And now for something completely different. :-) (not to scale) Here's what I did. Since you want to keep the sight line from the front door to the fireplace, I removed the peninsula lay-out in favor of a galley-style lay-out, shifted the hall door way a bit over, enlarged it and centered it on the front door. This additional bit of wall to the right gives your wall oven column a safety buffer, too. (You can add a coat closet to the left of the doorway, facing the hallway to the right. Or you could purchase an armoire, perhaps more in keeping with your home's vibe.) Some people aren't keen on seeing the sink (and quite possibly dirty dishes) from the front door but you already have that view in your current and proposed lay-outs so I assume it must not be a concern of yours. You could, if you wish, install glass double pocket doors at the hallway entrance like this: [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/druid-hills-master-bedroom-remodel-traditional-bedroom-atlanta-phvw-vp~76261) [Traditional Bedroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-bedroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_715~s_2107) by Atlanta Architects & Designers Soorikian Architecture I incorporated the seldom used closet into the kitchen, creating a gigantic pantry with additional storage space for other items. This also allowed me to set the full size fridge back so it mimics a counter-depth model. The pantry doors would work something like this: [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/farinelli-construction-inc-traditional-kitchen-phvw-vp~622305) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Mechanicsburg Design-Build Firms Farinelli Construction Inc Or this: [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/teri-turan-traditional-kitchen-atlanta-phvw-vp~216308) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Tyrone Kitchen & Bath Designers Teri Turan One wall of the galley holds the pantry, recessed fridge, 36" cook top and wall oven/Advantium column (I saw your other thread) with plenty of counter space for prep and small appliance use. I calculated counter and overhang depth at 25.5" (24" deep cabs, 1.5" counter overhang). The island is huge, admittedly, but it had to be in order to hold the DW, 36" sink cab, 18" trash pull-out and counter seating for 2. I angled the very end of the island across from the fridge so that there would still be plenty of room to move past the fridge even when the door was open. The island is 30" deep - 27" cabs with 3" counter overhang total (1.5" on each side) to provide a bit more clearance between back of faucet and counter edge. If you can't afford to do custom depth cabs, do 24" deep cabs and add shallow storage to the back like this: [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/wood-and-color-kitchen-traditional-kitchen-phvw-vp~45952) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Other Metro Interior Designers & Decorators Polly Blair or this: [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/utensil-rack-traditional-kitchen-chicago-phvw-vp~44160) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Glen Ellyn Kitchen & Bath Remodelers The Kitchen Studio of Glen Ellyn I also removed the half wall between kitchen and stairway. You don't have to do this - there is sufficient aisle between island and wall - but I thought that widening the hallway doorway and the stairway doorway would encourage people to walk to the left of the island and not through your kitchen work zone. NKBA recommends 44" aisles behind seating but 1.5" shouldn't make a huge difference, IMO. However, if you want a bit more aisle on this side, you could steal that 1.5" from your work aisle. A tighter work aisle will encourage people to walk to the left of the island but you need to make sure it will work for you and not make you feel cramped (NKBA recommends 42" aisles for 1 cook kitchens, 48" for 2 cooks but many here go with slightly narrower aisles and have no issues with that set-up). Or you could go with 24" deep cabs and 3" total overhang for the island. There is a bit of flexibility in this plan. You'll notice that there are no corner cabinets in this plan. That will save you some money - corner cabinet systems are expensive - which will help you stretch your kitchen remodeling dollars. Anyhoo, this is what my brain envisioned when I looked at your first floor lay-out.

I don't mind the table and mirror and can't really think of anything besides art that would fit on that wall. Can't see the table details well but could it be painted? How about red to match your lovely door? What would say "fresh and cozy" to you for that space? Have you thought of a new light fixture? A runner and a larger rug in the entrance could look good. I don't find the clock visible from the door to be welcoming so I'd be tempted to remove it.

Does anyone comprehend this complete patio space yet? I don't. I only see two barely overlapping pictures, a third picture in which the camera changed position so it can't be part of the scene set, and a 4th picture that doesn't connect to any of the other pictures. Jdobbswood, all pictures must overlap and the camera must remain at ONE position for all of them (of a single scene.) Now that we see a bit more, I think you should have set one camera viewpoint as the left corner of the patio. And there should be another camera position opposite it from outside the brick wall, for a completely separate scene ... another set of pictures. It would also be helpful if you draw a to-scale base plan that includes the house wall, patio slab and brick wall.

IMO you need storage for sure so I would look at adding a buffet on the DR wall and with kids stools are really not practical for eating until they can get on and off a stool by themselves . Get a small round table that has a leaf and IMO when you have money redo the counters so that that peninsula is the same height as the rest of the counters in fact in this case just remove that raised part and then the DR space will be a bit bigger .You could look at Besta from Ikea to put all along that wall on the left it could give you a place for the TV some storage and even a bit of display .