At home we have a pump shotgun behind the bedroom door.
My first gun is my Ruger SP101. My favorite of all of them, because it's a revolver. I have .357 hollow points in it at all time, unless I go to the range, then I can put .38 special bullets in it and not waste so much money!
But to qualify for a CCW license, I had to get an automatic. So to qualify AND carry something small on my person or in my purse, I bought a Beretta Tomcat. It's a little .32 caliber and oh did they laugh at me when I went to qualify! Then I shot the target and they shut up.
I love the revolver for what you have all mentioned here, plus it's easier to clean!