Daffodils and daylily is a very good long term reliable team, since daffodils come early and day lilies are right behind them, they are durable and won't be as negatively affected by dense roots around then and they naturalize easily, but the south side of the yard ( where the trees are more south than the border, meaning your plants in the border will get the northern exposure side of the woods' dense shade), the day lily may not grow dense enough. And it will be very expensive to do that even for next year, and I know you want to avoid that.
For a shady side I love hortensia/ big leaf hydrangea and pachysandra They'll practically grow in the dark and grow dense enough to keep out weeds. It would be expensive to purchase them and do it all at once so they are not a solution for this summer, but if you have a friend with either, they both root readily under the right conditions. Anyone you know with established patches of either would let you take cuttings if you're into doing the work.
You know how much work it was to clear it, so this summer I think you need to try and sustain your gains with mulch and fast growers while you think about long term solutions
