Each region of the country has it's own look. I'm not sure if would be considered appropriate for you area. Personally, I would update the white and go with a light to medium shade of tan/taupe or even a sage/olive if it would work with the brick. I'm partial to black shutters and a black door. I can't tell if the dark colored brick is a black or a brown so the above mentioned choice might be a better choice if it is a dark brown. I would absolutely get rid of the blue because that makes the house look more dated.

Thanks to one and all; I appreciate all the ideas. We are going with a retractable screen, which ever door we choose. I really like, and need, the PetScreen option, especially for the screens for the front two casement side windows. Lukkiirish - Can you tell me why your are only "fairly happy" with your retractable screen storm door? I'm hoping for "ecstatically happy!" LOL VicsGirl, You too sweet with your comments on my Little House of Horrors on the Prairie. The gardens are still "in progress, and the right-hand part won't be planted this year. DH just dumped a trailer load of horse stable compost and freshly cut grass all over it. I'm smoothing it out, watering, and letting it settle before putting some of my perennials in this fall. PammyFay, the glass in this door has five (or seven?) different textures and patterns of 'clear' glass. The metal is a dark grey, and the three "tulip blossoms" are the most beautiful, dark red with a wavy, watery texture. If the sections of glass under the tulips had been dark green it would be beyond perfect! The glass is 90-95% opaque, but the sunlight coming through it is so fractured and intense it's nearly impossible to photograph. The window is very sparkly! The siding is steel, and bomb proof. Ugly, but strong. It's too sturdy to consider replacing with something that wouldn't be as tough. We have toyed with the idea of painting it. IF we do paint, or re-side, the house would be a pale sage green, or a rich tan. We picked the roof and door to go with either color if we stay here long enough to change it. DH built the deck when we needed to replace the front steps. He chose everything and especially wanted the floor boards set at the 45-degree angles and the black railings. I wanted it 8' wide. These photos makes the door and red glass look darker than they are, but you get the idea of the glass textures. This particular glass style has been discontinued. Garden in progress, the borders are subject to rearrangement, again, maybe. The raised garden on the south (left) side of the house is 8' wide and 23" long.

Thank you all, going to get some samples. Trapped at home for the next few weeks so I might try to test some out as long as the stores stay open. there is a house down the street that has a good yellow door (with a light grey house) that I love. might test that out!

One thing I noticed about rock beds is that if you don't have landscaping fabric under the rocks, they end up embedded in the soil. I removed 3 layers of different kinds of lava rock, river rock and quartz from in front of my new/old house after we moved in a few years ago (The former owners had refurbished the area with different kinds of rocks each time). Only to find out that the ground beneath them ran downhill (10" in 3 ft.) towards the house (there was fabric underneath). There were other places the former owners used rock also and didn't put fabric underneath and those were the place where the rock was embedded into the soil. Rocks not only sinks when it's muddy but rotting vegetation & soil blown by the wind fills in between the rocks adding to the effect. Being I had all the rocks piled in the driveway, I leveled the ground along the house (slightly slanting away from the house), relaid the river rocks (using fabric underneath) that I washed with the power washer (it only took a portion of the river rocks to get the desired depth after I leveled the ground) and then had a guy come with a loader to remove several yards of excess rock/quartz/lava from the driveway. The area by my house has a northern exposure so little sun gets in there but if you have a southern exposure, rocks will get very hot during the summer sun and will cook any plants planted there. You may get by with potted plants laid on top of the rocks but you'll be more limited in what you can have. Just wanted to share one of the nightmares you might run into doing that. A wheel barrel comes in handy removing rock. You can load it according to your strength or ambition, or both. :-)