I'm not a fan of vaulted/two story/completely open first floors due to noise/smell/heating/cooling/visual reasons but I know others love them so I can't really comment on your great room space. Is your guest bedroom and, for that matter, anyone who is at your home, going to have access to your master bath or are you planning another bathroom downstairs? I'm not a fan of the laundry/pantry sharing a space. I would separate it somehow.

The guest bdrm will rarely get used but I do have a sister/BIL who might use a few times a year. There is a guest 3/4 bath which I apologize for not making clearer. It's right past master and stairs and is 5.3x8. I have thought about a wall between laundry/pantry and possibly a swing door to kitchen from pantry. Laundry in front is kind of odd but have learned out in the country most enter from garage and not front door and we can put a laundry chute from upstairs bath.

How much space planning experience does your engineer have?

He's done a few houses for himself and friends with the same builder we are using.

Why would you give your pantry/laundry all that space on the front of the house, with windows to the front porch? I'd push the kitchen to the front, then put the pantry/laundry closer to the garage-to-house entry (not depicted on your draft).

Only reason I decided against that is when I do a lot of work in the kitchen I would prefer to be looking out back toward pond/vs front porch and road. We also like to entertain so wanted to keep it with great room and dining.

Why not have a kitchen that looks out on the front and the back of the house? You have the acreage to really design something marvelous with light coming from multiple directions in your home.

BTW: What type of engineer is this person?

I am just trying to not get carried away with size of house. Where would you then put pantry laundry?

He's a county engineer.

This plan needs SO much work. It makes no sense. I'm just flummoxed that you'd give prime space to a laundry room and pantry, and a space that you'd have to keep the blinds closed because who wants people on their front porch looking into their laundry room?

I'd put the pantry/laundry somewhere BETWEEN the kitchen and the garage. It is truly senseless to have it where it is. Plus - look how far you'd have to schlep laundry baskets!

OR, put the laundry where you show a walk-in closet for the guest bedroom (totally unnecessary to have a huge closet for guests), and the pantry between the kitchen/garage and use it as a mudroom space, as well.

County engineer - huh... What sort? Civil? Structural? Mechanical? Electrical? Plumbing? Architectural? Software???

The WIC is off the Master Bath, not for guests. Original plan was to have laundry/mud and a pantry between kitchen and garage. I am hoping to get some idea from our builder on where we are with cost. Ideally, I would love it in between and not front.

He has civil engineering degree. I am not sure what program he is using, he has it as we are still a work in progress.

OK - move the kitchen to the back wall, and put the dining area where your pantry/laundry are showing now. That will give you more space to move your greatroom wall to be even with the master bedroom wall at your entry/foyer. Once that's moved, put your laundry back there in the newly created extra space, rethink the layout of the "guest bath" which, right now, requires your guests to walk around the stairs and through the greatroom to get to it. Put the pantry between the kitchen and garage, or in a corner of the garage. That might shorten one of your bays, but would probably be fine.

That way, you get the view out the back from the kitchen, you have a NICE space (dining) on the front of the house, your laundry is where you need it, and your pantry is where it should be (near the kitchen, near the garage).

Having a CAD program doesn't make you a designer. Honestly the majority of engineers think too linearly to be designers. Yes even civil engineers. Their linear thinking is what makes them excellent engineers but it doesn't help when you need to design a home with outside the box thinking or learned design ideas.

Thank you, I'll try to re-work some stuff and go back to laundry between the two as I originally had it.

"He has civil engineering degree."

Does anyone else see the red flag? I worked in a hospital for eight years, would you like me to perform open heart surgery on you?

LOL - yeah. I work with civil engineers. They're the LAST people I'd let "design" a house for me. I would, however, let them handle the site development and the infrastructure. I'd also let a few of them design the STRUCTURE of the house. Just not the layout.

As has been said before, God must be an engineer because when He designed our bodies, who else would run a sewer right through the middle of a recreational area?

I get what you are saying and he doesn't necessarily have a lot of design experience. He has never claimed to have any. He is helping with site and had the CAD program so he is just helping. I love his house which he did design himself and he's a close friend who just offered some assistance.

ARG, Blasphemy!

God is referred to as The Great Architect of the Universe, but you know, he probably needed an engineer as a consultant... and of course, he (the engineer) had to mess us up :)