There is a window by the toys. I wonder if I mounted the TV on the bare wall with a long piece of furniture and then moved the couch to the toy wall and moved the chairs to the large window to create more space? I have two black console tables behind the couch for the lamps, etc. Does this make sense? I am open to anything! I have a 50in flat screen......that should be sufficient for that wall?

@ SapphireStitch While it would be nice to wave a magic wand with an unlimited checkbook - I don't have that. I do have access to some money (got a HELOC). If some of the changes need to be done in stages and can be done effectively - we can do that, because the more money I have to pull upfront from the HELOC, the more I'll end up paying in interest. (yuck). I'm also not averse to acting as my own general contractor/project manager, if needed; I've done that before (successfully) But I'd rather not have to overall manage the project, just because my current employment is a boatload more demanding than my previous employment. The nice thing is that we don't have a defined deadline where "this must be done by" - no one is getting married, boatloads of relatives aren't coming to visit, etc. However, the kitchen as it currently stands is a source of daily irritation. We're getting to the point that if anyone is already in the kitchen, we try to avoid going in there until that person has left the kitchen. Tempers flare....we've got my boyfriend (who was envisioning a quiet, child-free retirement), my teenager (while she's not as much of a drama queen as some teens - she's just starting the teenage years, LOL), and me - frustrated as the primary food purchaser, preparer, organizer, clean-up person. And if my boyfriend happens to suddenly realize his blood sugar has dropped - get the hell out of the way in the kitchen. He's not very good at listening to his body - he literally passed out one time when his blood sugar dropped too low - he dashed into the kitchen, grabbed a glucerna and the last thing he remembered was opening it up - but he woke up on the floor sitting in a puddle of the stuff. (I wasn't home at the time). When either I or my teen are in the kitchen and if boyfriend does the mad dash into the kitchen - we pretty much have to drop what we are doing so he can grab something and while he stands there and he starts shoveling whatever down his throat. And since the space is so tight - it can mean leaving stuff cooking on the stove, etc. One time he dashed in, grabbed a breakfast sandwich out of the refrigerator, yanked what was already cooking in the microwave out, and threw his sandwich in. Anyhow, I digress. I know that some of the things we want are going to be big-ticket items - new cabinets, granite or quartzite countertops, slide-in induction stove. That's why I'm also looking for cost-efficient plans, such as instead of moving the sink to the middle of the room, let's keep it on the same wall and just shorten the distance from the hot water heater to the new sink location. Let's not blow out any of the exterior walls, and we can keep the current windows, dishwasher, and refrigerator. If replacing the 10'x13' current laminate would be cheapest to match new hardwood to the existing hardwood, rather than ripping it all out and putting tile down in a 20'x13' space, I'm fine keeping hardwood. If a nice, medium-stain maple cabinet is cheaper than white painted cabinets, I'm find with the the stained version... I prefer it, personally. Rather than a huge pantry cabinet, if building a pantry closet with adjustable shelves is cheaper, I'm fine with that (plus with all the small appliances and bulk-purchases from Costco and BJ's - I think it would suit our storage needs better). If getting an island fits the layout, but is out of reach - I'm fine holding off on installing island cabinets and countertop and using a kitchen table in the meantime. And because we don't have a "get it done by" date... once I have a really solid design/layout... I have the time to shop different cabinet lines and stoves, wait for sales and then to be ready to capitalize on hopefully a decent deal. I don't know if it's true, but I did see some articles that indicate the best time to shop for kitchen cabinets is November to early January.

PPF - how did you cover the brutal western sun? Automated blinds/curtains? That is always my issue with small windows - and I built with them in one room. It is a bonus room and the roof line below forced the issue. No big deal - right. Just a bonus room that is really just a play area for our 10 year old. Well - he have a fabric covered piece of foam that we wedge in it when he wants it dark. Too high for blinds to be feasible and curtains would be silly. Didn't wire for automated anything and wouldn't pay for it either way. The room really required it with our floorplan and it was a known compromise. But I would not do it in a living room without an aesthetically acceptable way of blocking sun entirely. Yuck on the TV over the fireplace. Too high for optimal viewing angle and then the TV competes with the elegant fireplace whose primary role is usually a focal point. And built-ins (IMO) are crap and dust gatherers. Your first picture is just that - crap and dust. I mean if you have 2 old timey metal water containers and a wooden bird that you just have to display.....

You have too much furniture in there--ottoman, coffee table, tables in corners, and why so many little lamps? Some options: --Take all those tables and lamps out for now until you figure out seating. -- Consider getting a smaller TV! I know that's heresy on Houzz, but then you could put TV on the side of the fireplace with great art above it. This would give you outside view from couch, nice art to look at, along with shelves of a few meaningful objects, and TV off to the side. --If you're keeping your recliners, then float them to face TV whether it's off to the side or above fireplace. Keep couch against wall as you have it, but put a great piece of landscape art over it or a horizontal mirror to reflect the light from the windows. Anchor everything on a big rug and have a nesting coffee table that is reachable from the recliners and the couch.