Wow, that's great that they have built up so quickly! I know the learning curve is steep your first year, but hang in there. It will start to make more sense; well, until it doesn't again.
The bees will always keep you guessing!
But once you have the basics down, it won't seem so overwhelming. Keep the questions coming, and we'll help you out as best we can.
My guess as to the bearding is that it's in the early morning when the hive is fullest. The foragers come home every night, and so the hive is very crowded, and in the mornings when it has started to warm up, they go out on the porch, so to speak, to help keep the hive cool. Once it warms up, they fly out and work in the field, and so the congestion is alleviated during the warm hours of the day. If that's the case, I'd agree with the bee inspector that they will either need more room or may need to be split soon, since congestion is one of the triggers for swarming.