I'd be wary of tilling. After you till, when you level it, there can be airs paces and so forth and as it settles, these can end up leading to uneven ground. Tilling in compost can exacerbate this, since the compost will continue to break down, and unless it's distributed exactly evenly, you'll end up with even more uneven spots. The best thing to do is to have it graded, but if you don't have the money, that may be out of the picture. Some people have done it slowly by core aerating the lawn and raking cores to low spots and/or spreading sand no more than 1/2 inch deep in the low spots. Planting in the spring can work, but you'll often end up losing grass in the heat of the summer because it isn't well enough established. If you must seed now, you'll need to be more vigilant about watering in the summer. You may end up needing to overseed in the fall, also. If you use KBG and enough makes it through the summer, it can fill in as long as you don't have huge bare spots. I know that a lot of seed mixes you see in the store are a mixture of KBG, fescue and rye, but I think you're probably better off going with just KBG unless you have areas that are excessively shady. If you want to get the seed that will look the best, here is a list of KBG blends by state. If you want something that will look pretty decent, you can buy seed at a hardware store or garden center.

You managed to get several questions going here! Have you done a 'search' on this forum to get answers? Wet areas have been covered several times in the past year, but here's a summary: Why does it get wet? Is the excessive wet just in spots or all over? Are you at the bottom of a hill or in some sort of dip? Is the soil very clay-ey or compacted? Cures range from french drains (effective and very very $$$) to small "dry wells" which are post holes dug deeply and filled with gravel and sand (okay for small-area wet spots) to just growing in raised beds. One starts a garden by first having an idea of what they want. Vegs or flowers (or both) or general landscaping? Then you narrow the general ideas down to a workable beginning, getting specific - if you want vegs, I highly recommend Mel Bartholomew's book "Square Foot Gardening" for basic how-to and general common sense. If you want flowers, then decide which ones appeal to you most, and where you most want to start. Start with a small bed or area because a) gardening is a great deal of physical effort which needs to have set limits or you quit from exhaustion; and b) it usually takes time to build a good soil (which is the most basic requirement); and c) the most attractive flower beds/landscaping use repeating elements and you will need to experiment to find if what you like will grow and look the way you want; and d) -obviously I believe in self-bribery- a small bed will be a fast reward, showing that all the effort you put into it, really is worthwhile. To get started, try a 'search' on this forum, for 'new beds'; and don't forget to take pics of the way it looks *now* - invaluable both for comparison and for making your dreams into workable plans.

The information contained in the house plan will be helpful to know at some point, but it won't substitute for a base plan of the yard. In addition to the base plan, you'd need to think through what additions to the yard you wish to make. What features do you wish to incorporate? ... recreational/lounging/amenities/screening/privacy, etc.? One cannot satisfy your needs without knowing what they are. Think about budget, too. It won't be as critical for making a master plan since that is work that might be implemented over a period of years, as money comes in. But for the projects you wish to accomplish early on, you need to have an idea of how much you can spend and whether you'll do the work yourself, or hire a contractor.

Love ( in no particular order) Extra deep counters with a full row of appliance garages and lots of outlets and plug mold so I have plenty of room for my toys without having to put them away every day or haul them out, so they are always on hand. An extra deep appliance drawer for those appliances I don’t use every day. My skylights and extra windows bringing in extra light. My Aga induction Elise ( boils a cup of water in 30 seconds). My double height ceilings with stunning ceiling height tile behind my Aga creating a focal point. Lots of drawers. Lots of storage space. My pantry with lots of space for mason jars and vacuum sealable containers. So much counter space and workspace for multiple cooks and helpers ( should we ever get back to having extra people over ) Great combination of aesthetics and function. Convection steam oven. Lots of refrigeration space. A great extraction hood. Orienting my work space to my view. My Koehler ombré sensation faucet (my cat gives it a thumbs up too. It provides hours of entertainment for her ). My unique cedar( with inlaid glass )countertops. Some glass fronted upper cabinets for interest and display. Ceiling fans. Places for my cats to sit and access to windows for them. My monogram 48 in refrigerator/ freezer ( on close out). Didn’t think I’d love it as much as subzero. The appliances I got on close out, saving a ton of money. 1 and Half hp garbage disposers. My instant hot water and filtered water dispenser. Hate Not having ( some of) my appliances panel ready. ( what I’m used to ). The stainless steel always shows everything and I’m always cleaning them. Hate my copper sinks. Also never look clean and don’t drain well. And a break down in communication resulted in them not being under mount. That the lighting designer never got here so instead of a centralized Lutron panel, light switches are in different areas. Don’t miss My microwave.