Personally, I like option 2--with dining room access too.
BUT, I'd not use a slider in the family room (just a regular door) OR, I'd switch the slider so that the open side is closer to the kitchen. I'd not want to use up that entire wall of space to walking patterns...

1 is silly. 3 places to eat all in a row. I might do this, but make the breakfast area a pantry. 2 has the same issue with redundancy as 1. 3 is better if you lose the seating at the peninsula.

I'm honestly not in love with any of this. All of the layouts are awkward and involve duplicating functions. Can't get but a glimplse of the rest of the floorplan, but it seems to have the same issues. A study next to the living space with an odd bath connected. Too many issues with the plans overall.

Start over at the beginning with what exists now, and revisit your goals for the home. This will be a very expensive remodel, and there is no reason to spend so much when you're getting such poor results.

thank you. What do you think of this option?

Wants for the new space -
Office with a door that closes.
Island that seats 4.
Be able to watch deer while having breakfast.
Storage for things like the vacuum cleaner.
Backpack/shoe storage.
Watch TV with breakfast
We do need a dining table 1 or 2 times a year.
We need a downstairs full bath/guest room for when elderly parents visit.
The new plan has a shower under the stair area.
Pool bath would be nice but is the first thing to go if we have any major issues during construction.

We have a loft upstairs so the family room is not used by the entire family very often.

I don't like any of the first ones either. In the last one, the breakfast area is MUCH too crowded and awkward to use for everyday dining. The combo living/dining room is awkward. The study cannot be used as a guest room as it has no access to a full bath. It might better occupy the space you're trying to use as the dining space, Take down the wall between the current study and the living space so the dining space that is both formal and casual can occupy the central space between the living and kitchen. Perhaps the space between the kitchen and the front room that you are trying to use as a breakfast area would be best reimagined as a full bath to serve the guest room/study. Or maybe the room you are designating as the study would make a better kitchen since it's next to the garage.

Or, check your costs, and do a teardown. Remaking so much of an older home and adding an addition is likely to actually be more expensive than starting from scratch.

Time to go COMPLETELY back to the drawing board.

This post was edited by live_wire_oak on Tue, Mar 11, 14 at 10:11

I don't think you have the room for a separate breakfast area. I would eliminate that and have one nice large eating area that gets used every day. You don't have spare space to have a dining room that is only used a few times per year. You current ideas leave you with a bunch of too small rooms.

#2 since the bay window gives you more light! I like the peninsula overlooking the family room, too :)

Could you move the office and bathroom to the front of the house where the dining room now is?

Then you could run kitchen/eating area/living room along the back of the house.

Do you really need three eating areas? Could you not position the island eating area to look out a window? Or consider not having a kitchen island and having an L shaped kitchen with a round kitchen table in the middle.

Another option is to get a small tv just for the breakfast nook, if that's important to you. I wouldn't let seeing the living room tv from an eating area drive the entire design plan. If you have a good plan that doesn't allow that, but everything else works, just get another tv for the nook.

Of the 3 I prefer the second choice.
Rethink the 9x11' area in the 3rd choice, especially since you have a counter overhang. I have a similar area of 9 1/2' but since my counter overhangs the area I only have 8 1/2' of useable space for table and chairs. It's gets cramped with 4 people sitting at one time.
I like the sliding door idea simply because I enjoy mine so much. The one in my FR leads to a deck and I really enjoy having the door open (and screen closed) on nice days. But, as mentioned above, move the open side toward the kitchen area.