Definitely option 3. You'll be covered from 18mm all the way to 300mm and everything in between.
I got my Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens from Amazon.com last year in December for $249.95 with free shipping on sale. Best money I ever spent, as I now use it as my main walk around lens. It may pay you to wait a bit and see if they offer it again, before Christmas on sale again. IMO ... Its a great lens! :eagerness:I currently have the 18-55, but I'm looking at getting the 55-300 soon. For the quality it seems to give, the price is a bargain!