Last year I got the urge to pull up the carpet in our living room to expose the original, beautiful hardwood flooring. We couldn't stop short of finishing off our downstairs in the kitchen. Here is our progress...
My poor husband had the bulk of the work. He had to pull up four layers of linoleum, backing and glue that needed to be sanded down with 36 grit paper. This was done in 2 hour intervals after the kids nap. 
Progress...
You can see one of the layers of linoleum from the 1970's we're guessing. See the pretty green and blue? Why would someone want to cover up such a beautiful, wood floor? 
After a good sanding, you can see how pretty it's going to look in it's final form. 
What did the kids do during this time? Why, they played choo-choo train with the kitchen chairs.
More progress... 
Nearly finished. We still need to do a fine grit sanding and put down some polyurethane to keep it protected. It was hard work and somewhat inconvenient but very well worth it! 