After more than five years in this house, we finally pulled the trigger on a renovation — naturally over the holidays. We’ve tackled big projects here before, like adding a pool in 2021, gutting and rebuilding the kitchen in 2022, and installing hurricane-grade windows and doors two years ago. But this is the first time we’re removing walls and reconfiguring rooms to change how the house functions.
The photo above is from early 2020, and those open walls are a preview of the new sightlines we’ll create between the kitchen, living area, and pool. We’re very excited.
I’ll give a renovation overview here — a lot of the progress is already on Instagram Stories in my “Reno 2025” highlight if you want more frequent updates.
Why this renovation now?
When we moved in, we thought a second bathroom would be essential. After five years — including a Covid year spent almost entirely at home — we’ve learned we can live with one indoor bathroom (we also have an outdoor shower that helps). Two other issues have bothered us more: our son’s bedroom is very small, and the pool feels disconnected from the main living spaces. We wanted to give our son more room as he approaches his tween/teen years, and we wanted the kitchen and family area to feel connected to the pool instead of hidden down a long hallway.
After years of mulling it over, John sketched an idea that solved both problems: finish the covered section of our front porch and convert it into interior space. Many nearby homes have done this to gain interior square footage, and for us it made sense because we still have plenty of outdoor spaces — a covered side porch, a large upper deck, and an uncovered portion of the front porch that will remain.
Converting that covered porch to interior space will allow us to create a larger bedroom for our son, a big L-shaped kitchen and lounge area that overlooks the pool, and an ensuite bathroom off our primary bedroom. It’s a compact change with a big impact: better flow, more daylight, more functional kitchen cabinetry, and sight lines to the pool.
Here’s a rough rendering of how the front of the house could feel more balanced once that covered porch is integrated into the interior.
Finishing the porch lets us reassign rooms: move our daughter into the newly enclosed front-porch bedroom, repurpose her current small bedroom and the adjacent laundry closet wall into an L-shaped kitchen and family room that opens to the pool. We’d shift her existing windows to the new bedroom and install a large glass door to the pool from the new lounge area.
How will the living area gain space?
Removing a roughly 10-foot wall where the laundry closet backs up to our daughter’s room will open the plan significantly. That cleared corner will allow light and pool views to reach the kitchen and dining area, and a vaulted lounge by large glass doors will replace the tight sitting spot that currently occupies kitchen real estate.
- More shared living space on the first floor
- Much more natural light in the kitchen
- Room for additional cabinetry and possibly an island
- More seating around a proper dining table with a chandelier
- Clear sight lines from the kitchen to the pool
You’ll be able to enter the front door and see straight through to the dining space and kitchen, with a bright lounge area to the left. The kids are excited about a TV in the new lounge; we’re picturing a media cabinet on one wall and a sofa or sectional opposite it under a vaulted ceiling and big glass doors to the pool.
How does your son’s room get bigger?
By shifting his room into space that currently functions as the hallway to the pool and expanding into adjacent unseen space, his bedroom will gain about 30% more floor area. The hallway door to the pool becomes a large window and the ceiling will be vaulted to match, making his room feel bigger and brighter — almost the size of his sister’s room.
Where will the second bathroom go?
We’ll carve a corner from our large L-shaped primary bedroom to create the new ensuite. Working with our contractor, we used CAD and full-scale floor-taping to test layouts and make sure everything meets code and functions well. Taping the plan on the floor was especially helpful — it revealed layout tweaks that let us squeeze in a larger wall-to-wall shower without losing closet space.
What about the laundry and other questions?
We’ve had lots of questions about where the laundry will go and other details. Some answers are easier to show in progress, so we’ll reveal those as the project moves forward. Rest assured, the renovation plan includes a laundry location — we’re not losing that functionality.
How will the pool-side exterior change?
We considered how new windows would look from the pool and chose proportions that tie visually to the second-floor window. On the pool side, the large glass doors from the new lounge will open the house to the yard and improve the indoor-outdoor connection.
Why choose this plan?
We considered dozens of options over five years — adding rooms above the kids’ bedrooms, reworking the roofline, enclosing the upper deck — but none felt as sensible for our family. This plan improves daily life, feels relatively simple compared to other schemes, and checks all the boxes: better flow, more daylight, functional additions. The contractor’s quote also came in lower than expected, which helped finalize our decision.
What if it takes longer or costs more?
We expect bumps — delays, extra expenses, and surprises are common with renovations. To reduce stress, we saved 20–30% more than we think we need so we’re prepared for curveballs. Having time to plan and save while waiting for the right idea helped a lot.
Do big projects always feel scary at the start?
Yes — that’s normal. Renovations are expensive, time-consuming, and emotionally fraught because it’s your home. Right now we’re in the excited, “possibility” stage, which is fun, but we know there will be rough patches. We’re comforted by the fact that we have a finished kitchen and bathroom to use during the work, and that post-renovation elation will be worth the effort.
How long will it take?
The contractor estimates 3–4 months, with likely pauses for the holidays. Much of the work to finish the porch can be completed from outside before tying into the existing house. We hope to be mostly done by my birthday (March 19th), but realistically expect completion closer to the end of April after accounting for holiday breaks and potential setbacks.
How will square footage change?
Our home is currently about 1,400 square feet and will increase to roughly 1,500 square feet after the renovation. It’s still a downsize from the 3,150-square-foot house we previously lived in, but the added space will give us much more functional living areas while remaining easy to maintain.
When does it start?
We expect the permit any day and hope construction will begin the week after Thanksgiving. We’ll share regular updates — Instagram Stories is the best place for quick progress, and we’ll post a full recap on the blog as the renovation unfolds. Thanks for following along on this adventure.
Other posts you might enjoy
If you want more background on this house and our renovation history, check out previous posts about why we downsized, the initial “before” tour, our pre-move renovations, exterior updates, and the pool project.