I just got a Nikon Z6 ii because I wanted to take better pictures of my family and our upcoming trip to the Grand Canyon next month but oh man I am so lost looking at these lenses. Like I thought I just needed a camera and that was it but the guy at the store said I need good glass and now I'm staring at a screen of like fifty different options and my head is spinning. Sorry if this is a really stupid question but I dont really understand the difference between all these zoom lenses for the mirrorless stuff.

I'm looking for something that can do a bit of everything because I really dont want to be that person swapping lenses every five minutes while my kids are running around the park or climbing on stuff. My budget is probably around $1000 maybe $1200 if I really stretch it but cheaper is better obviously since I already spent a lot on the camera body itself. I saw one called a 24-70mm and then another one that was 24-120mm and I was thinking wouldnt the 120 be better because it goes further? But then the prices are all over the place and some say S-line and some dont and I have no idea if that actually matters for a beginner like me.

Is there like a gold standard one that everyone uses? I mostly just want clear photos of the kids and then some nice wide shots of the canyons when we get there in July. I live in Florida so it's mostly flat here and I'm not used to big landscapes yet so I want to make sure I have the right gear before we fly out. My logic was that a zoom is better than those fixed ones because I can just twist it and get closer but I dont know which one is actually the top one for a normal person who isn't a pro. Every review I watch uses words I dont know like chromatic aberration and aperture and I just want to know what to buy so I dont regret it...