Thanks! That could work! Would a sectional overwhelm the room?

jj, what are the dimensions of the room?

You need a bigger rug. Or none.

One more thing: why are you getting rid of the TV? Are you planning on getting some humongous thing? Because where you have it now is a good height for viewing. I hate to tell you how many people wall mount their screens too high and end up buying some chiropractor a boat.

Ahh love that chaise option too Beverly. Grover the dimensions are 14' wide by 15' long. No same size TV and height just thinking about clearing floor space by wall mounting.

Be sure to get lamps so that you do not have to use overhead lighting.

Definitely avoid a sectional. The room is too small, and it will lock you into inflexibility for life, with a piece of furniture visitors will never be comfortable on because of odd corners and being trapped behind coffee tables, etc.

When shopping for a new sofa, look for something fairly lightly-scaled and trim, without big floppy cushions and those flopped over arms that always look sloppy. But of course, you'll want to test drive several to get one that is comfy for snuggling with the kids.

Beverly's sketches will be comfortable. One thing to play around with is putting the t.v. across a corner where the Christmas tree is, then arranging all the furniture on the diagonal. This creates triangular spaces the chairs can lean back into, and a place behind the sofa where the kids can still play. But the room may not be large enough for this arrangement.

I second Groveaxle's advice about a carpet and Grapefruit's suggestion about lighting. To these tips I'd add painting the room a color to pull it together. For some unknown reason, painting is the most-feared step, though it is in fact the quickest, cheapest and easiest of all options, and if you don't like the color you chose, it can just be re-painted a new color the following Saturday!

It is going to be nice when you've got all the parts in place.

There isn't much advantage to clearing the space beneath the TV. It looks better with something below to ground it. However, Let me put in a word for using Ikea's Kallax with bins as a TV stand. The bins are great for holding the inevitable clutter from a 4- and a 1-year-old.

Thank you this is great info. We went around looking at couches today and it is very tough. Tons of huge furniture at the big box stores i.e. Ashley's, RTG. I am leaning towards the sofa with the chairs, and my wife towards the chase with a chair. She wants to be able to put her feet up =)

Hi, based on how you described you'd be using this space....my vote goes for a sectional (with chair) like shown in Beverly's last layout rendering.

We've learned the hard way and now are planning on incorporating a sectional (with chairs) in our family room (currently have sofa with chairs). We're a family of 4 too with young kids.....want the space to spread out/lounge around to watch TV and cuddle with the kiddos. The space I'm referring to is also the main living area that's used for entertaining guests. But we realized that it was more important for us to design the space based on how it's used the most (for the family). So for your space, that's what I'd suggest too. If you entertain on a more regular basis, design the space for that. If used moreso regularly as a family space, then consider that as your design basis instead.

Below are just pics to give you some more ideas and inspiration.

I had a few furnishings laying around to start you out. Monochromatic is always restful and makes small rooms seem larger. Don't think just because you have kids you have to get some big bulky brown sofa. But because you have little kids, DO think that an ottoman makes a great coffee table. Stick a tray on top to hold that bowl of Cheerios.

Don't forget the art. Canvas is always good; it's light weight and it doesn't break into shards when the kids knock it down.

Lose those vertical blinds ASAP.

I just went to the RTG website and saw a message that made me rush back here to say: DO NOT BUY THE ROOM AND SAVE! Furniture stores love to have you buy the whole set--it's great for their profit margins--and then you get it home and your space looks like a furniture showroom.

From RTG:

if you are starting over make a plan and a mood board. and measure before buying. also there are so many online stores available to you to shop - wish I had that option or I do but have to pay duty, shipping and 25 cents more on each dollar to ship to Canada.
you don't have to go to big box stores and buy a big clunky sofa and matching chair which seems to be what these stores specialize in.

We wanted to put our feet up, but not have a chaise lounge protruding into the room. So we made our own upholstered footstools. You might find ones you like, or find a hassock to put your feet on. I'm sure the kids could invent some creative play with these too without bumps to the head.
There are also hassocks with storage inside them (great place for soft toys that don't make noise when you want to watch your show!) but these hollow hassocks tend to be heavy and large and hard to swing from chair to sofa and back again.

You can tell I'm into furniture forms, sizes, weights that are flexible!