No help from me other than to say I love your pup, as I look at mine doing the same thing.

your rooms are really cute. I can see why the kitchen annoys you

you don't have that many cabinets. why don't you replace those? don't know what your budget is, but if you're getting new quartz and new tile splash, why keep the one thing in the kitchen that is the worst? the cabs?

have you checked ikea? you get the best bang for your buck with those. for you color scheme I'd go w/the black (or a black two tone black/white)

I love these

at the very least, you can find these white cabs pretty cheap. like under 3K.

I just wouldn't spend the money for one of the most expensive quartz counters (Silestone) and put it on cabinets that are yuk. cut corners w/the countertop (i've given you some examples below) and the flooring, in order to spread the money a little further.

instead of splurging on the countertop, I'd go w/the plain quartz and do that terrazzo look you like for your kitchen floor!

they make these in porcelain now. these are from my tile place.

as for the flooring, you don't have that much of it. if you guys are up for it, it's not a difficult DIY project. at the very least, do the demo yourself and save 1-2K...

Oh sorry - definitely not getting new countertops; the quartz is there already (I just shared a photo of the pattern closer up as it wasn’t obvious in the photo of my kitchen).

So I was thinking of just replacing the backsplash and/or floor. I do really like the two-tone cabinets you sent; I could check the cost of replacing them, but it would probably have to wait longer than a quick fix.

In other words, I think my options are to either do an inexpensive update (like new backsplash/paint) or to deal with it as it is until we can save up for a more costly but also more impactful change (like new cabinets).

ah, ok. so you have the quartz. hmmm,, I really like the Ikea option w/the decor in your house. I think it would be perfect.

you may be able to lift off the countertop that's there and preserve it to go atop new cabs. sometimes the adhesive isn't down very well.

But, if not, and you want the new tile, I'd go for something a bit more modern looking.

Here's my pick.

I like the chevron mosaic, new knobs, and the darker paint color (mentioned below)

the other tile on here is a warm gray/tan frosted glass tile. (Tilebar)

if you want subway, do something thinner and in a stacked pattern.

I'd also switch out your hardware to something nicer looking, and think about painting the walls around the cabinet w/something w/contrast.

Maybe Kendall Charcoal? I think it would look nice above the cabs and around the window. it's one of the colors in that floor tile

Here's Kendall Charcoal with white and a very light gray.

Or, try Revere Pewter or Chelsea if Kendall is too dark. the key is to get one of those warmer gray colors from the flooring or the counter, and use it for contrast above the cabs.

how about a warmer gray glass tile?

try some knobs like these

Since budget and time (congrats on the new baby!) are in short supply, I'd pop off the backsplash tile and live with a painted drywall backsplash for a while. I'd get an inexpensive indoor-outdoor rug in a fun graphic pattern to take the eye away from the floor. Perhaps pick an accent color from the rug for your wall/backsplash paint.

The shadows around the cabinets make it look they are installed improperly or falling apart. I'm not sure that a new floor and new backsplash are going to be able to hide that.

I'd make some simple cosmetic changes and then save up for new cabinets, backsplash and floor.

Thank you so much for the suggestions! I started looking at the IKEA kitchen planner tonight. Hubby and I are weighing either replacing just the doors or all of them. I will post the ‘after’ of whatever we decide. Thank you all for your time and suggestions!