Thanks, Benje. I really appreciate the time and thought you've put into this--very generous of you. I like your ideas. I guess the biggest difference with this is that we lose the fourth bedroom/office. When we bought the house, we planned on one kid, but--twins! My office is currently the small bedroom, and they share a room, but we'd really like to give them their own space. So our plan helped us get there (without losing my office). You've raised some interesting points, and I will show this to my husband so we can think it all through. Many thanks again

@mama goose_gw zn6OH, @anj_p, and @tracie_erin, hello! I wanted to reach out to you again as we have hired a KD and have made some progress with our kitchen space. It's not perfect and we are just in the initial stages, but I would love to continue my thoughts with you and get your input. Our Kitchen Designer took the original plans and made two different variations. I would love your thoughts on each variation noting what you would keep in place and what you would do differently. Here are some thoughts/questions I have: 1. I would still like to put the coffee bar and undercounter bev fridge across from the round table. In the current sketch, the counter depth does not allow for this. Therefore, I'm considering the possibility of inching into Roman's office a bit, to increase the depth of this space. We need a 5' coffee bar in this space, so if there is room remaining, I'd love to put a tall cabinet next to the coffee bar. 2. We need easy access to a fridge/freezer in the "back kitchen", so I'd like to either pull the standard size fridge/freezer from the pantry and move it to the shared back kitchen wall, or move the main kitchen column freezer to the back kitchen (since not used as much anyway), and incorporate fridge drawers there (remember this back kitchen space is where my husband makes smoothies, and will also be doing grill prep work. Which would you do? 3. What are your thoughts on eliminating the dishwasher in the island and just having a large sink and dishwasher in the back kitchen? Our family will primarily eat meals at the round table. Will it be cumbersome and awkward to bring our dishes to the back kitchen? I like the idea of the dishes being out of the way and there being more prep space at the island, but trying to determine if bringing dishes back there will get old after awhile. One other question...I've seen large sinks with dish dry racks right in the sink. Is this a pretty common feature? If so, that would be one way to keep dishes off of the island countertop. 4. I don't like the ovens being out of the main kitchen. I have a few thoughts on this. One would be to revisit @mama goose_gw zn6OH idea and have the fridge/oven wall centered with the main kitchen walkway, thus leaving two entrances to the adjoining dining room (see her alteration in the post above). If we do this, I'm thinking the fridge column could go in the center and the steam oven could go on one side of the fridge column, with the speed/standard oven stack on the other side of the fridge column. A television above the steam oven might also be nice. Or, if we kept the two side walls as is noted in the sketches below, I would want to eliminate the space where the steam oven is and close off the pantry with a double glass door. I would then bring the steam oven to where the current "tall cabinet" is and either put the speed/standard oven stack right next to it, or put the speed/standard stack next to where I would like the coffee bar to be (by Roman's office). In this way all ovens are in close proximity to the main/front kitchen. I could then also keep the column fridge where it is and instead of the open counter there, would put a tall cabinet next to the fridge. *Which option do you all like better: making one centered wall as in @mama goose_gw zn6OH suggestion, or keeping the two walls as seen in the sketches below? @mama goose_gw zn6OH, would you be willing to sketch your centered wall again within the PDF below (the one that has two counters in the "back kitchen")? I'd be so grateful as it really helps to see it! 5. You will see that one sketch below has counter space in the pantry while the other has more counter space in the back kitchen. We have more need for the counter space or storage in the back kitchen, so that is likely the route we will go with. 6. Which sink placement do you like better? One sketch shows it to the far left on the island and the other sketch shows it centered. 7. Do you like the current idea of having the pantry open, without a door, or would you shift one appliance so that you can close off the pantry with a door? I know I've included a lot to take in! If any of you are willing and able to continue to help me digest all of this and get it "just right", I'd be so grateful! I truly appreciate any input you may have!

Random thoughts: - All three have the bathroom entrance right by a sleeper's head. This is a major flaw. - I'm ambivalent about closets-entered-through-bathrooms. - Thoughts on #2, though it appears first in the line-up: This one seems to be the most straightforward, which is a positive. I'd like to see a few more inches devoted to the 32" toilet area. I'd also like to see a window above the toilet to bring in some natural light. Where is the shower head? Ideally it'd be in the same wall as the sink and toilet ... this would be a money-saver. I'd consider losing the bench /replacing it with a moveable teak stool. I don't see much storage in this bathroom ... I'd downsize to one sink and place a linen tower on one end of the vanity. Finally, the closet -- I'd go with hanging rods on the two sides /a shoe tower in the middle /across from the door. - Thoughts on #1, which appears second: Doors are a problem here ... you don't want a pocket door on a bathroom; they're great for rooms that stay open most of the time (pantry, laundry), but they're more difficult to use, and they will break. The shower door's swing blocks the bathroom door ... perhaps a sliding shower door. Also, I'd want the bench against the bedroom wall /the shower head, which is likely to be more noisy, on the opposite wall. The toilet area is going to feel narrow; you may find yourself knocking your elbows against these narrow walls. This bathroom area seems to "feel smaller" than #2. I think you actually have more storage in the two closets, but I personally think I'd rather have the whole closet together in one spot -- no reason, just personal opinion on the closet. Something that's not opinion: The closet door should swing outward ... this will allow you to store things on the "empty" closet wall; for example, you could hang hats, jewelry or other accessories on this closet wall. - Thoughts on #3: Again, the pocket door. This downsized vanity cannot support duplicate sinks. I like the wider shower, but the door swing is difficult ... a sliding shower door would be better. Same thoughts on closet door swing. I like the reach-in closet better than the one in #1 ... opening into the bedroom (rather than the entry hall) seems nicer. I'd want a window above the toilet for some natural light. My personal opinion: I'd go with #2. It's the most straightforward layout and seems to utilize the space best. But, above all, I'd want the bathroom door away from the sleeper's head.

Have an overall plan before you get or do anything further. In that way, you can have a unified and cohesive space. I hang most of my clothes. All the rest (that is folded) is clothes I hang around the house and sleep in. Therefore, I would recommend that you look at your clothes and how you store them. That will tell you how much hanging space to put here and how much folded storage. I will also say this: one can never have enough storage space. You most probably need at least one full length mirror - two if you want to see the back of your outfits. Also, determine your lighting needs. Here are a few examples of master closets. https://www.houzz.com/photos/query/master-closets/nqrwns Note what you like and don't like. You will probably need black out curtains. Keep in mind that natural light versus artificial light may make some outfits look different from one another. For all items you are buying - measure twice, buy once. I would chose the lightest wall color you can, so you'll be able to see your clothes very well. As well as clothes, also consider space for scarves, purses, hats, belts, jewelry, shoes, coats. Make sure to allow space for the attic stairs to come down when needed. Since I am not the neatest person, I would prefer drawers instead of open shelves - however, for some items like extra large tote purses, open shelving may work much better than drawers.