The past couple of years of both of their lives was exhausting for us (their caregivers). I'm 49 and have 3 teenagers and own a shop. Days were none stop from the moment I woke until the moment I fell into bed. I wouldn't change it for the world. I had one sister who thought they needed taking care of. Would it have been easier? Yes for us. Would it have been better? Not if its something they weren't ready for, which they weren't. The past 4 months, cleaning out their home of 87 years of life has been the hardest thing I've ever had to do and the most rewarding. I'm still not completely finished. The house is empty and waiting to be sold. I go in about once a week to make sure all is ok and I leave knowing that I was able to help two wonderful people be happy and content right up to the end. I hope If I'm lucky enough to live to be 87 that I'll be right were I want to be when I die. It might be assisted living or a smaller home or right where I am right now. I hope my children will not make me choose which things are important to me by their standards. I understand what you're saying and I'm glad you were able to help your parents live out their lives. I think, however, that the balance is different if there's only one of you doing the caretaking (along with job/career and family obligations) and/or if the "destination" is not death but long-term care. Right now my 70-something mother is caring for my wheelchair-bound brother. He has a degenerative disease that, for better or worse, does not really affect his lifespan. I am responsible for his care after my mother passes on. It is not possible for me to provide my brother with the full-time care he needs and keep any kind of decent-paying job -- nevermind the career I have now. He really will need to move to a nursing home -- a shame, because he will be a generation younger than almost anyone else there and because, at some hours of the day, he does pretty well for himself. Nursing home spots -- especially at good facilities (or, very especially, at one that can better serve people his age) -- don't open up automagically when you need them. So my mother and I have agreed that, if we find a good spot for my brother before it actually is needed on a daily basis, it would make sense to move him there and let him acclimate to this new stage in his life. My brother likely will not be ready for that whenever it happens. At this point, my brother rarely understands the limitations imposed by this disease. We're doing what we can to prepare him. But the time ultimately will not be of his choosing. When my mother passes on, my brother may have to deal not only with that loss, but with a complete change in his living accommodations. Moving him to a care facility - especially before it's absolutely necessary -- is not easy, either. But, for him, we think it will be the better way to go.

Scrolling through the photos my first thought was it would look nice to have a plant or flowers for some softness. The table is pretty ornate so I'd keep the top simple and less. The last photo is better balanced. I'd actually lower the flowers a few more inches in the vase.

I don't mind the table and mirror and can't really think of anything besides art that would fit on that wall. Can't see the table details well but could it be painted? How about red to match your lovely door? What would say "fresh and cozy" to you for that space? Have you thought of a new light fixture? A runner and a larger rug in the entrance could look good. I don't find the clock visible from the door to be welcoming so I'd be tempted to remove it.

