Firstly, good luck to you. I can't answer all your questions, but I will tell you about my experiences in removing the engine/transaxle/cradle.
Everywhere you read directions it will (at the very least) firmly suggest that you use a "cherry picker" (engine hoist) to lift the frame. While this is NOT NECESSARY, I also strongly reccommend it.
It's best to use your engine hoist to lift the car (by way of lifting the engine assy.), remove the rear wheels, create a support system (this could be as simple as a wooden 'pallet' or some firmly placed stacks of 4x4 wood), lower the car (cradle) on to this support, unbolt the cradle and disconnect engine (lines/electrical/etc..), then use the hoist to lift the body up off the cradle.
It IS POSSIBLE to get away with this process without using a hoist. If you choose to do it this way, please, please be very cautious. Use as many jackstands as you can, and evenly distribute the car's load over them. Lifting the body once you've disconnected the engine and unmounted the cradle becomes rather difficult, and you will find yourself jacking up the car a few inches, then dropping it onto raised jackstands, then repeating many times. You must carefully place the jackstands and watch weight displacement throughout the stands for this entire process.
Again, whichever you choose, be cautious to stay conscious of your car's weight and where it wants to go. You wouldn't want something tipping over and having your baby fly off in some odd direction, or worse, causing harm to someone.
- dosed
