You're out there. I just have no talent to comment.

We see it! Sometimes you have to wait for someone to come up with suggestions, pix, etc. Xeriscape is what you want for low maintenance landscaping.

You have posted correctly and probably will receive some feedback. You may need professional help with you design. Your house has cottage appeal and you will enjoy a new entrance by way of a porch.

You could do something different on the roof of your bay window, like a brown shingle. I would definitely brighten up the trim to accent it. Are you considering painting the stucco? A soft green on this style home looks good.

Debbie- I'm sure you'll get many helpful suggestions. Undoubtedly some will express concern about reinventing a vintage home with a modern aesthetic.

I think there are a lot of changes which can be made. Obviously, nixing the carved shrubs for more updated plantings is a good place to start. A more modern door and exterior paint. I think you can work with the green shingles. What type of window do you envision replacing the bay?

Looking forward to seeing the ideas suggested by other posters.

The answer to the zone question, I'm not sure. I'm in Ottawa, and it's really cold. I think the zone is quite low.

Oh, and the house faces south east.

We will be replacing all the windows with either black or slate double hung windows. Yes the doors will be mostly glass.

Thank you. I love the look of the plantings in the second photo.

This is as close to your home as I could find and when tweaked may work. I like the windows with substantial trim, the stonework on stairs too.

I'm in zone 6 outside of Niagara Falls Ontario. A home in a close neighbourhood removed their grass from the front yard and planted two varieties of flowering thyme plus shrub beds and perennials in wood mulch. It looks stunning in the spring when it flowers, then goes green after flowering and looks brownish in the winter. It still has to be weeded but the thyme is very dense.You would have more snow than us. It might be worth investigating if you do not want grass.

Thank you Bette P and miacometlady. I will look into the flowering thyme. Miacometlay, great idea for the porch. We had just thought about extending the roof line, and this picture is exactly what we were thinking. This will help show our contractor what we want.

We have started the front porch construction and you can see how your inspiration has come to life. Thanks again Miacometlay.

Our contractor is Dan Hopkins at Ascent Contracting, in Ottawa.