Having had several quilts done by long arm quilters, I have had mixed results. From my experience, it is extremely important to be as specific as possible regarding how you want the quilt to look.
(and then repeat your directions plus writing them down--I did that with one LAQ and got a completely different design than we had agreed upon--go figure...)
Even being very specific doesn't mean you will get what you want. (It is one of the reasons I want to learn to FMQ.......)
You had a certain result in mind and I understand your disappointment. The upside of this situation is that the quilt (and quilting) is beautiful and the recipients will be so appreciative and will love it even though it did not meet your expectations.
That said, I know how it feels when untold hours have been spent on a quilt and the LAQ has a different "take" on it than you.