I've been there too - in fact I'm still there LOL!! Our worst was when we got to the 2 story section of the house. We had some structural issues so the only way to deal with it was to cut the entire 22*16 foot two level structure at one time. We had our bed set up in the dining room that was open to the kitchen for the winter. The only good part is the bed was about 10' from the wood stove so it made it real easy to get up in the night to keep the fire going. We are finally to finishing the kitchen and like you, decided to run the kitchen floor into the dining area. Our kitchen was set up temporary all along (we moved the rooms) so it was real easy to move cabinets around. At one point I had two base cabinets in the entry way. One upper out on the deck, the small cabinet island in the hallway. The phone center cabinet was also in the hallway, the tall hutch is apart and in the library crammed next to the dining room table along with my tredel sewing machine. The chairs for the dinign room are upstairs in the family room - they have to be shifted around if we want to watch TV, but we rarely do that. The big hutch is in between the two desks in the den. The two tall pantry cabinets ended up in the other hallway to the dressing room. We have a small folding table and two chairs - that has worked out great to have some place to sit other than eating at our computer desks. I'm seriously wondering how it will be like to have regular rooms again. Cathy

"...Bad layout, too small. And there's plenty of room to expand it...." If you plan to redo the layout, and I don't blame you, I'm not sure you can reuse the countertop. Cabinets, maybe, if you can match the door style for new ones. Are the cabinets in good shape, structurally? Are they functional? Are the base cabinets the "basic" cabinets...fixed half-depth shelf? Or, were they at least upgraded to have adjustable full-depth shelves? If the latter, you can probably make them more functional using after-market inserts/pullouts/etc. like those from Rev-A-Shelf, Hafele, or other manufacturer. If the former, well, it's up to you if you want to try to retro-fit those after-market inserts/pullouts/etc. If the cabinets are not structurally sound or look like they won't last at least another 10 years, then I would reconsider reusing them (that is, if you intend to stay in the house that long). They look OK, but looks can be deceiving. Have you considered Ikea cabinets? Those that have them here really like them. They're inexpensive and may be less than it will cost to reface + add new of your current ones. They have good quality hardware (Blum), have many of the "bells & whistles" that more expensive cabinets have, and are rated highly by Consumer Reports. While Ikea has mostly "modern" styles, it does have more "traditional" looking doors. Plus, if you want different doors, you can order doors from places like Scherr's that are made specifically to fit Ikea cabinets. For now, you could go with the Ikea boxes & doors and later, when money becomes available, replace the doors with something you like better. Meanwhile, you will have structurally sound cabinets that should last a long time.

Where in the midwest: big city or small town? It depends on how complex the addition is, which depends on what you have to start with. If you post a photo of the back of the house so we can see the siding, roof, windows, etc., we can at least comment on the complexity of what you're contemplating. We've done 2 additions in the midwest. Both were hired to build the shell and we DIY finished the inside. Below are before and afters. This one cost $40K (500 sf, shell only): And this one cost $12K (200 sf, shell only):

To help, we need a more detailed layout.... From the "New to Kitchens? Read Me First!" thread: Please post a fully-measured layout of the space under consideration and a sketch of the entire floor. Both can be either hand-drawn, computer generated, or drawn up with computer/app tools. By "fully-measured", we mean a layout with the widths of each wall/window/door/doorway and the distances between each wall/window/door/doorway labeled. See a sample below. If something cannot be moved or changed, label it precisely on your layout (see post in sample) and tell us why it cannot be moved/changed -- we may have some ideas for you. The sketch of the entire floor lets us see how the Kitchen relates to the rest of the home. It doesn't have to be to-scale, but it should accurately show how the rooms relate to each other and should include all interior & exterior doors. In addition, it will help us see how traffic flows in, around, and through the Kitchen. Label the front entry and family entry. The family entry is usually a garage or side entry, but it might not be. It's helpful to know which door you use to bring in groceries. Regardless of how you draw it up (by hand, computer, etc.), please be sure all measurements are labeled. (Note: Computer generated layouts often lack key measurements and, sometimes, measure to/from things like the middle of a wall or the middle of a window. Neither are useful. Measure each item and the distances between each item.) Other questions... Tell us about you and your family and how you plan to use your Kitchen. All-adults? Empty Nesters? Children (now or in the future)? What appliances (& their sizes) do you plan to have? Where are you flexible? Can walls/windows/doors/doorways change (move, change size, add, delete)? Do you have a basement under the Kitchen or are you on a slab? The above and more are discussed in the Layout Help FAQ. Layout Help FAQ: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5500789/faq-how-do-i-ask-for-layout-help-what-information-should-i-include Ice.Water.Stone.Fire, a humorous discussion of Kitchen design: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2699918/looking-for-layout-help-memorize-this-first Also see... Work Zones, What Are They?: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5500762/faq-kitchen-work-zones-what-are-they Aisles Widths, Seating Overhangs, etc.: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5500771/faq-aisle-widths-walkways-seating-overhangs-work-landing-space-etc Storage Planning: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5500787/faq-how-do-i-plan-for-storage