So, Chris and I have been working hard and have finally come up with my final pool rendering. The pavers and coping aren't exactly the colors we are looking at, but everything else is pretty much exactly what we are looking at. This revision might look a lot like the last rendering I posted, but it is different. We added people into the rendering so we could get a better perspective of space, we reduced the patio size and slightly reduced the spa size. We also added a paver boarder around the patio. We are looking at approximately 1300 sq feet of patio, approx 600 sq ft of pool and a 48 sq ft spa. We are going to restart the bidding process with 3 builders and we hope to have construction started in the next 2-3 weeks!

Talk to some landscape designers and ask to see their portfolios. I’ve looked at a lot of landscape photos online and most of them are overdone, loaded with too-wavy lines, unnecessarily complicated shapes, fire pits and fountains that no one uses, redundant “features” and stepping stone paths to nowhere. A good pro design will address your family’s needs in the simplest way possible, IMO, taking into consideration the amount of time you want to spend maintaining it. Making a list of your needs and wants and a sketch of your yard as suggested above is the first step. You can do it yourself if there are no grade change or drainage issues, or paver installations that you can’t manage or aren’t willing to learn how to do correctly, but it’s hard physical work and there’s a lot to learn first. Planting and mulching is moderately hard work but doable with some advice on plant selection from a good nursery or the forums. Books from the library or online advice on proper planting methods are important for success. Having a lawn seeded or sodded is not that expensive in my area. Lighting is a job for pros. Here is an outdoor living area with a patio for sitting/dining, grill, lawn, simple flower beds, and not-yet-mature plantings for privacy in the background. It provides a walk from driveway to house. Small tree for shade. Retaining wall provides an interesting grade change. Out of view is a bird bath for bird watching, and additional small sun and shade gardens. No squiggly lines, extraneous rocks and gravel, squirting fountains, monuments to stone-look blocks, or kitsch. Simple. Professionally designed. Last summer this area was a construction site with a new septic system being installed until the patio, sod, and new driveway and were installed around October. There is enough space here to satisfy an urge to garden but not so much that it creates a burdensome maintenance problem. Beds are kept mulched for weed control and moisture retention. You could easily do something like this in your yard even if you completed the project over time. Some of the garden accoutrements here have been collected over a 25 year period. Some of the gray pots on the ground are 3 or 6 dollar plastic pots from walmart painted with rustoleum camo color spray paint that blends in with the concrete and stone. They were lime green before. Good luck and try to enjoy the process.

"... we were planning on lining the mulch bed with river rock as well. But in the end that may be too much of a pain..." Oh ... it WILL be! You'd be picking rock out of grass forever. If you want a nice, permanent edge, I suggest a properly installed mowing strip made of a row of bricks, laid flush, such that they create an 8" band. As they are only 2 1/4" thick, they need stabilization or they will move over time. A similar mowing strip can be created of brick on edge which creates a 4" thick band (still 8" wide) that will stay put on it's own. It can be combined with cap block (in an alternating manner) for a different look. "... from what I found the Goldspire Ginkgo only grows 14-16ft high and 5-6 ft wide when mature?" That is so not how it's going to go. The trees in the picture are very young, and trimmed. They are created for selling. In later years, they're going to escape this petite frame and probably get a beer belly, too ... like any regular tree but slightly narrower.

@Yardvaark, yes, the grill will stay. I know it is unusual to do the cooking/dining in the front yard. If we were at any of our old houses, we wouldn't even entertain the idea of doing this in the front yard, but we are in the country on 10+ acres. The road shown on the site plan is a 12 ft wide road with 2-way traffic. The only person that lives below me is my uncle. The area between the porch & driveway is right off the kitchen/dining room, so it is convenient. What is shown on the site plan in the rear yard is a screened-in porch. We do have a patio under the porch, but is at the basement level. To grill back there, would require hauling food down the interior steps and through the unfinished basement. We did this when we lived in the suburbs and it was less than ideal even after we finished that basement. I agree having a master plan would be ideal. I tried doing a master plan and got overwhelmed. (See my response to Fori) I do have a plan in terms of "use" just not landscaping. I thought if I focused on this front area, it would inspire the rest of the design. As for the proposed uses: Back yard: we ultimately want to build a fireplace near the patio for roasting marshmallows and family time. North Side yard: This will be future (5-6 years out) parking for when the kids start driving. We are grading that area now, so we can drive to the back yard if needed. We plan to reseed with grass for now, but will have raised planting beds along the house to protect the house if someone doesn't stop in time. :) South Side yard: Not much to do here. We have 3 heat pumps that we thought about enclosing with a fench/lattice, but the only one who sees it is the propane man. We do need to build our outdoor shower at the end. Front yard: Other than wanting a flower & herb garden between the drive & porch, I don't know what to do. I'm open to ideas if you have any. To extend the thinking a little more, right now, you don't have a solid vision of what you're trying to create. It's a fact that "gardens," at times, can become a bit (or a lot!) messy. While landscaping on the other hand, tries to be always tidy. You've got that right! I don't have a solid vision! LOL! As for the garden, I was thinking more flowers with either herbs integrated into the flower beds, or a separate area with herbs. I wasn't thinking "garden" as in corn, potatoes, beans. I thought herbs were on the "neater" side of gardening and could be incorporated into landscaping easily, no? My previous neighbors had herbs growing in the foundation beds out in the suburbs and it looked lovely. Maybe they spent a lot more time than I thought tending to them?? I can't see that a fence here would be necessary or desirable. Visually, it would represent somewhat of a barrier in an area that is supposed to look welcoming. Being a MINOR barrier wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. I want this area to be welcoming from the porch/dining room. I don't want guest automatically walking through it. I have 2 sets of doors off my porch. The first set are the teal double doors on the front of the house. The second set are the white, double doors leading to the dining room. I'm hoping the landscaping will help eliminate any confusion on which door to use. Currently, 99% of our guests go to the dining room doors. (One reason is that our temp sidewalk leads to this door.) I want to encourage guests to go to the front door. Building my main sidewalk should help, but my husband wants to keep a walkway from the side porch to the driveway, too. I hope my comments aren't misconstrued as if I'm saying a garden here won't work. In addition to functional appropriateness, gardens typically require more maintenance than landscapes. I'm bringing up these points as something to think about prior to committing to development. This is why I posted. I like to hear pros and cons that I may not think of myself. I appreciate the feedback!