haha...1.5 year old son, golf and my lawn....that just about wraps up my free time! Junipers grow like mad....rip out and replace. Mine looked crappy 5 years ago, but I got lucky and they are looking strong....don't do anything but trim them back off the side walk.
This is what we have in our yard. It is pretty hardy, can go a long time without any water and still be fine. I had a pretty large bare spot in my back yard when we first bought our house, where they removed an above-ground pool and surrounding deck. I seeded with Zoysia to match the rest of the yard. It is a pain in the ass to get growing, takes a lot of watering, and once it starts it takes a little time to fill in. Once it's growing it is nice but don't expect a thick lawn the first year. If I had to do a whole lawn I would almost consider sodding Zoysia. Almost.
I got a kick out of the first "lawn" I saw that was painted gravel. I think it was in Las Vegas. Didn't actually look that bad. Smaller lawns can totally get away with a natural gravel yard and look fine, if done up right.