Do you have a specific question? It sounds like you know what you're doing.

Does the new gray paint help lighten the room up?

Looks almost identical to my condo in central Florida. We did 16x16 tile on the diagonal in the entire house...all rooms same thing. But you don't want tile, so your only other options are hardwood or engineered...just pick a light tone if you want light to reflect.

It isn't finished yet, but yes, the grey definitely has. The question is the flooring. It has been very time consuming. It cannot be too dark. But blonde is too light. Contemporary / transitional is the look I want and it is for the whole room- living area and kitchen. I've narrowed it down to wood lam mostly due to back and neck issues and the possibility that it may be a rental in a couple of years if I can't live in such a small space. But I'm unsure of the color and also what finish I should put down. It ccant be too dark. I have to keep the space as bright as possible. I've been shying away from shiner wood- although I like it, but it doesn't seem to be very popular these days, and often it looks cheap. I definitely don't want it to look rustic. But I do like texture or a little interest in the wood. I'm thinking I may be overthinking, and at this point I feel like I should just walk into another store and grab the first thing I see just to get it over with.

What about bleached or whitened oak? Here are some laminate samples:

Wow, I don't think I've seen these. I really like the whitened oak and white washed oak. I will definitely check out the links. THANK YOU!