gistfile1.txt

I've just returned from EuroPython Conference, and there was a good presentation: "From Jupyter Notebooks to a Python Package: The Best of Both Worlds". If I'm correct the video is not (yet?) on youtube, but the repo and the slides are here.
https://github.com/sesise0307/europython2023-package
I've used to use a similar setup, but I'll do the same (just w/ PyCharm instead of VSCode).
Creating packag(es) from frequently used functionalities.

    %load_ext autoreload%autoreload 2
    
in Jupyter, and then from Jupyter (starting with !) or from commandline

    pip install --editable <path>
    
And then I can use and even modify the package.
I think you can solve your problem using this setup:
you use the two functions in the same cell
or maintain a list of loaded files.

In the professional version of PyCharm you can handle Notebooks easily. You can use professional version for one month for free.
I am planning to experiment with it, when I'll have much time. Notebook can be refactored more easily if I'm right, and also you can debug it with breakpoints.