Thanks for checking in on our progress, patty_cakes! Unfortunately, with all of the rain we've received over the past month or so, progress came to a standstill and we are still waiting for our foundation to be poured! Construction crews all over this area are so far behind on jobs, and I'm trying to have patience. At least we presently have a house in which to live. I know that there are many who work construction here who depend on having those regular paychecks and when they stop rolling in, they really suffer. My heart goes out to them, and I'm trying to keep this all in perspective! As it now stands, our projected completion date is mid-October at the earliest. We have made all of our selections for the house, and I think I've got photos of most everything we've selected here in my "idea book." (Can you view it?) My vision was to keep things as classic and timeless as possible. We've chosen hardwood flooring throughout, with the exception of the bathrooms and the laundry which will be tiled. My kitchen will have white cabinets (with a couple of lighted Flemish-glass fronted cabinets to display my blue and white Cornishware), black granite countertops, and a glossy white subway tile backsplash. We've added crown molding throughout the house. Will have a stacked-stone fireplace in the living room (which is open to the kitchen - a concept that will be quite different than we are used to!). The bathrooms will be simply styled with white subway tile in the showers, white integrated counters/sinks, and we'll have brushed nickel hardware throughout the house. The walls will be painted a very neutral off-white -- certainly different from the Crayola box that our current house used to be! I'm yearning for simple, classic, clean. And new. Never, EVER thought I'd be saying that, but well ... here I am. :-) We'll be buying new furniture once we're in. I'm leaning towards a sectional in the main living space, and we'll need new bedroom furniture for the master and the upstairs bedroom. The little "game room" upstairs will be a space for TV watching and reading, and I'd like to furnish it sparsely but comfortably. I plan to use my paintings as pops of color, and it will be fun to figure out where to hang things once we move. I'll have to sell a few pieces, but I think I can use most of my favorites. We have already committed to plantation shutters in all of the rooms requiring window coverings, and I'm really happy with that decision. I've loved that look for ages, and am also just tired of dealing with curtains. Right now it still feels a little like a dream that's a long way off ... But I know we'll get there eventually!

Thanks Zach , オ ت My olde college roommate worked in architecture for years, then decided he should go back to school to learn CAD, I guess it was. He stayed around for a 2nd degree in computer science, working part-time as a radio DJ. He never went back to the drawing board! ... he must have been a disc jockey for about 15 years now and I wonder if he is ever gonna retire. I guess he is staying in the "university cities" whether he does or not. That probably isn't a bad thing ... Something I'm curious about is what can be found on Houzz but ... I haven't found it. Exterior photos, sometimes by pros selling their services, interior designers ... I'm not quite sure where I'd go for just people wrangling with putting together a plan so that I could see if it's doable. One thing, it's gotta have appeal to DW from the get go. She, "Loves our little house!" That is sure better than hating to live here but puts a higher bar up for alternative plans. Since the floor plan above is so similar to our present little house, I was able to kinda wave my arms around yesterday to "mansplain" how things could be fresh and improved. Steve

The technology age may be a factor, Mary. I can't access places on Houzz from our older desktop. I certainly can't upload photos from it. Our computer is about the same age as yours. It was a cutting edge Mac at the time. Ha, ha. My husband ran Logic software and recorded music with it. Now it sits around and roars like a T rex, but my husband can still do music production, send emails, etc. There is a Houzz phone number you can call, too. I posted in on "[How to Contact Houzz Support Directly[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/how-to-contact-houzz-support-directly-dsvw-vd~5356515?n=8)." Our desktop runs on Snow Leopard. I think that one is too ancient for Houzz. Carol

Issue solved.