we have the same dilemma in our new house, however we currently have 2 sets of sliding glass doors and due to a lot of use and age they get stuck a lot. what to replace it with is now the question.

Chess-yeah that's me - yes, that is exactly right! the owners dad built it about 70 years ago. Jamie Ludwig - I posted some additional photos that did not seem to upload before Saypoint - Was thinking I can't do seating on either side of the door because on one side you have fireplace and the other side is the entryway to the other room. We tried the sofa facing the fireplace but it did not seem to work well as it felt like you walked into the sofa when you came in. Also tried the sofa in front of the tv with the back to the door but then again felt like you walked right into the sofa and it was too close to the TV.

Vegetable gardens are not something I'd recommend for a front yard, street side planting. They seldom have much aesthetic appeal, often look quite messy and typically require protection from insect pests and animal marauders. And they often do not exist at all for 4-6 months of the year, perhaps longer. Curb appeal factor is a negative, not a plus :-) The simplest approach is to use a groundcover, preferably evergreen, for the sloped portion and remove the grass and replace with gravel or crushed rock at the street to accommodate parking. Or some combination of low growing shrubby material and some flowering perennials. Make sure the pathway from street to entry is generously sized - at least 4-5' wide.

hallway breezeway, roughly 4X8. I grew up in a house with a breezeway /connected 1-bedroom apartment, and several of my relatives have breezeways on their houses. NONE of them are this small. All of them are at least 10' wide and serve as living spaces as well as connectors. She wanted a 3 bedroom, 1700sf home originally. She's building a 2 bedroom, just shy of 1200sf. She's downsizing from a 2600sf house down to 1200sf. It's not easy. Is this about problems downsizing? Given that she's a single person, and she has access to your house as well ... I don't see why she'd need that much space. However, I saw my grandmother downsize from a large house to a small one (successfully) ... but when she downsized again from that small house to a large room + kitchenette/table area + huge bathroom + huge closet (at her son's house), she was not so successful. She wasn't willing to give up certain pieces of furniture, and she crammed it so full that it was not pleasant. Now I'm seeing my mom /stepfather downsize from a 3- bedroom to a 1-bedroom, and they're still very much in the awkward stage. My mom claims she LOVES the smaller space because she can clean it so fast, and it's enough ... but they "aren't there yet". I was trying to get the garage far enough forward that she could back out into the existing drive, the go forward down the drive I like the location of her 1-car garage BECAUSE it makes so much sense for her to be able to share your existing driveway. And you could do something special with that courtyard. The lighting will make things difficult, but it'd be a nice spot for a patio with an herb garden. I thought houses had to have a back door I don't think a house has to specifically have a "back door", but -- even if it's not a requirement -- every house should have at least two exits for fire safety. Since I assume she is not young, I'd recommend one door in her bedroom. Again, fire safety. an apartment sized stackable W/D would be a space saver. For a single person, this makes sense. She can always use your larger, family sized machines for the few times she needs to wash a large comforter. We hear there is a rising trend for multi-gen living. We hope to be living here for at least 25+ years. Then maybe we will move into her home and one of our kids live in the main house. If not, we hope there's a market for this kind of home. Like I said, I grew up in a house with an attached breezeway leading to a 1-bedroom apartment. Over the years it's been used for SO MANY THINGS: an elderly relative lived in the space, when we were teens we kids spread out into that space, it was a business, it was rented, and now my mom's living in the apartment. It's a tremendously flexible option, and I am sure it'll be sell-able in the future. Small considerations: be sure you have separate utilities and a separate entrance. I think you're on that. I went back to the other plan and reworked it so the walk-in closet is larger. I'd put a lot of emphasis on the closet /storage overall. She's going to want to bring in a lifetime of memories. The cheapest way to get the storage she needs might be to extend the garage a little. In the original layout, her bedroom is roughly 17 by 12 and she would like to keep it that size. In all seriousness, WHY does she need a bedroom this large? What size bed is a single woman going to use? Will she have furniture other than the bed in the bedroom? 'it's just you, why do you need such a big kitchen?' She just has it in her mind that that is what she needs. Three ideas: - Visit some houses and let her SEE some smaller, functional kitchen. - Have her go through her kitchen items and inventory what she plans to bring to the new house. Realistically, does she need ALL the things she has now? - Remind her that she can use your larger kitchen for big family meals. Remind her that if she goes with a smaller kitchen, she can borrow your big chili pot, etc. just by walking across the breezeway. 2BR/2BTh with maybe a larger living area for when the grandkids visit is much better and remind her that a smaller, but more efficient kitchen is better. Realistically -- I'm using that word a lot, ya know? -- how often does she have visitors? how often does she have overnight visitors? I'm suspicious that a Jack & Jill bath could work well here ... a full bath connected to her bathroom, and a half bath on the other side of it for visitors. Remind her that she's looking for easier maintenance. Bathrooms are pretty high maintenance rooms. Your children probably won't spend the night with her ... why would they when they can be with her, then walk across the breezeway to return home and sleep in their own beds? If other grandchildren are likely to be her visitors, could she do with a bunk room instead of a full-fledged bedroom? Do you have space for guests in your larger house? If so, that cuts down on the need for guest space in her house.