yet you knew that the numbers I posted were not feasible? I live in one of the cheapest area of the country, and these numbers would be a stretch here ... they'd be a more difficult stretch pretty much anywhere else, particularly with the modern details you're planning. I'll just have to agree to disagree on this one. The kitchen I posted had 48" of clearance, which is plenty for movement. The picture I posted has GREAT, not good traffic flow. Here's your kitchen. You're focusing on a single item -- the width of the aisle, but that's only one item in a room full of details. The real problem is the traffic pattern /circulation -- you have only one entrance /one pathway -- here are a couple examples of how that can become problematic: - You've just come home with groceries and are putting them away. You're working at the end of the island /at the pantry /at the refrigerator. For the 15 minutes or so that you've cut off circulation between the kitchen and the rest of the house ... and if your family's like mine, they come running when new groceries are brought in. They want to see what kind of cookies I bought, and they want to help put them away. - You open the oven door, and you cut off circulation to the sink. So a child who wants to put a dirty dish into the sink cannot reach it ... the glass is left on the peninsula, and you wonder why no one will ever put things away in this house! - Your sink is the single most-used item in the whole kitchen ... and you've placed it at the far end, meaning you have to walk the length of the kitchen to reach it. Furthermore, you've placed it in the most narrow spot, assuring that only one person can use it at a time. Finally, you've arranged things so that you must place the dishwasher "around the corner" from the sink. - Glassware should be stored in a cabinet next to the refrigerator ... it just makes life easy. However, since your dishwasher is on the far end of the kitchen, you'll end up making multiple-multiple-multiple trips between the dishwasher and the refrigerator (or you'll be storing your glasses in an inconvenient spot). - You need your garbage can to be near the sink/dishwasher, but since it's placed on the far end of the too-narrow U, you have to carry the garbage farther than is necessary to take it out each day. Consider how you could keep the general concept of your kitchen ... but improve the traffic pattern /circulation -- how about a classic L+island ...- I personally like the range on the short-y arm, but it could be placed on the cabinet run with the refrigerator ... or the sink could be placed in that position, leaving the island an open work space. - Now while you're unloading groceries or accessing the refrigerator, people still have access to the stove area or can "walk around" to the sink from the other side. - Note that I added a small cabinet between the wall and the refrigerator. Why? Because a refrigerator up against the wall won't open all the way, making it difficult to remove shelves /clean. This small cabinet could be a tall-pantry cabinet for housing small appliances, or it could be an out-of-the-way spot for a coffee pot, a cake, or a bowl of fruit. Alternately, you could go with a simple galley kitchen with an island forming one side of the galley. It works for all the same reasons as the L+island. The traffic pattern /circulation is better than the too-narrow U, and you have a really big island.Last thought on kitchen: You say you're presenting us with a floor plan for the kitchen on the left, but the illustration will come out looking more like one of the others ... quite narrow. In spite of its width, it's a one-butt kitchen; it's about proportion. Gotta love houzzers who can't tell if a kitchen is good because there are no dimensions posted but they sure can tell it's terrible even without those dimensions. Dimensions are ONE MEASURE of whether a space works. Even without dimensions, it's easy to tell whether the appliances are arranged in a logical fashion and whether the traffic pattern /circulation works. Even without dimensions, it's easy to see whether the kitchen and dining room have a good connection to one another and whether you'll be able to see the kids in the living room while you're cooking. I dont mind walking past the closet to get into the master. matter of fact, I prefer it as it provides a little more privacy. I actually agree with this detail. If well positioned, the closet can provide acoustical privacy. The real problem here is the master bath ... entering it requires that you walk the length of the whole room to reach the door ... and then the layout makes no sense: blank space dead ahead of the door, water elements on two walls, when it would make sense to consolidate ALL the plumbing into one space: This version, though not significantly different from your original, provides several positives: - You can place the bathroom door several steps closer to the bedroom door. (Note: This wall can't be used for furniture anyway because it's the main walkway.) - Opening a door between the bathroom and the laundry allows for easy drop-off of dirty clothes /taking your jeans directly from the dryer. Again, this is improved traffic pattern /circulation. - This layout is so much more spacious! - You now have a shelf for towels at the end of the tub. - You have storage AT the toilet ... toilet paper and a plunger, if nothing else. If you grow old in this house, you may find that you have some at-the-toilet storage needs; my grandparents both did. - You have one nice long vanity, which you could configure in any number of ways ... could include a linen tower. - ALL these items, including the washer /dryer and sink fall onto ONE SINGLE WALL, meaning you only need to have water running through one wall. You keep saying you want efficient and inexpensive ... this is it. - We aren't talking about windows, but you can have a nice short/wide window above the tub, which will allow in light without sacrificing privacy. we have storage upstairs in the laundry room, next to the kids bathroom, in the play room, and will have some in the master bath. I've read that 10% of the house should be storage. I don't see that much in your house. Things to consider: - I don't think you're harnessing the large space under that switchback stair. Yeah, it's only half-height space, but you're paying for it. Don't box it in. - I think you have a linen closet outside the kids' upstairs bathroom ... but it isn't 'specially large. Consider kids' sleeping bags, extra pillows for guests, extra toiletries ... this space'll fill up fast. - Do you have space for hobby storage? toys? seldom used cooking items? seasonal items? gift wrap? Go through your house and make a list of the things that now have "no good home". Where are they going to go in this house? - Not really storage, but one of the things about which I'm most excited in my new house is a Cleaning Closet. It's going to be smack-dab in the middle of the house (for convenience). No more squishing the vacuum cleaner to the side of the coats, a place to stack cleaning items, a place to store bulk-purchased paper products. I can't wait to have this specialty closet! That's it ... I'm out of it.