You've gotten some great suggestions already, so I've nothing new to add there but encouragement. Have fun with it! I'm sure whatever you do will look great. I could also see a little darker working well for you.
I sympathize on the wavy hair dilemma. I'm less inclined to fight mine and blow it out fully these days. I mostly blow dry the bangs and the roots at the top of my head to encourage a little fullness and shape, and let the rest air dry so it ends up wavy. Some days it works better than others, but not much I can do about that!