I thought our 2300 sq ft. house was just perfect for the 3 of us... - then we decided I traveled too much for work and opened up my own business - in the house - then things grew and I added an employee - in the house - Then hubby took early out from the University and expanded his tax & consulting practice - in the house - then his practice grew and he added a part ime employee - in the house - then things really got successful and some parts of the year he can have as many as 3 employees - in the house!!! Net effect is that our 4 bedroom house some days feels like a 1 bedroom office - we no longer have a home. We are building on 20 acres in the country - house with a good sized office wing. I've redesigned about a dozen times and can't seem to get it down below 5000 sq ft. So, for us (and the assorted clients, employees and visiting relatives) I guess the perfect size is 5000 sq ft.

2nd discussion this afternoon in London was your oak floor. First I think the best thing to do is explain something....In days gone by wood was harvested and then lay to 'season' for no less than 7 years. The reason for this was simple any expansion of the wood would occur in this time and eventually it would 'rest'. However today this is not the case....the wood is put through a kilning process for speed and commercial reasons. We had a long long discussion about this, and the first thing I have to ask is this....did you not do a test area before undertaking the task of re-colouring? I have to advise any client a test area is always a pre-requisite for undertaking any changes to oak. Unfortunately unbeknown to yourself you changed the conditions that this wood was enjoying and it has reacted in this way. This wood was happy and settled before the process of re-colouring was undertaken. The environmental forces of chemicals being enforced upon it now have changed and wood being a natural substance will react to such changes. This is what has happened to your oak. Now the bad news, we have never seen a wooden floor that has cupped be rectified. My advice to you is to see professional wood mason or master carpenter immediately. I am sending my best regards to you and please keep us updated. Kind Regards Lynn (and the boys in London England)

Fun, did you have more than one living space growing up? We had a formal living room and a family room so the family room is where our toys were kept. However, we didn't have nearly the same amount of toys as kids do nowadays! The way our family room was laid out, there was a corner where all the toys were kept. I shared an average size room with my sister, so we didn't have much room for playing in there. I'm sure we did a bit but for the most part, we were in the family room when we were young or outside. I also can't imagine having kids' toys in every room. That would drive me nuts! Most of the houses around here have basements or more than one living area so the basements store the bulk of the toys and then the family room, which is typically open to or next to the kitchen is where the main floor toys are stashed. Having four kids has relaxed my anal tendencies but I still go a little nuts with crap laying around. The peninsula in my kitchen becomes the drop zone but I can't stand having that clutter. And dh is the worst b/c he will leave his stuff there and never come back for it but then get annoyed if I move it or ask him to. He's used to clutter from his childhood. I used to have complete order in the house b/f I went to bed, but now I'm so exhausted by then that I have slacked off a bit and then get all stressed when I come downstairs the next morning to clutter and have to clean up b/f I can function. I'm like that with cooking too - I can't start cooking unless the counters are clear, no dirty dishes out, etc. DH looks at me like I have two heads. Am I the only weird one like that? Oops, sorry, I have a habit off going off on a tangent!

Our goal is to build a forever home before we are too old to actually get a chance to live in it, enjoy it and raise our future children in it. I have the impression you're young -- the comment about "before we're too old" rings false with me. Don't rush into this big commitment. I also think it’s very odd that the site that has this particular plan estimates the cost to build at 260k...not sure what they base that on because it seems like most everyone on here is insinuating that this plan is a multimillion dollar home to build. It's 2587 square feet, right? It's not an accurate measurement, but just consider that. A builder-basic house can be had for about $100/sf ... that'd bring you to $258,700 ... and that's for cheap carpet, laminate countertops, hollow doors ... not at all the inspiration pix. You're talking about a complicated floorplan ... in a rural area, which comes with its own set of pros and cons, and also some extra costs. On the other hand, you have a couple things on your side: you already own the land, and since you live on it, I assume you already have a driveway, water and other utilities on the property. You'll have to pay to bring them to the build site, but it won't be as bad as bringing the lines themselves in. I don't know that it's a multi-million dollar build, but no way is it a -- what'd you say? -- 260,000ish build. Why do the plan people say these things? Easy. They want you to buy the plan. They don't care whether you can afford to build the house. Same reason the diet pill people say you can drop 40 pounds in a month without changing your diet or exercising. They want your money. I have looked at homes near where we live, however since we are so rural here I get it. I'm from a rural area too, and -- yeah -- it's harder to estimate than a house in a neighborhood. We haven’t gone to our banker since we don’t really have an amount in mind to request...lots of chicken and egg business! You're just finishing school, right? The bank doesn't want to hear that you're well-educated and are about to start working -- they want to know that you have a secure job and can show them some numbers on a paycheck. You'll certainly get a better interest rate after you can show that you've been on the job a while, but I think you should talk to the bank and ask your friend for advice /options. Yes, for sure. We have definitely thought about that, and actually planned to wait to finish the upstairs at a later time too. The bank isn't going to go for that (banker friend or not). If you're borrowing money, they want to know that IF they were to take back the house (they have to think that way -- don't take insult), it'd be ready to put on the market with minimal effort. They aren't going to finance half an unfinished house. They might go for an unfinished rec room, but fewer than three bedrooms /two baths will be impossible. My eyes are so, so big! But who wants that much house to clean anyway?! Especially with a difficult commute and kids on the horizon. Another thought, could you not take any regular floor plan that you like and when making decisions on the siding, roofing, etc. choose materials that are consistent with the storybook style to get that same look? Absolutely you can. Pick a layout that works, and add the features to make it look storybook.