Zephyr - what you describe as space sounds an awful lot like an at-home version of GAL. I've noticed that the people who do best around here are the ones who truly embrace that. I think it makes a huge difference!
Is the basement all finished now? Is it absolutely awesome? Which direction did you go? A family room? A man cave?
I really miss having a basement! Where I live now, the ground is so full of rocks, it's crazy expensive for anyone to have one. But the basement...so cool and dark. When we lived in houses that had basements, I wound up spending a lot of time in them. We had a lot of fun with our last one. We did a play space, complete with air-hockey, a pool table, and karaoke. My craft room was built in the back, behind all that fun stuff. I hated to have to move away from there...and it was mostly because of the basement! LOL
