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Waverley
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Location: Minnesota
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| Posted: Aug 04 2009 at 2:37pm | IP Logged
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Great advice here!
My only suggestion would be to think about not only what would be nice now, but what would be nice as your children grow. For example, a friend of ours chose to finish their attic instead of their basement because she wanted a space with a lot of light to play in with her little kids. Now those little kids are teenagers and she really wishes she had finished the basement instead. Now, the teenagers are hanging out above the bedrooms which keep the little children (and her and DH) up during nap and nighttime and the teenagers have to walk up two flights of stairs and through the upstairs to bring things up from the kitchen.
Also, when designing an entry way, little kids may just need a hook or small bin for their coats, shoes, etc. but when they get bigger and are playing sports they will need more room for their gear.
Finally, when planning a learning room, I think it would be helpful to design it so it could easily transition into a room not used as a learning room. As my kids have gotten older, they prefer to do their schoolwork in more private quiet spaces. I wish I had room for a desk(s) in their bedroom or other areas of the house where they could work quietly and independently.
I hope you can post your plans!
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Waverley
wife to Dh for 19 years, dd (16), dd (11), dd (8), ds (6), dd (4), dd (9-13-1996)
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AndieF
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| Posted: Aug 04 2009 at 3:19pm | IP Logged
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I have a smallish family (3 children here on earth) but I run a small Montessori preschool out of my home, and my nephews are also going to homeschooled at my home this year (My sister is helping - I'm not completely nuts! LOL Well maybe I am - but that's another post.)
Well, I have a very tiny, closed in kitchen, so that would be the biggest thing on my list. I would have a bigger kitchen that opened into the dining room and/or living room. I don't need to have a separate dining room, but I want the eat-in portion of the kitchen to be large. I'd have a big pantry upstairs by the kitchen. I'd have a some sort of room that was close to the living room and kitchen that I could use as a learning room, but could be utilized as the something else at a different stage. I'd want this to be large enough to also have a desk with a computer in it. I'd like there to be a sink in there and wallspace for shelves and cupboards.
I'd have a laundry room. There would an area for hampers, hanging, ironing, folding and storing clean clothes.
I'd have 4 bedrooms - one for parents complete with a bathroom (something we don't have) and a room for the girls, and a room for the boys, and a room that we could use for guests or a library. The rooms don't need to be huge, but I'd like the rooms to be big enough to accomodate a set of bunkbeds and a desk and a bookcase. I'd like at least one other bathroom on each level besides the master bathroom.
I'd have a room or area downstairs for a freezer and storing extra food and paper goods. I'd have a family room with tables and wall shelves for board games and plenty of seating and a TV and DVD player. I'd like to the family room be big enough to accomodate a preschool area too. I'd like the the family room to open to the outside, and I'd have a HUGE yard with a variety of different outdoor opportunities. I'd rather have big living areas (living room, learning room, family room, kitchen) than big bathrooms and bedrooms.
Andie
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hylabrook1
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| Posted: Aug 05 2009 at 8:25am | IP Logged
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I really work better with the laundry room on the main living floor (you walk through it to get to the garage). I fold the clothes as I remove them from the dryer and for me it's a lot easier to carry (or get someone else to carry  ) a basket of clean, folded laundry upstairs. When the laundry room was on a different floor I was always forgetting to switch the loads, and so always re-washing smelly clothes. Most of the day is on the main floor, so I remember better, hear when the machines stop, etc. Of course, if your learning room is upstairs you might be better off with a second floor laundry room. FWIW 
Peace,
Nancy
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mom2mpr
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| Posted: Aug 05 2009 at 8:32am | IP Logged
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Another suggestion is a small hot water heater and timer for the bath that is far away from the main heater.
My Dad put the tank under his bathroom(or was it in the linen closet?) in his ranch and had the timer heat the water for his moring shower. No waiting and wasting water for his morning shower. It was still hooked into the regular system, just a booster for the bath so far from the household hot water heater.
Now that was a good idea! My Dad is so smart!
Anne
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LLMom
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| Posted: Aug 05 2009 at 9:32am | IP Logged
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I think with a large family it is nice to have spacious bathrooms, a nice large laundry room (even big enough for dressers)and a room for school. I only have the last of all of these, but these are my ideals. 
