Hi, Beth. Welcome to our little corner of the internet.
I am going to address #1 and #3, because are both very situational.
Some players thrive on detailed description and immersion in the game, some just want to imagine they are fighting monsters and could care less about where they are. When I started my D&D game, I used a lot of description, described the wind in the grass and the monkeys jumping from tree to tree. Gradually, it seemed like the guys were more interested in the fight than the environment, so I focused on that. A couple of weeks ago, one of players came up to me and said, "You're really lagging. When we started it was all monkeys in the trees and the bushes singing to the river, and now we just set up and fight. What's up with that?" So now I am trying to find the right balance of description and action to make everyone happy.
My players were annoyed a few weeks ago when I ambushed them at the portal from the FeyWild back to reality. So one of them said, "Well, the adventure is obviously down the hill and into the woods. How about if we just go in the other direction instead. Then let's what kind of ambushes we get caught in." Of course, knowing that is always a possibility, I have done my prep work and have several level-appropriate encounters sitting in my book so that if they decide to go another way, I am always ready. preparation for the unexpected is always a good thing to have!
I hope I have at least given you some ideas
