Chapter 7 - Yes, we have a plan

Ok, so here we are - a gigantic lemon on our hands and we are about to make wonderful lemonade. The first thing we have done is plan the new palace. We purchased a few dozen magazines, ripping out pages of bathrooms, bedrooms, entrances, patios, landscaping and kitchens. We've walked through the house a millon times and discussed the different possiblities and designs. With our resource book, we came up with several very good ideas of what we would like to do for "curb-appeal" for both the front and back side of the house.

We then took all of our ideas, plans and pictures to the architect, David Heinz. He took precise measurements of the house as well as research the exact locaiton of our septic tank's leach field in order to produce the blue-prints of the property. His own ideas were wonderful, creative and we were very happy with the overall plans.

This blueprint is of the front of house. As you can see, we are going to make a Grand Entrance out of the current gated entry by building a rock portico and increasing the doors from 8 ft to 14 ft. We are going to add some charm to the front and back of the house with wrought-iron railings and balconies.

On the front of the house, there is a small, sweet Romeo-Juliet balcony, replacing the present narrow veranda that is covered in worn artifical outdoor grass. The balcony will have new French doors. The ugly broken planter boxes in front of the house will be replaced with rock boxes filled with well-groomed bushes.

Because the house is slightly elevated, the back is easily seen from the road. So, for the "wow-factor", we plan to have a beautiful half-circle balcony with columns. The family room right off the kitchen will have a wall of French doors and windows that lead to the patio underneath the balcony.

Hopefully with the rock, new railing, new paint and landscaping and a few other embellishments, we will transform this old Spanish style into a refreshed Tuscan retreat.

And that's just the outside!