Where to start??? Before I start ranting and forget to ask, we really need to know where you live. Please name the community even if you live in the LA area. The micro climate and soils are so different all across SoCal (from Santa Barbara, to San Diego to Yuma to Barstow to Bakersfield including Big Bear Lake), so please name the town. You're going to have to forget and/or unlearn what you think you know about lawn care. And once you learn about lawn care you're going to know a lot more than 99% of the lawn care providers. That means you might fire a lot of them before you find one that will do it correctly. The problem in SoCal is about a generation and a half ago, someone introduced the Marathon dwarf fescues. In retrospect that was a huge mistake. A second mistake was to go to daily watering on a universal basis. As mentioned, no grass in any conditions needs daily water. Here is a picture of a lawn in Phoenix taken yesterday. Phoenix is in perpetual drought, so green lawns are possible. Since the PHO temps are in the 100s every day, and the humidity is so low, this lawn gets watered twice per week. With temps in the 90s he would only be watering once a week. You will have to be very strict with your lawn people to get this right. Unless you live west of I-5 south of Anaheim or west of the 405 in LA and west of the coastal foothills to the north, the only grass that will do well generally in SoCal, in both sun and shade, is St Augustine (pictured above). Unlike the Marathon you had, St Augustine is very coarse. It will look like crabgrass until you get used to it. But unlike crabgrass, St Aug will likely remain green and plush all year long for you. Here is a summary of basic lawn care I wrote a few years ago...I'll probably have more to say later. Basics of Lawn Care After reading numerous books and magazines on lawn care, caring for lawns at seven houses in my life, and reading numerous forums where real people write in to discuss their successes and failures, I have decided to side with the real people and dispense with the book and magazine authors. I don't know what star their planet rotates around but it's not mine. With that in mind, here is the collected wisdom of the Internet savvy homeowners and lawn care professionals summarized in a few words. If you follow the advice here you will have conquered at least 50% of all lawn problems. Once you have these three elements mastered, then you can worry about weeds (if you have any), dog spots, and striping your lawn. But if you are not doing these three things, they will be the first three things suggested for you to correct. Watering Water deeply and infrequently. Deeply means at least an inch in every zone, all at once. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. Do not spread this out and water for 10 minutes every day. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. If that does not work, then you might have to water more than once per week during the summer's hottest period. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds. You will have to learn to judge when to water your own lawn. If you live in El Paso your watering will be different than if you live in Vermont. Adjust your watering to your type of grass, temperature, humidity, wind, and soil type. It is worth noting that this technique is used successfully by professionals in Phoenix, so...just sayin.' The other factors make a difference. If you normally water 1 inch per week and you get 1/2 inch of rain, then adjust and water only 1/2 inch that week. Mowing Every week mulch mow at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. However, bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses will become the most dense when they are mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. In fact there are special mowers that can mow these grasses down to 1/16 inch. Dense grass shades out weeds, keeps the soil cooler, and uses less water than thin grass. Tall grass can feed the deep roots you developed in #1 above. Tall grass does not grow faster than short grass nor does it look shaggy sooner. Once all your grass is at the same height, tall grass just looks plush. Fertilizing Fertilize regularly. I fertilize 5 times per year using organic fertilizer. Which fertilizer you use is much less important than numbers 1 and 2 above. Follow the directions on the bag and do not overdo it. Too much is better than too little*. At this point you do not have to worry about weed and feed products - remember at this point you are just trying to grow grass, not perfect it. Besides once you are doing these three things correctly, your weed problems should go away without herbicide. * This used to read, "Too little is better than too much." Recent test results show that you cannot get too much organic fertilizer unless you bury the grass in it.

too much expense...I'd move the end curtain rod positions in, and select a tall glass etagere display cabinet for each, or even one corner...display some wine glasses...serving pieces..formal things you have stored. That will free up some kitchen cabinets and be less costly than what you are thinking of.

It depends on the layout -- a prep sink isn't about the size of the Kitchen, it's about how it helps/hinders functionality. In a small Kitchen it might be a big help or it might not; ditto in a large Kitchen. We would need to see your layout to know. Don't let it keep you up right now -- wait until it's time to settle on a layout! :-)

I have this Ruggable (a washable rug) in my foyer and love it! You did say you wanted to add color, and a wow factor, so I suggest you add more color besides blue. I don’t know if the background blue color of this rug is light enough to provide contrast with your medium dark sofas, though.