Forget the clay. Unless you find someone doing construction/excavation, you are unlikely to find any for sale. And 'fill dirt' is even less desirable - usually just junk soil and with the potential for all sorts of debris and garbage included. Locate your local bulk soil providers and check out their products. Chances are they will have some sort of garden planting mix that would be an ideal addition to your garden. Barring that, just add compost. If properly composted, wood or wood shavings will not rob nitrogen - it's the fresh stuff incorporated into the soil that will cause problems but that can be offset by adding alfalfa, cottonseed or other seed meals. And 86 the MiracleGro - it's not doing anything for you that can't be addressed through any number of other and much less expensive methods.

The family room in that link is appalling---no thought given to how crowded the "semi-custom"(?) wall of shelving and cabinetry would make the room when jammed up against a window. That's not good design or good decorating. Window placement is the big giveaway for poorly designed homes,IMO. Not just the windows in closets, but the oddly shaped windows like high rectangles apropos of nothing but an available blank space. When you walk around a house and see one of this window and another of that kind---lots of one off sizes and shapes all round the house--- that screams "builder's model" to me. I had a friend who built a house and let the builder design it. . . . She asked for all sorts of windows based on where she planned to put her furniture . . . .the builder did not know enough to try to steer her away from randomly placed and sized windows. I asked her why she would base the architecture of a house on furniture she may or may not even have in five years, not to mention the next occupant. She went ahead and bitterly regretted those silly windows when bought new things for those rooms. There's a sort of reverse snobbery at work amongst us decorating types. :) and that is disdain for actually using a designer. There's an undercurrent of feeling that if one has hired a professional then the rooms don't really reflect him or her, but the decorator instead. And yet, how many times have people said after finishing a project that they feel the room or house or curtains or whatever. Didn't really express her personality or did not turn out just as she wanted? That's my rationale for hiring someone---- he has the knowledge and sources to find exactly the right combination that DOES hit the mark exactly and expresses my true taste far better than I could execute it.

I just packed up this week past and the kitchen was demolished on Tuesday. I can't believe how much stuff I have! No wonder I think I need more storage and have ordered uppers that go all the way to the ceiling! I tried to exercise some discipline and throw out all the old things I rarely use anymore. I wasn't very successful... let's say it was like removing sand from the desert with a teaspoon. I guess I'm just attached to my old favs, like special friends. Plus, my mom passed away last year and I ended up with most of her stuff - as the only girl child, my brothers simply delegated all that kitcheny/household stuff to my best judgement. How could I possibly get rid of the green glass citrus squeezer??? or Grandma's best china?? Or Auntie's hand painted china, etched aluminum trays or the ancestral beer glasses?? For the record, I did throw away all the sippy cups and souvenir kiddy dishes (the baby starts HS next week), and at least 2 dozen coffee mugs are packed to donate to the local thrift (I'm sure those breed in closed cupboards) but I still have at least 3 dozen I can't part with. Hey, who wants to come to my place for coffee? Or tea? I counted 6 teapots, keepers all. I do think I'll replace all, or at least most of my kitchen towels. They have all seen better days, even if they rarely see the light of day anymore. We are currently settling into our "temporary kitchen" in the wet bar area of our basement rec room. This classic piece of 1960s design and construction leaves much to be desired functionally, but at least it boasts running water and a usable refigerator. Ironically, in the 13+ yrs we've lived in this house, we have seldom ventured into this cubby-hole, except to access the beer fridge. Now, I can hardly wait until the kitchen is completed so I can start planning its renovation...

It is frustrating to me that the original builder chose to install the HVAC system in attic in a house as big and expensive as the one you have described. Unfortunately that is the way it is in many parts of the country. I am not going to attempt to comment on "Y" connections versus remote distribution boxes. I am not a duct expert and it is difficult to follow this without a detailed diagram. So I will give you me general thoughts. I think the main distribution trunk should be a metal duct and well sealed and insulated. The size needs to be equivalent to 18 inch diameter. The flexible duct branches should be R6 or R8 rated. It should be as straight as possible and not looked like a mess. The static pressure at the air handler or furnace ideally be 0.5, anything above 1.0 is not acceptable. Adding more returns is a good thing in that you can never have too much return air. The bedroom probably needs more than two supplies. I hope you have ceiling fans to mix all the stagnant air up at the ceilings. If not consider installing them.