We must be crazy building a house. 1 designer wife + 1 financial services husband = recipe for disaster. Plus you add into the mix that we are both opinionated and stubborn and things just get extra interesting. Did I forget to mention that John is also a sports crazed individual who is fixated on how his new house is going to work as a sports watching heaven? Yes, he has even decided that we will be calling the den/office (which he claims will be his space) the “dugout.” The thing that might surprise you is that John actually wants/likes nice finishes (thank God) he just doesn't always like the number attached to them. Since we signed the papers on this place he has been surfing websites like “houzz.com” (I wouldn't be surprised if he signed up for a pinterest account too) and has been bring his ideas to to me. Thankfully for the most part our tastes align... I really don't think this would be feasible if he was coming to me with some Queen Anne legged chairs, balloon drapes, and cabinetry with rope details. Gag. So we're at least on the same page with our tastes, whew! His big hot button is the master bath…he hates whirpools/bathtubs and thinks they are a huge waste of money/space, so we've essentially redesigned the master (eliminating the tub) and pimping out the shower. In this re-design we've also created an area for mama to sit and do her make-up and hair, because that is our other big issue with our current bathroom - I end up “in the way” when getting ready. So lots of wise choices and upgrades happening with the bathroom. The living room continues to be a bone of contention. I’m planning to move the fireplace from where the builders plans call for it to be located (in the corner of the room, all designers HATE corner fireplaces; so that has been a domino of how that will affect the furniture arrangement (or should I say placement of the TV).
The builder of course doesn't want to share the dimensions of the rooms, floorplans, etc., but being resourceful gal I am, I figured it all out and drew the entire plan in CAD. How people build a house without doing that I just don't understand. Anyway, after I got the whole thing drawn up I sent a plan of the living room with my fireplace change to John via email and below is a copy/paste of that exact email exchange. I could not make this up.
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Sarah: How do you feel about the fireplace and the living room arrangement with 2 swivel chairs? (see attachment). 
John: Dislike. Those two chairs are ridin’ dirty together. What are you supposed to be doing holding hands while you sit there? Why wouldn’t you get a love seat instead? How the hell are you going to “swivel” them?
Sarah: Riding dirty. What the hell? I was debating between those and a love seat, do you think people would prefer to sit in a love seat. I think people like their own chair better. Fine, what do you think about this? (see attached).
John: Horrible.
Sarah: What is horrible? Maybe this is more in line with your thinking. (See attached). 
John: Where does the dining room table go?
Sarah: Why would we need one? Clearly having a lot of people see the TV is the most important fact to consider in this room. In this plan we could easily have 12 people comfortably watching. We can just get some small tables to sprinkle around instead of a formal dining table. It's like a movie theater! We could get cup holders on the sofas too.
{Insert 2 hours passing w/ no email communication. Hum, silence...clearly I'm winning :) However, I decide to send yet another option}
Sarah: Ok, here you go...you love sectionals. If you tell me something about the chair in the corner not being able to see the tv I am going to rip your ______ off. The chair is there for when you aren't watching tv and you want to curl up on your own and read a book, or play on your comp/ipad, or it is nice for when this is a conversation pit because that person can talk to those people on the sofa. Every seat is not going to be a tv watching place. Think about the model house, they have a sofa along the windows and 2 chairs facing the tv - do you hate that? (See attached).
John: Sooo...You have a family of 3. At most 4 people can view the TV. Bacon can see it if he really cranks his head to the right. (See attached).
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Oh you are just hysterical John, hysterical. The take away? I am designing a house for John, Ian, & our dear friend Adam Bacon to watch sports while I make food in the kitchen. Welcome to 1920. This is when I stop replying and make the executive decision to do whatever I want to do with the plan. I might even go back to doing my ridin' dirty chairs, I thought they were lovely.
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