Your kitchen may be a bit dated but it is laid out well and your appliances are newer. I can see some modernizations that will bring the space more up-to-date. Black knobs and pulls too. Also a black metal pendant over the sink with a glass in the color you choose for the wall.

If you want to update your kitchen, change your countertop, sink, faucet and backsplash as your cabinets are just fine.

If you add oil rubbed bronze hardware to them, they will bring out the darker tones in the oak. We have similar cabinets that came with brass hardware that gave the cabinets a very orangish color. When we redid our kitchen, we changed the hardware to oil rubbed bronze, and instantly the cabinets took on a darker color along the lines of a dark ale beer. It was absolutely amazing!

Symona75: This could be MY kitchen except that i have wood flooring! I also have oak cabinets. If I remodel I am thinking of painting them white.. I think it is important to use color. I assume you have looked at pictures and can get a few ideas on introducing color, however I find most people use stone for the backsplash. Again no color! I plan to put in a stainless steel stove. I will be interested in what others have to say.

I use a free program called Gimp it is very similar to Photoshop. It does require a bit of a learning curve to use it.

You
need to select what is going to give the most results for your room the
flooring and backsplash will do that. Your cabinets seems to be in very
good shape and of good quality not to mention that the light wood color
looks good in the room.

If finances permit I would consider
changing the pantry door and trim entirely. A split double swing door
stained to match the cabinets would be a great help when your arms are
full. By changing the pantry door you allow yourself more options for color.

Check Google Images for light oak kitchen designs. Google Images Link

As long as you keep the backsplash neutral with the small amount of paint you need to use in the kitchen don't be afraid to use color as it's easy enough to change when you tire of it.

Personally I love a vibrant blue against oak.

You want to choose your countertop first, and then find a tile or whatever else for the backsplash. The thing to keep in mind is to make sure the colors work together. By that I mean that if you go with a granite that has a cream color in it, you want to make sure that if the tile has a cream color in it also that they have the same underlying color. For example, whites and creams are either on the yellow or pink side, and if you mix a pinkish white tile with a yellowish white countertop it's going to clash, and you'll wonder why it didn't work out.

Get samples including buying a sheet of the tile to test with the countertop. Better to spend $10 or $15 and make sure you like how they look together than assume you can remember the undertones and end up with a diaster.

Go with the biggest, deepest single sink you can get. You'll love it! And be careful about getting too high of a faucet as the higher it is, the more it splashes.

Symona75: Sorry, just noticed you have wood floors (like I do).