If you were to go with a final-in-the-future plan like what I suggested above, I am thinking of what you could do now with the house now with limited funds that: a) is still in-keeping with your long-term plan, so you aren't wasting money or creating headaches b) would make the house more pleasant/functional in the meantime while you save for the addition You mentioned wanting to refinish the floors, and I agree that will never be easier than it is before you move in. However, if your long-term plan is something like what I suggested above, your floors are ultimately going to change quite a bit. If the kitchen moves, the floor under all the existing cabinets will need refinishing again if there is even hardwood under there. You may end up laying all new floors so it is seamless after your big remodel. I'm just not sure refinishing the floors is a good investment. I am wondering if using something like this, which I have heard amazing things about wouldn't be good enough for now? http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rejuvenate-32-oz-Floor-Restorer-and-Protectant-RJ32F/100281542 If you intend to do long-term something like what I suggested above, I am thinking that probably a better use of your existing limited funds would be to: 1) Consolidate the closet space in the weird hallway into one big closet. You don't have a mud room currently, so even though this closet space is not precisely where you'd want a mud room closet, it would be great for storing backpacks, coats, etc. 2) Add the pocket door to the entrance to the formal living room now. It can become the kids' play room for the time being, and it will be REALLY nice to be able to close a door on their mess. Or the formal living room could also immediately be used as a bedroom if need be, although it would need an armoire or something. 3) Take down the wall between the dining and kitchen for now. You lucked out that the sink is not on that wall. If the range or the fridge are on that wall, shove them wherever on the wall between the garage and kitchen for now. The cabinet in the corner next to the dishwasher will probably need a little TLC to be presentable after you remove the cabinets from the wall that is coming down, but a few pieces of added trim and maybe reusing a couple doors from cabinets that were on the wall that came down will make that corner look good enough for now. This wall removal will take care of immediately the two main things you mentioned disliking about your kitchen now. It will no longer be dark, and it will no longer be cramped. So while you are waiting to save up for the addition and a new kitchen, you won't be too miserable. Buy a free-standing Ikea island to use in your kitchen for now after the wall between the kitchen and dining comes down. This island is $400: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00116996/ 5) Place a table you already own in the dining room. 6) Maybe also take down the wall between the dining room and the weird little hallway.

I suggest separate systems for the first and second floor. That is the best way to have even temperatures on each floor. It costs more up front, but you potentially have lower operating costs. You could zone the loft off the second floor system. However if you are going to be working 10 hours days with multiple pieces of equipment generating heat then spend the money on a mini split.

actually RH used to have things like this. like framed maps, it works best when hung at a level that folks can see. do you expect visitors to care about these plans? or are you just filling space? i'd think that the plans would work better hung in a hallway where people pass and move on, not sit and look at them for 2 hours. we have a reproduction map of our town from the 1880s hung in our hall. visitors sometimes stop and look, enjoy finding our house on the map. a location like that could work for you, too.

I like your basic concept of not building a huge-a$$ house, and using walls to separate spaces (!). It looks like you've thought about how your family lives, what sort of rooms you want. (What is an "App Closet"?) I like emilyam819's suggestion for the master bedroom/bath upstairs. My concern would be the kitchen seems small; but you could push it a little further into the family room. For the outside, think about a covered porch all along the front, all the way to the garage. You could extend the garage forward four or six more feet, and that would make the front porch a more generous, useful size. (And it never hurts to have extra storage space in a garage.) Seems like now is the time to find an architect and a kitchen designer to help make your ideas "real". Oh, and plan for solar!