Very nice, er :)

Er, can you make it a French country style with 3-4 sets of french doors opening to a large front porch?

Just wondering, if you have so much of your family that has built houses, do you think you guys could think up a plan on your own of how you would want everything sort of like you already did? At the end of the day it's your house, design it how ever you'd love it best. Especially since you have said you don't plan on moving I would make it the perfect house to you. Hiring an architect I'm sure will be pricy, and it sounds like this could be a completely DIY project for you guys which would be awesome! Also I was looking at you drawings and I suppose I'm a little confused with where the extra space you are wondering what to do with will be, but if it's near the door and you don't want everyone to walk right into the family room what about a nice little mud room area?

Just a random thought: if you are making that entire right side (two adjoining bedrooms) your Master suite, why not move the master bath and walk in closet to the street side of the house and have the rest of the master bedroom on the back side for privacy? JMO

But my husband, father, and father in law will be doing the labor. All 3 of them have built houses before and are capable of doing so

Now I remember, I read this in another post a while back. I think you should buy a bunch of lumber and just 'have at it'.

The problem with moving your front door to the garage is you will then have a step up from the new entry to the rest of the house. Can you post a general floor plan of the entire house?

I really like all your woodwork.

Sorry I'm dumb I was thinking your original drawings were what you were planning to do with the garage space! So if you move the front door to be like er612's first drawing of your home, maybe make a nice entry way with a small mudroom cabinet space and bench, then that could lead to a hallway with a new bedroom for you to have family stay in when they visit?

Just thinking here, I know you said you plan to remove the car port, but what if you kept it, added walls, and made an even larger add on?

Yeah, maybe you could switch it to becoming you family room, and then you could maybe have your current family room be a larger dinning area, it sort of looks like from your photos your current kitchen table is a little crammed. Maybe you could move that table or perhaps get a larger table and put it where your family room is now, then you could enjoy your fireplace better too, and the carport area/some space from and garage could be your new family room. I'm saying take a little bit of the space from the garage so that way some of the carport area could be a nice entry way, so you don't have your current issue of walking straight into a family room.

The only issues I would have with that layout is where you have the mudroom isn't by the door, so you would have your front door entering right into a living room again unless you're okay with that. The other thing I was thinking is that layout you drew has a living room and family room, do you think you'll use both on a regular basis? I only ask because I know a lot of people who have both room and one is never used, in that case I would maybe add a spare bedroom.

It sounds like that layout would work perfectly for you then! I do like mudrooms being along with laundry as well, and it sort of hides some of the messes that can be in those rooms. I like your new idea, the desk sounds perfect and having a smaller kids table along with a large dinning table would be a good idea too!

What about adding 2nd floor since you have 3 builders in the family?

We love garage conversions! That's our bread and butter, and so, we must agree, that you should get a professional to evaluate your current structure and design something that abides by your local zoning laws and helps you meet the aesthetic feel you're looking for. You can always consider making the lower level fit the needs for entertaining as well as additinal housing. This may not be what you're looking for, but hopefully the photo inspires you to get creative! Have fun with it!

Back Yard Ideas · More Info

Exactly what I was thinking. Here are some rough mockups...

I'm not a designer, just like searching Houzz for pictures. Here are some ideas in how to make your front door more prominent. The last one is actually a gate to enter a "courtyard".

Sorry, didn't read all responses.

Farmhouse Exterior · More Info

6428 · More Info

Via Estrella - Custom Home · More Info

Houzz Tour: A Labor of Modern Love in Costa Mesa · More Info

Bridget - Forgot to post this last night but here is an option if you limit the expansion to the garage. Where is your laundry presently?

^In both plans immedialy above, you could change the swing on the front door so you have a better view at the entry.

You could also put up a small wall, half or full, to get that foyer entry. Something interesting.

Correct. If you post dimensions, I can create a more realistic floor plan.

BTW - I found your microwave post. I would expand the island or install the microwave behind the cabinet doors to the right of the fridge. Just something to consider when planning your renovation.