I hope you are not under construction and can go back to the drawing board because this is not a well thought out addition. I'm guessing there was no architect involved in this drawing. If there is any way to avoid this condition of having a roof pitch to a new wall you want to avoid this. This is a future leak waiting to happen and there will be all manner of debris on the roof at this location over time. The balcony on the second floor is a $$ mistake because it will NEVER be used and the bay window that fits with the pitch of the roof is another design problem. I could go on and on.

Greenies and tree huggers have claimed for years that woodpeckers are only doing us a favor by ridding our house of phantom bugs. The #1 reason for replacing powerline poles is woodpeckers. When asked what kind of bug infest's a powerline pole,the subject change's to dolphins and whales. I found a BB gun to be a very good deterrent.

Well...farmhouses differ regionally. Here in the Texas Hill Country, true historic farm or ranch houses were vernacular in the form and materials. That's a way of saying that each region tended to use the locally available materials and experienced labor. Many of the best modern adaptations of this historic genre continue to use vernacular forms and materials. The Hill Country is full of beautiful Texas limestone, which the early German settlers used to construct houses and many other buildings. Coming from Europe, they were very experienced and familiar with building using stone masonry. Typical characteristics of these farm and ranch houses were simple shapes, metal roofs (a later adaptation I'm sure) and large porches. While some houses were wood framed and sided, particularly after the advent of railroads and the transport of sawn lumber, limestone was a major building material since it was so readily available and the labor force was skilled in stone masonry. In many cases, the original simple farmhouse shape would see various additions added, as family size and needs changed over time. These materials and approach to building continue to this day as highly desirable for custom homes. An interesting housing derivation in the Hill Country was the "Sunday House". These were very small 1.5 story in-town houses built by those who lived on distant ranches and farms. The houses were used by families to come into town on Saturday for church services on Sunday, thereafter returning to their individual ranches and farms. The lower level was the living and kitchen space, with little else. These houses were so small that access to the upper level sleeping spaces under the roof was only achieved through use of an exterior stair. Today these houses are prized and an elequoent reminder of life in the 1800s. All of this is a way of saying that if one wants a "farmhouse" it's important to understand and utilize the vernacular of the region where the custom home will be located. The best modern ranch and farmhouses avoid the characteristics of builder's tract homes and developments. Here's some historic and modern examples of typical Hill Country ranch and farmhouses: And some examples of history Sunday Houses:

Thank you for your suggestions Patricia. There is a circular driveway that is hard to see from the picture we posted so I'm not sure how a walkway would work as it would have to cut across the driveway. We currently have asbestos shingles and have painted them 3 times over the last 20 years. I think they kind of make the house feel dated. The small windows are from our master bedroom redo 20 years ago. They were actually very modern looking when we put them in. I'm attaching a picture of how they look over our bed, but your right they do appear small from the outside.