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Lisa
For veteran & former homeschool moms
homeschooling ideas
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juststartn
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Location: Oklahoma
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| Posted: Aug 05 2009 at 1:02pm | IP Logged
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I'll tell you what we looked for:
Wide hallways (more moving around space, as well as space if one of us should become incapacitated and need a wheelchair).
Big bathrooms
Universal access (lever knobs, single handle faucets, etc)
A big kitchen
Two living areas (we have two--a 'formal' living room, now the school room, will eventually become a formal dining room--has a gas fireplace, and the other, the family room, where we spend most of our time, is right at the back door, with a big woodburning fireplace).
LOTS of storage. TONS. You can build in storage in all sorts of places. We have a small cabinet built into our smaller dining area, that uses the backside of the corner where the dishwasher meets up with another cabinet (it forms an L in the kitchen right there)...we've got HUGE amounts of linen storage. BIG closets (two of the ones in our bedroom, are 4x8 ).
Hmmmm....Oh, we live in a rural area, so what I have found I really like, is the tile 'landing strip' we have running from the back door, through the family room to the hallway...keeps the mud and muck off of the carpet (and given that our geese like to 'chill' right in front of the back door...welllllll, it could get ugly otherwise!).
We have a separate mud room--incl a separate entrance!--on the same side of the house as the family room/back door. It goes right into the laundry area and 3/4 bathroom. Tiled floors make it easy to clean up.
We have one bedroom on the front of the house, but we actually use it as DH's office/ham radio 'shack' . That was one of my criteria--that we had to have a room we could set aside just for his use, and close off, as his tools and equipment are expensive...ugh. SO we have double French doors on it...
Our bedroom is large, but I've got 4 closets--one for DH's clothes and things, and the rest are mine (two are for my crafting things, as I have my craft table and such in there). The children have the remaining two bedrooms--the girls in the larger one, on bunks and the boys have the smaller room. There is a full bath across the hall from the children's bedroom, which will end up being the girls' exclusively, once the boys are older and can shower (then they will get the 3/4 bathroom...less to mess up, lol).
We have a big addition on the back of the house--it was added as the house was on the market. Added 400sq ft. We were going to use it as a schoolroom, but it ended up being made into my expanded pantry and storage area (I've got alot of canning jars, lol  ).
HTH
Rachel
__________________
Married DH 4/1/95
Lily 3/11/00
Helena(Layna) 5/23/02
Sophia 4/19/04
John 5/7/07
David 5/7/07
Ava Maria, in the arms of Jesus, 9/5/08
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florasita
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| Posted: Aug 06 2009 at 11:07pm | IP Logged
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we are in a 3 story old character home .
It is now ... wow who'd thought I'd ever say it To big for us !
We indeed with our achy cracky bones find the stairs alot of work . it'd be nice to have a home all on one level , maybe a loft.
Our home was great for our big family and often a foster child etc.
What I love about it . Big rooms . woodwork , floors and everything all wood .Our home is 106 yo !
I love love love having a big tub . beautiful tile too which is original .
I personally love that battleship linolium too it is in the rooms upstairs . Lasts forever obviously .
I loved leaded glass windows too . I love sunrooms .
If we were to buy again what I would love is a a porch and or a mudroom for sure a must for a big family.
My kitchen is one of my disliked rooms . It is a hallway a small rectangle that is inbetween the front and the back door. It has one chair in it . We have to always eat meals in the dining room which is off the kitchen but I've always liked a kitchen where you can sit down and have lunch , have tea with friends etc.
Our basement is an old dugout so no laundry can fit down there and I feel blessed because I love mainfloor laundry !
I don't have much inregards to furniture or paint etc. we buy secondhand and I have old antiques from the family . I glue pics of Mary , flowers , saints on our walls because we only have primer or very old paint on the walls
I don't care much for new stuff but I do like my house clean and welcoming .
Thats about it .
I personally would love to build a log home or a stone cottage dh suggested a silo or metal machine shop we could just hose down when it gets dirty
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May I rise & rest with words of Gratitude on my Breath
May I have the Heart & Mind of a Child in my Depth
May I forever remember to be a Light
May Peace Love & Hope be My Sight
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4Real Forums : Our Lady's Loom, Larder, and Laundry
Topic: Tell me about your house, please.
