If I'm understanding correctly (which I may not be!) most of the problems will be solved if you go to a patio at grade rather than a deck. The french doors would be at the same height as the other door. You wouldn't be able to do a lot of trim around it, due to the height of the eaves, but you could still fit the doors. Btw, a deck and a patio are different things. I think when you say terrace, you may mean what I would call a patio? A deck is made of wood with structure underneath and is therefore raised above the ground (or else it wouldn't be a deck. I suppose theoretically you could excavate and put wood structure underneath and have the wood floor structure at grade, but I'm not sure why you would do that and I've never seen it that way!) A patio can be at grade or it can be above-grade with retaining walls - or even below-grade with retaining walls as a sunken patio. But, a patio would generally be made of a hard surface like concrete, stone, or brick pavers. A deck would be made of wood or imitation wood like Trex. That clear it up?

Nice to see a G-shaped kitchen on the GW. It's not the most common layout and it's one that may be helpful to people with certain needs. Thanks for posting! I remember when I first read about this kitchen style in a BH&G kitchens publication. It really captured my attention. Ours is also a working kitchen. We're gardeners and DH is a hunter and forager. Our G area has 12 x 16+ but the closet and nook are outside this. No island. Although one goal was for two cooks to work nicely together, the space is a glory for a single cook as well. We do not do quite the same kind of prep & storage & cooking as you but it sounds like you give your kitchen a workout as we do. We put the range at the bottom of the G, the double sink on the long side and the large prep sink on the short side alongside the plunk space from refrig, walkpath to garden and walkpath to dining room. Refrig on the tip of the top of G is close to the dining area and across from the end of the peninsula's plunk space adjacent to prep sink. I'm the one with all the pull-out boards to add work surfaces. One is in "cockpit" chopping station where I do much of my prep, seated on a stool (see photo) and where there is a temp compost receiver adjacent to the cutting board plus the trash pullout below that. Fabulous cutting situation! Another pullout board is wide and serves the baking area but also serves as receiver/launcher of items going to and from oven. This is especially helpful if the entire countertop area between mixer and oven is full of the detritis of battle. Another pullout board serves the microwave area at upperleft corner of G and has a good view of flower garden for morale. One pullout is next to refrig and serves as sandwich, coldcuts, toast, etc. prep area. It is also receiver for items going into and out of refrig. We pile all the returning refrig items onto it after meal, then open the refrig door only once. We have butcherblock either side of range--allows cooling of hot items, knives in a slit on one side of range and 3 canisters of utensils countersunk (pun intended) into area at back of the other butcherblock piece. We don't have to open drawers for knives or common utensils while working nor during put-away. Our entrance from garden is same as yours--lower left in your photo. Our G is flipped from yours but windows appear to be in same place. You might want to cruise our Flickr stuff--after looking at blueprint, go to the newest and ignore the in-process stuff. Not sure if I can give any more ideas but you never know. We also had a door in the hallway alongside the peninsula to deal with. We turned it into a pocket door so that it wouldn't interfere with the walkpath. Our major sink is a Kohler "Brookfield" double sink and our prep sink is a Kohler "Mayfield." Be sure not to stint on the size of your prep sink--a gardener can use it. Plus, if you find it to be too big, just use a dishpan or pot inside it. We've enjoyed splure on wire unit for bottom of prep sink--holds things like lettuces above the sand you wash off of them. Requires bother of removing and stashing it sometimes also, though. This prep sink is big enough for our regular pressure cooker to be wrestled with and definitely holds the blancher. Not sure if it would take the big canner. Here is a link that might be useful: G-shaped gardener's kitchen blueprint--flip upside down to compare

You're going to have to do an inspection of the liquidamber (left side of drive) to make sure it isn't lifting the driveway. It seems rather close to the fence and the drive. Roots are invasive and aggressive. You are coming up on Fall, so around November would be a good time to prune out the excess foliage on the olive trees. I'd also take out that cement divider between the two olive trees and plant below the trees with mondo grass for a lush look. I'd wait for December/January to trim back the bougainvillea. If you are lucky, you might get a frost and then the leaves will fall off. Frost is a good thing since the vine has about 3-4" thorns that are not forgiving, so you'll need to see what you are grabbing when you cut them. Wear leather gloves and you won't be punctured nearly as often as wearing cloth gloves. While the flowers are pretty, that plant is pretty aggressive on the skin and you will want to get rid of it if it is near anyway you sit, stand. Already commented on are all the cubit bushes...they need to be pulled out. Fence in front. You should look on-line to find out the set back from the property line for fences in the front. Your front wall might already be in that place; but you'll find out. Already commented on above is turning the entry-way into a useable garden space. You might consider it since the rose bushes are right next to the walk way and those thorns can be aggressive. In addition, the entry-way is semi-shaded and the wrong place for full sun-loving rose bushes. And...good luck. I like the house. You can turn it into something special.

Overall it is a beautiful kitchen and home. The island serves as a landing zone for both the fridge and ovens. People are commenting as if it is awful and that is just not the case. It looks like lots of counter space and it is a very workable kitchen. The large windows seem like they would bring in a lot of light. I would look at the home as a whole and not get distracted by the hood above the stove.....easy to change and you will forget about it a few days after you move in. Perhaps a neighbor's window is opposite the sink so there is no window for privacy :). A window by a sink is ideal so there is more to look at from the sink, but not required.