few yards. Luckily no one was around or hurt. And the chair just had a few upholstery tears and a missing leg. I recovered it in a fabric I liked even more and refuse to give up this chair. It is a chair & 1/2 and so comfy. I think I will look for another one and a sofa. I'm not concerned that everything matches, as in a set, since I decorate in a more relaxed, cottage style. I love to mix and match fabrics and textures. Also, thanks for the sentiments about our dog. She is sorely missed.

If you have some ideas, I recommend getting small samples and painting a large swath of paint on the wall near the cabinets & counter so we can see how they look together. Different lights help as well...daylight (if you have natural light) as well as at night w/the artificial lights.

start with some idea books about what exteriors you like. come back here and show us. Your pictures will allow us to help you speak the language and verbalize what you are trying to achieve. Your current elevation sketch, as noted, isn't southern really at all - it looks like the builder has a book of plans and he's showing the elevation options and asking you to 'pick one'. I suspect that his architect is a designer, and will make minor modifications to existing plans that get built over and over. Find what you like, then compare to where you are now and see if you CAN get to where you want or need to regroup.