longbough

For "one stop shot" I'd go with nothing less than .40, .45 or .357.
A .38 or 9mm barely cuts it - I say this based on my experience as a physician who treats a unique population that happens to have a lot of gunshot wounds. If you have to go with .38 or 9mm then I'd use a JHP P+ defense round like Hydra-Shok or Cor-bon. And forget about .380, .32, .22 etc.

If you don't realistically plan to practice much I'd go with the revolver option because of its mechanical simplicity. That being said - nothing wrong with an autoloader provided that you train to know your weapon well.

Personally I have a Glock 21SF .45 (13 round capacity) with a surefire light (very helpful to have a light and gun in one package) and a lasermax internal guiderod laser. I wasn't a fan of lasers at all for a carry gun - but in a home you're more likely to find yourself in an "atypical" shooting situation so it's nice to have that option. The lasermax adds no extra bulk or weight.

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"I do believe that, where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence, I would advise violence. Thus when my eldest son asked me what he should have done, had he been present when I was almost fatally assaulted in 1908, whether he should have run away and seen me killed or whether he should have used his physical force which he could and wanted to use, and defended me, I told him that it was his duty to defend me even by using violence." - Mahatma Ghandi