Give your wife a big hug; as a chick who NEEDS my show -n- purse storage... that's a sacrifice!
Don't start out trying to grow a sativa indoors. Stick with classic Skunk, Northern Lights, and Afghani type plants when you are learning. Hazes and other sativas grow SLOWLY, finish LATE, and the slowness can lead to problems indoors.
You need a LOT of ventilation.
Power spikes aren't the worst thing in the world; I assume you won't be running more than a 1000wHPS to start, and on top of an existing household E bill, that is not a huge spike. Just be careful not to double your electric consumption. Even going from your current usage to 160% of your current usage is a little steep. Plan to change all your light fixtures to energy saver ones, and cut down on your household appliance usage. If you have an electric stove/oven, consider more efficient ways of cooking with it, such as steaming veggies in a basket OVER the pasta that is boiling... stuff liek that.
And read the link in my siggy for more startup info.