Jody,
One of things to do is to keep a list of all the things you like and don't like about your current boat. It's amazing how that will help you when you start to inspect other boats.
Over time you will come to realise what you want in hull and
rig. Many cruisers like heavy for the reason DonR suggests but as many also like fast. I don't necessarily mean full tilt racing fast but the rationale is that with a fast boat you have a chance to outrun that bad weather and make it into port. The heavy brigade work on the basis that you will inevitably get whomped some day so you need something that can outlive a storm. Sadly some heavy boats have all the hydrodynamic qualities of a brick.
Some folk will stress the importance of upwind performance while others will stress that when cruising avoiding having to go hard on the wind is a major objective.
Lightweight can be fantastic but you will need to remember that the lighter the boat the less you can load her up before performance starts to suffer. A heavy boat may be slow to start with but fully loaded won't get any slower.
Head down below, check out the galley for size and sea keeping qualities, is the head large enough to satisfy your need, do you need two heads or is one enough ? Berths, you'd be amazed how many boats have berths that only a midget could get comfortable in. Privacy, you have kids right ? Is it feasable to lock 'em away when you and your partner want a bit of privacy.
Also very important , can you get confortable when seated down below ?
Our current boat is 34' and while we may well go cruising in her next year we realise that in fact she is a bit small for us if we go permanent live aboard. Twenty years ago that would not have been the case but aging joints need a bit more room to move. So we are looking at 40 odd footers and will eventually move up in size. One of my favourite designs comes in two very different interior layouts. One (A) has longitudinal galley to starboard with dinette to port. The other (B) has L-Galley and smaller dinette to port with sette berth to starboard. I've just passed up on buying a quite beautiful example simply because she was interior A and I know that long term that layout would not suit me and Madam Wombat. Why ? We like cruising in winter, we like colder climates at times so will inevitably spend more time below deck. That extra settee berth makes for stretch out comfort for the two of us to lie down which is the way we like it. The people who have A reckon they prefer sitting. At sea I find sitting a nuisance. On the other hand if you plan on spending a lot time at rest a longitudinal galley usually has more work space while a U or L is better to wedge yourself into when cooking at sea. Some centre cockpit boats have a longitudinal galley in the passage to the aft cabin and this is perhaps the perfect arrangement.
Which brings us to Aft or Centre cockpit or even single or multi hull ? You think Global Warming is a hot topic (no pun intended), well wait until the proponents of boats with or without training
wheels get started. Whooo Wheee !
You see ? There is no such thing as the perfect boat for all people. Experiencing all the different variations will enable you to figure what is best for you and your family.
Cheers