Hi, Tammy! Congratulations on your new home-to-be! When I looked at the floor plans, two things struck me as possibly needing improvement.

First, your bathroom that's right off of the kitchen/dining area is going to be awkward in real life. There's got to be a way to keep it more private from the main living areas. Right now, anyone standing in the kitchen gets a full view of the toilet. We live in an old farm house where a bathroom was added right off the kitchen/dining room and it's difficult when we've got guests....obvious bathroom noises, etc. Maybe the linen closet (that faces the stove) could be removed and that area could become a tiny hallway to at least block the view a little. I'd also beef up the walls of the bathroom to make it very soundproof, if you get my drift.

The second thing I noticed was the huge amount of walking needed to get around the kitchen while you cook. The work triangle between the sink, fridge and stove should ideally be as small as possible and the stove seems kind of far away from the sink. The pantry is out at the very far end and every time you go there to get a can of tomatoes to add to your chili, it's going to drive you bananas that you're a mile from the sink when you've got the drippy opened can in your hands. Could you make the island a lot longer and have the end near the sink contain the stove? If it were longer, you could make it parallel to the refrigerator wall and then move the pantry cabinets in much closer to the fridge end.

Lucky you! Love one-level homes and ADORE yellow labs and 58 acres-wow.

Anyway, the plans look nice. The one thing that sort of jumped out at me-I hope you don't mind-I might switch the washer/dryer with the half-bath. My thought is that, even though you will have the full bath off the kitchen area, when you entertain, people may use that powder room as well and it will be easier with it closer. Also, they wouldn't be walking past that laundry you didn't quite get to before the party-lol! It will still be close to that fabulous closet, so no worries there.

I do hope you will post in-progress and finished pics.

Congrats on your new home Tammy! I love the open concept floor plan. I also read the previous posts and have to agree, bathrooms off of kitchens can be a little awkward. Since you have a 1/2 bath planned in the utility area, maybe it would make more sense to close the bathroom off from the kitchen and turn it into a Jack & Jill for the two bedrooms.

I agree about the triangle in your kitchen as well, one option you may want to consider is to make the island large enough so it can house the sink & dishwasher. I've seen that in several postings and people seem happy with that set up. Just a thought.

Good luck with your new adventure, don't forget to post some pics!

If you aren't certain about the way you have your kitchen laid out or what products you'll be using you may want to consider doing a cross post in the kitchen forum too. The folks over there will be able to give you an invaluable amount of information regarding layout, products and so on. There's also a thread called "if your new to the kitchen forum" it has some very interesting tips and general information.

Thanks for all the suggestions. will post on the kitchen forum maybe tomorrow. I work in healthcare and just finished a 12 hour midnight shift and have to work one more tonight..

Thanks
Tammy