This may not seem like that big a deal - we just moved the fridge, right? - but it was a huge effort. Our great team of contractors put in two ~12 hour days to make this happen. Pretty much all of it was in replacing our water heater with a tankless version and moving plumbing, etc, in the walls. And then on our end, a lot of moving furniture and decluttering. Digging out piles that date back to preschool.
Pictured: the really awkward entrance. Just one of the things this remodel will address.
It's okay, but a bit annoying. If there's more than one person in the kitchen at a time we are constantly in each other's way, there's not quite enough storage, and it has a bit of a closed in feeling. Just to the left of the fridge is our pantry, and just to the left of that is our front door, which opens in. So entering the house is a bit bizarre - with the door open there's about two inches of clearance between the door and the pantry.
One thing that occurred to me is that the fridge is the main problem. It sticks out and is a major source of traffic. You might be working in the kitchen and someone will need to get a glass of water or a snack, and then you're bumping into each other.
So I hatched a plan to move the fridge to the wall that runs perpendicular to where it is now, which adjoins with the garage. We just had the water heater taken out and replaced with a tankless water heater, and it will be recessed into that area.
Next steps will be moving the pantry and then replacing the oven/stovetop and cabinets. Here is a visualization of the general idea:
