I still (hanging my head, shame faced) don't know how to upload photos. But I will get someone to help me and post a few. Would be best to take them in daylight. fori, having taken part in DD's reno I do know how labor intenstive it is to paint cabinets properly. DD & SIL painted them in his Dad's home and later in their own. They have a large garage space (w/ heat) & a good sprayer. I helped with the priming, sanding, & poly stages with the ones for their home. Lots of steps & drying time between but the results were so worth it. I know I'll go bananas during the process, having everything out of order. But I could get through that. I just have to decide if a change is in order. I'm so used to seeing it as it is, I can't be objective. That's why I'd like opinions from the folks here.

Hickory I believe it is Hickory. Hickory can be similar to oak in color but it does not have the intese grain and layers that Oak has. Variations in the grade of hickory can show different looking floors. So if you do a search for Hickory on the web you might see some far lighter or darker looks. Hickory flooring is somewhat of a mixture of woods. If you notice you will have some light pieces and some dark. That may be because you have different types of hicorky. True hickory and or Pecan hickory, Chinese Hickory, sand Hickory, pignut hickory, shag hickory, .... they can all show different color variation. Hickory is a hard wood. Really! It is hard to sand but it is a good quality wood that will last forever. Hickory used to be used to make baseball bats, canes, tool handles and anything that needed to be bowed. It can be flexible but still really strong. A great floor! Enjoy your hickory floor, it is beautiful. ~boxerpups

"I'm not sure about right there together, growing from pretty much the same spot, but I've read that if they grow a bit apart but have "leaves touching", it is a good way to grow peppers." I can vouch for the benefits of that philosophy, for most peppers. Peppers enjoy humidity, and close spacing results in a tight canopy which traps soil moisture. It also reduces sun scald. For all but the largest plants, I use 12" between rows, with plants 24" apart in a staggered pattern. This results in about 15" each way between plants, and C. annuum peppers (which includes sweet peppers & most fleshy hot peppers) thrive at that spacing. Keep in mind that is in the ground, not in pots. As for using 2 or more plants in a pot, that depends upon the size of the container. I would not recommend planting more than one tomato in a pot, regardless of size (unless you are planting in a large barrel or something similar). The only exception might be currant tomatoes; I've grown more than one in a container, to intentionally stunt their otherwise huge vines. Pepper plants are more tolerant of being closely spaced, and you might be able to plant 2-3 in a large pot, but I would space them evenly. I've had good luck with spacing smaller hot peppers this way, but bell peppers are not as tolerant. To separate small plants without damage, immerse the soil in water until it has become semi-liquid, and shake the container while pulling gently. Unless the soil was tightly packed, the individual plants will pull out easily. I use that technique to separate nests of onion seedlings.

" Red Oak is open grain and look's better if filled, White Oak is closed grain therefore doesn't require filling." -Wrong, completely 100% false. Both Red and White oak are OPEN grain woods. The grains on white oak are a bit more narrow, but still open. Maple is an example of a closed grain wood. If you take a close up pic of the floor, and post it, i can tell you if its red or white. I post over on the Floors forum all the time, post your question there and receive a lot more help. I personally dont like the varathane products, but thats for a different debate. For the Smoothest results, lightly abrade between EVERY coat. generally a 150 grit paper is fine, can even go 220. two coats in a day is fine. i would try 3 coats total (2 one day, then 1 more the next), and then see how you like the look. if it looks dry or you feel like another is necessary then go ahead. since you plan on staining the floor, do not keep adding coats after coats of stain. it can effect the adhession ability when you go to apply the coats of finish. If you want the stain to come out darker, you have two options, mix the stain with a darker stain, or you can Waterpop your floor. this will help get a more even color throughout the floor and take the stain a bit deeper. The wood filler i would do this, if you prefer to not trowel fill the entire floor during the sanding process, then after you get two coats of finish on the stain, then spot fill the areas you want and then lightly hand sand the fill off...doing this with finish applied will help prevent you from scuffing the stain off the bare wood causing a shading issue.