You have multiple planes in your elevations. There are a lot of opportunities with various solutions. I suggest that you spend the next week or two watching a few episodes of Grand Designs from the UK on your ROKU or at YouTube.com. It will show you the multitude of possibilities and various types of exteriors.

I like the idea of stucco on the base with elevation above the garage in a horizontal wood cladding in a stained color. The area portion around the porch in a dark wood on the vertical of the same color as the stucco base. I like a dark grey.

Big decision! Vertical will feel less traditional and you can even use a narrower siding. No matter which you decide on, incorporating contrasting areas would be really lovely. Hope pictures below help somewhat.

Thanks Maureen. very interesting to see a third option of combined horizontal and vertical design.

I like vertical on upper part and horizontal on lower part.

Think I would suggest vertical siding to help relieve the look of your roof.