The Activewire board does not look bad, but I _think_ I _might_ need more GPIO than it provides.

Maybe something like this:

http://www.cygnal.com/Products/C8051F320TB.htm

only smaller, no d-type connector (too big), hole/prototyping area and a bit cheaper. (yep I know I'm asking for a lot) It doesn't have to be produced by cygnal.

Øyvind