It would be possible to put a play corner in the first two drawings but not in alternative 2. I would recommend a corner of storage furniture to corral the toys. I am usually a fan of built-ins but not in this case because eventually the kids will outgrow their toys and you won't need that storage there anymore. The built-in exception would be a window seat under one of those windows on the plans. Some of the storage could be cabinets or bookshelves for bins or toys underneath a window seat. I'm not a fan for toy box style storage because they either become a black hole or the kids throw everything out of them looking for what they want and then do't put the rest of it back. As for the kitchen placement, near to the deck would be best in you like to eat outdoors on the deck or entertain on the deck. We entertain a lot and the kitchen is on the other side of the house from the patio. It's a real pain and a big part of my design brief for the architect was for the kitchen to be next to the patio. I even wanted a pass-through window from the kitchen sink to the patio for ease of clean up but unfortunately I wasn't able to work that out.

There are also shades that roll up and roll down that are kinda cool, but pricey. If glare is a problem, curtains are the solution!!! Denita says to hang them close to the ceiling. I always use thermal or backed curtains because we live in Indiana, and it gets cold!! Great idea about the bookcases.

Not sure what you want the drawing shows all those things Maybe just a regular detailed floor plan will help.

Does "formal" imply you have another space for tv watching? A family room? Or is this the only room for tv? If the former? Make the tv more secondary........use an adjacent wall. Better by far as the need for built in expense will be less, and same with media console and tv. As below...and I will hope that is the case. - you've another tv spot. Truly....... the view into the room is far better this way in EITHER case. A room needs to make CONVERSATION possible; nobody wants to shout at another off in the distance. And that love seat can just as easily be two VERY comfortable chairs. One quarter inch to a foot below. Don't forget a great rug.....9 x 12. Lighting matters.......art matters. : ) The very last thing you need? An accent wall via paint. One paint color will do it.....please. You will get more help if you post some inspo pics of rooms/styles you love. There are no mind readers here...