If I am looking at a pristine sheet of paper to draw on, the only confines I have are the edges of the page, and the pressures I put on myself or that I allow to cloud my creativity. I can't relate to an un-landscaped property as a blank slate, at least not like a clean sheet of paper or a new artist's canvas is blank. With landscaping, there usually a driveway, walks, windows and doors, the shape and style of the house, symmetry or lack thereof, utilities, etc. Then there are other things to consider like the direction of the sun, ordinances, covenants, neighbors, ugly views. To top off the confusion, it is known by most posters that there is a right and wrong way of doing things. I've experienced a few ah-ha moments by taking a photo and messing around with it on the computer using the software that came with my digital camera, or one of the free programs available on the internet. Take photos of the area from multiple angels, then use the software to make the photo black and white, which sometimes is enough. It's surprising how clear something can look when you remove the color. Make other adjustments to soften the photo. If that isn't enough, print out a copy and draw on it and print out more if you mess it up. While this won't help with all of your problems, for those of us who are visual creatures, it can help see the landscape in a new light.

I wouldn't recommend either a designer or a decorator for a lighting plan. I'd recommend a lighting designer. You can usually find one at the higher end lighting stores, and they can save you a lot of money and grief over lighting placement and types by developing an overall plan, sort of like a master landscape plan. Or sometimes some of the larger electrical firms have a lighting designer consultant available. Either way, for an older home, you also need your electrician involved from the beginning with your lighting choices because you may have certain tradeoffs you need to make because of the home's structure, or you may not have enough electrical service for a modern home's needs. Also, to get the most out of the time that you spend with any designer, especially if you just want to use them for a periodic consultant, you need to create your own to scale floor plans with either graph paper or software. If you use the old fashioned paper, create to scale templates of your furniture to be able to move it around on the graph. If this is beyond your skill level, then you will need to pay for more time from your consultant to do this for you. A floor plan is an essential part of any home design.

Our climate: Indiana weather. Zone 5b. The kitchen faces the east, but it faces the ravine behind the house. So while there will be some sunshine, a lot of it will be blocked by trees. Especially in the early morning, which is fine, I'm not much of a morning person anyways. It will have 9ft ceilings, or just under when finished. The overall style of the house is barn-esque. We wanted something that would blend in with the setting. Brown metal gambrel roof and wooden vertical siding with a large stone chimney off of the family room. I don't want the interior to match the exterior, and it doesn't bother me that it doesn't. I actually like the idea of formal rooms inside of a barn, kind of a pleasant surprise when you walk in the door. I'm sure others will hate it, but it's the look I'm going for. I would like the island to be the majority of the countertops in the kitchen. I would like for it to be used for prep as well as seating if possible (my husband wants an eat in kitchen, I want a formal dining area, and I'm willing to do both even in the same room if the areas can match well. I would be insane to have any more kids, but I thought that after the first, and the second, and still managed a third. So while highly unlikely, there is a rare chance that I'll miss having little ones around when they all are off to school in 3 years. The front entrance will be the most used. Our actual yard will be in the front of the house where the kids will do most of their playing while they are young. It's defined by trees right now. I would love to keep it that way. As the girls get older, they will probably hike around in the woods more, and instead use the basement entry. We plan a walkout basement in the side of the hill with a porch off the front of it. I think the hill is too steep for the basement to walk out directly at ground level. We do not want to change much of the land. There is a small creek and a large trail that will run behind the house. I would have loved to put a half bath under the stairway, but that stairway will also lead to the basement, so there isn't enough room for a bathroom there. Honestly, I don't think we will use the family room much. I just labeled it family room, because as lavender_lass stated, it's a trophy room. If a door is necessary, I don't want to be able to see through it. While I personally don't mind the taxidermy (I hunt as well), I would love to have a place for it in the house. I have family that isn't a huge fan of seeing it, and it does get a little overwhelming in our current tiny home. Mostly, because it's spewing into every room in the house except the kitchen and dining room. I think we will actually use the living room more often. We're not too big on formal around here, although I love the look. And I think the living room can have a formal sense to it, and still function as a heavily used area. That being said, I don't mind opening up living room to the kitchen more, as long as there is still a defined space. I do not like open layout floorplans, and love to be able to get away from a messy kitchen if needed. That's my biggest concern with a combo kitchen/dining. Although, I love pictures of fancy eat-in kitchens. Chicagoans- I love the sliding doors with the rail at the top. I have the current setup in my new temporary kitchen here at our current home. I would love to do this on as many doors as possible. I would also love for their to be French doors to the porch from the kitchen/ dining room area. I haven't decided on countertop either. I saw some gorgeous black and white marble that I loved, but marble makes me a little nervous. My husband is well known for throwing down tools and anything else on the kitchen countertops now. Thank goodness they are pre-cut green laminate pieces that I actually enjoy watching getting demolished a little bit at a time. I'm thinking something very durable that will last forever would be ideal. I would prefer to have a kitchen that will last for the next 10-15 years, at least, with little change. Here was my little board of some materials if I went with off white cabinets.

Having nice windows already is a blessing, even if it means missing out on impressing the heck out of yourselves with a transforming one. Your question is intriguing, but I noticed I have no idea how you actually live there. I love drop-leaf tables for their flexibility and would probably find a place for a good-sized round one in the living room for all "table" activities. Since you know you don't need much more storage, you're obviously safe from having to learn how investing space in "enough" storage would just encourage accumulation. Just as a point of observation in general, I've noticed that -- except for storage for the kind of extravagant accumulation you're avoiding -- the furniture most people actually use even in far larger homes these days often comes down to just one comfy seating/lounging spot for each resident, from which TV viewing, conversation, bill paying, internet surfing, etc., all take place, plus MAYBE a dining table or counter with chairs. The "maybe" for the dining surface + extra seats because of the people who also usually dine in their comfy spots. Sad to realize for those of use who love but no longer need old fashioned living rooms with writing desks, secondary conversation groupings, game tables, and so on, but there it is... I hope at least one of the ideas you're looking for pings loud. From this side of the screen, your description of your card catalog's utility has done that for me. It'd be a natural too since I've always loved libraries, so thanks.