B2alicia- Beautiful photos! You've really improved on what you started with and made it so inviting :) Gardenweed- Wonderful path! It's amazing how old/antique it looks...did you mortar the blocks? I would love to get a path like that for my mom's house. Your fence is so rustic and charming. Was it difficult to install? The fence, path and plants are just a beautiful combination. Tk- Focus on one area at a time and really do something you love. Sometimes, it's hard to ignore other areas, but mowed grass always looks nice and it gives you more time to focus on a few beds and really make them what you want. I think the hardest thing sometimes is realizing how much we can really take on AND maintain. Look at all my weeds this summer! LOL I have to realize there's only so much I can do and focus on those areas. Remember, you have almost 1 1/2 acres! It's going to take a little time to make it everything you'd like it to be...but I know you're going to get there...eventually :) Lois- Cute picture! It took me a minute to find your little visitor LOL. Pots can be hard to keep watered. I've had better luck with a few big pots of cosmos than smaller ones. I had a few large containers of petunias and star jasmine, with a really big cosmos container, by the front porch. They could easily go two even three days, before I had to water them again...and that was with 90 degree weather. Melissa- Have you ever thought of creating a potager? It doesn't have to be a big garden, but it's perfect for mixing roses and vegetables with other edibles. A rose in the middle, or several along the edge of the garden, or even on a couple of sides, will look beautiful with maybe blueberries and a few beds of veggies and herbs. Edible flowers are nice, too and bring in lots of "good" bugs :) There are a lot of beautiful pictures over on the potager forum, or just google potager.

Do you want to see/hear the TV, while you're working in the kitchen? That answer would probably help me make a decision. As for dining/study, you could combine those functions without closing off the larger living/dining room, if you do decide to move the TV. If you leave it open, you can expand your dining table for family/holiday dinners and still have room for the study. In fact, if you choose a durable dining table (dress it up with a table cloth) it could also be a craft area for the kids. Some cozy upholstered chairs at one end could be a reading area and homework could also be at the table. If you decide to keep the TV in the 'media room' you could still combine the dining/study area in the current family room. You have two nice spaces, so IMHO you have a lot of options! Hope that helps :)

Twn85, do you have pictures of your final design? Would love to see it. Laughable, that may be an alternative. I definitely don't want to go shorter, as I am 5'9 and DH is 6'3. My only thing is that I'd have to add some granite to the left of the stove (where the current fridge is now, before the corner begins to make a peninsula) but maybe I could take what I'd be cutting out on the other side where the fridge would be moved? I don't know enough about granite to know if that's an option. Honestly I'd love new counters but even getting DH to consider any of this is enough of a challenge - he sees the square footage and thinks I'm crazy and high maintenance (okay, I AM but still) to even talk about putting money into an already "big" kitchen with upgrades. As for what I like to do in the kitchen - I'm a pretty much make-from-scratch cook. I am a SAHM and spend A LOT of time in the kitchen, either cooking, prepping or cleaning. I like having stations - baking, cooking, coffee, etc. I don't like a lot of appliances on the counter but I DO have a lot of heavy gadgets I'd want a spot in a cabinet or drawer for. There is a small TV in the corner of a countertop to give me company while I'm in there because I'm usually alone, although I'd LOVE to have (adult) company - other times, I have my small (ages 5 and 3) children to "help" out, and having a place for them to put their stools to spread out and pour ingredients is very good. The breakfast nook bugs me right now - the window seat is not currently there and the outside chairs are right in the walkway from the garage door into the FR. However, I'm not a big fan of stool seating b/c family dinners are really important at this stage in our lives. I know eventually the kids will need a place to do homework but if a sink goes at the peninsula, that sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. One thing you may be able to see is the architect suggested cutting out that pantry cabinet and extending the archway that leads into the dining room. The purpose there would be to make that more of a breakfast room than formal DR and maybe put some comfortable chairs where the current breakfast nook is for conversation. A peninsula would block that idea, though, I think. After reading these responses, I've gotten to thinking. We currently have a temporary island where the suggested one would go. It's smaller and not as functional and I just assumed that functionality was what was missing. However, DH doesn't help me as often as he used to and now I'm starting to think it may be how tight the kitchen seems now, rather than him just trying to avoid any work (or miss my engaging and witty banter.)

Waaay too long. Get a proper sized sofa and one or two chairs. It will look much better and be more versatile. If you want to put your feet up, you can get an ottoman.