Thanks for all your advice. I'm so glad that I didn't just rush in and start this. From the sounds of it, I WOULD HAVE ruined them . . . :^0 . . . OMGosh! I need to run all this by DH. He's been encouraging me to call up and order a set I like that I saw in Phoenix Home & Garden magazine spread. I can't imagine ordering anything that big and expensive sight unseen, though. Hmmmmmm, there may be a weekend trip to Scottsdale in the offing ;^) In the mean time, I need to decide whether I want to paint the set a brown first and them give the Gel Stain a go or just leave it as is until I get a new set. BTW, I haven't looked into having it professionally stripped and redone. I probably should. I can't imagine a red or blue table in our dining room, though. I'll have to think about that one.

It sounds like pine pitch except that you say 'no odor'. Until you mentioned the table (slats or not), I had assumed it was the ceiling boards dripping. Now I wonder if it is something oozing out of this floor rug?

I like the look. In the photos the legs of the chairs look great with the table. You can scotch guard the upholstery for kid protection. If you do end up deciding on a rug, I used to use those felt back vinyl tableclothes as dropclothes under my kids. They are easy to shake off and fold up between uses, can pop in the wash easily, and are cheap to replace if they tear.

Maple will absorb stain in some places and not others, leading to a blotchy look. You might not have noticed this on a small test area. Yellow is a natural undertone of maple. It will be hard to get away from it with anything but a dark stain or something with a purple undertone to counteract it. You can add a UV protectant to your finish to prevent the oxidation that will turn maple more yellow over time. You can also keep the wood out of sunlight, but that will only induce minor changes. The coating alone no matter how good it is will not completelyl stop the natural yellowing process.