Thoughts on Paul and Julia Child's Cambridge Home

I recently read about the new owners of Paul and Julia Child's home have the Cambridge home up for sale again. Julia's kitchen was lovingly donated to the Smithsonian and was shown in the movie, 'Julie & Julia'. The victorian Cambridge home was gutted to the studs and the interior was changed to modern. The once charming, inviting, spirited home is now cold and sterile (note the current owners are "veggie people" and anti-beef ). The home was featured once in Architecture Digest and I think online one can see the before and after photos. I am sure Julia would have a good laugh about her old kitchen becoming a "no beef" kitchen.
In my own home I try to keep things simple, classic, and welcoming. I incorporate new with old and rooms are furnished so, that a guest can sit in comfort and not feel like they are visiting a museum. Collecting art and antiques with stories and family history is my most interesting challenge. It's in my blood to recapture the nostalgia of the past.
I once talked on public radio about the "front porch generation" and how Americans have changed the tradition of entertaining and visiting people on huge front porches. Most families nowadays gather on decks or backyard outdoor kitchens (with fireplaces). I have fond memories of visiting my grandparents during the hot Indiana summers. My family would visit with neighbors on front porches or screen houses. The summer party at my grandparents' home was a huge social gathering for people wanting mounds of food (displayed on dining room table and various side tables). Family and guests would gather, eat, rest, and talk on the front porch. The front porch aluminum glider with its matching rocker was the seating of choice (otherwise one was forced to sit on lawn chairs).
I visited my grandparents home years after their deaths and the new owners built a huge deck and stone patio off of the old family room ( located to the back of the house). My grandmother's rose gardens were gone and only the hardiest roses survived the changed landscape. The new owner's gave me a tour of the home and everything was modern and new. The once tan walls with blonde wood trim was changed to gray walls with white painted trim. The floors stained dark and furniture purchased from a wholesale furniture outlet in Chicago. The wall where my grandmother had her stereo and record player (Zenith) had a huge flat screen television mounted to the wall ( I remember the huge waterfall oil painting that used to be on the same wall). I start thinking I should leave but, the curious cat in me went on to take the rest of the home tour. The kitchen that used to have the smells of fresh dill, garlic, and soup cooking (all year round) were gone. The smell of moth balls was gone and I felt sick to my stomach. I told the owner they had done a nice job but, I was being polite and holding back the tears and true comments. I know everything changes and one can never go "back home". I just find people's decorating ideas on what makes a house a home very interesting. Let me know your thoughts. Thomas