Lots of great opinions and advices. Really appreciate it.

I'm now about 90% leaning toward the 9C compact.

The reason I absolutely must go with Smith and Wesson instead of the others (glock/springfield) because of the Crimson Trace Lasergrip option and manual safety.

Manual Safety:
I have no issues carrying a pistol without a manual safety but much prefer to have it than not. I have young children and the safety adds an extra layer of security. Plus there's a possibility I may have a momentary lapse of judgement and the pistol can go "bang", ND. The safety is also a must if it's my primary HD because in darkness, awaken from sleep my initial state of mind is not as sharp. I'd rather just disable the safety when I'm out and about and enable it on my nightstand than not having it at all. Besides, I've trained to always sweep the safety and it doesn't seem add any time to my draw. Don't judge, but I sometimes Mexican carry and without a safety it makes me a bit nervous.

Crimson Trace Lasergrip:
This is an absolute must for me. Not only does it adds to the intimidation, it is dead on accurate. The grip is so natural to activate and doesn't really add much bulk (similar to a medium size grip). Tried it out at the local shop and I was enamored. In a real firefight, I don't feel I'm at that stage where I can put rounds directly on target at 7 yards or have the discipline to aim down sight when I'm getting shot at and the laser could be the difference between life and death.

The ambidex thumb safety will be modded/cut to fit the CT Lasergrip.

Also planning to add some Truglo TFX and an Apex kit down the line. All the added mods will equate to 2x the price of the pistol and that's why I only want 1 pistol with all the options where I'm going to master.

EDIT: I agree, the Shield is absolutely a dream to carry. It's delightfully thin and light, doesn't add much bulk. On the downside, its smaller capacity and my handling of the Shield doesn't give me much confidence.

Are there any other benefits to the Full Size except the round count, longer sight radius, or longer barrel for velocity (although I don't think this will matter much)?