I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

@LilSweetPeaPhoto @palhockeymomof2 @chattadisser
Heard back from AA about my delayed flight on Saturday. They apologized and gave us both 3,000 miles. I’m happy with that as I bought the flight on points for 6,000 each. Friends traveled with us so they’ll be writing them too.

YAY! Sounds about right. They compensated the 1/2 of the flight they botched. Congrats!

Just bought an unlocked Samsung galaxy S10 off the samsung website. If my chase credit posts, it will be under $500 with ear buds included. ATT wanted to charge me almost $800 for an S9.

Did I share the "how to get $400 off from ATT" with you? I'll never buy a full price phone again


I'm sooooo ready for break to begin. I did just learn that I don't have my kids for Thanksgiving. I thought I did since I had them for Xmas last year. My ex just let me have them for Xmas last year. We swap Thanksgiving and Christmas. So starting tomorrow I'm kid free until 12/8. I'm sure I'll end up getting them a few nights....my 10yo will miss me, LOL.

 

[DisneyMandC]

I'm glad I'm only working two days this week. My job is about to do me in Too much drama and emotion. I'm too old for this!

We’re open tomorrow but I’ve already decided I’m not coming in. I’m taking a mental health day. I’ve stressed enough about this job lately- they can give me a day off.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Just coming in for a second on my soapbox for my favorite off-topic rant...

Show up for jury duty, folks! We just had a jury end in mistrial during jury selection because not enough jurors showed up for the pool. A couple people are going to have real unfortunate Thanksgivings when the police come knocking...

 

[punkin]

The more cards you have with Chase, the more you will have to lower at some point. Chase only likes to give you about 50% of your income, with a max of about 70-80K if higher income. DH has 10 Chase cards, I have 6 Chase cards. If we want more cards, we have to lower limits on some of them. The cards I don't use as much I lower to $1-$2k. Even if I occasionally use them, that is plenty of limit. I know some people say that Chase automatically ups their limit, but we have had a Chase card or another for 20 years and have never had them do that. When they ask if I want to update my income I do not do that, so I think that is why. @punkin are you going for a new biz card or personal? I keep my biz cards lower because my biz income does not support them giving me huge limits like my personal does. Most of my biz card limits have been about $5k so I don't want to go too high with my total biz limits.

My biz limits are also low because I'm showing a 3K annual. My personal is fine because I only have the one card. I was thinking another business card for southwest per SouthFayetteFan's recommendation, but now I'm thinking maybe a personal card? It will only bring me to 1/24.

 

[punkin]

Did I share the "how to get $400 off from ATT" with you? I'll never buy a full price phone again

You did. Thank you. I was waiting for DH to call them, but this deal came up and I thought it was very good, so I jumped on it. I had an unusual situation because I had a practically new Verizon phone to trade in (for $170) which was useless to me. DH lost his insured Verizon phone a month before we switched carriers, so this replacement was just sitting in a drawer. Samsung is offering $200 off and free earbuds ($130 usually) and Chase had a 20% off offer at Samsung up to $94. I'm happy.

 

[Haley R]

I know that you have already decided to do three seats in premium economy, so this is a bit moot, but I wanted to add a small caveat for any future international travel. If you decide to not get the baby a seat, the airline will charge you 10% of the full fare for that cabin + taxes and fees. So a lap baby in business class can end up being quite expensive (as well as a bit unsafe)!

That’s good to know and makes our decision seem even better. Thanks!

 

[Haley R]

Someone at the gym today was telling me we should travel as early as we can with our baby since I mentioned traveling after the baby is 1. I wish we could do that but I just don’t think I can book flights right now before the baby is even born. If we wanted to go next September when the baby is 5 months we would have to book flights right now. Will it be completely horrible with a 1 year old?

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Someone at the gym today was telling me we should travel as early as we can with our baby since I mentioned traveling after the baby is 1. I wish we could do that but I just don’t think I can book flights right now before the baby is even born. If we wanted to go next September when the baby is 5 months we would have to book flights right now. Will it be completely horrible with a 1 year old?

I’d honestly just stop taking advice from everybody lol. You guys need to and will figure out what’s best. I enjoyed traveling with my daughters to WDW both before and after they turned 1. I’ve traveled (flown) with an infant at 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, and beyond. I honestly noticed no difference in traveling with them at any of those ages. It was always great, our kids were very well behaved. As parents we adapted to whatever stage our kids were at.

I would not travel internationally with an infant or toddler period but back to my first comment - you shouldn’t take advice from me. I’d personally be doing a much different trip than Europe. And if you want more unsolicited advice that you shouldn’t listen to, I wouldn’t plan any trips and actually book things before the baby is born. I’d be doing fully cancellable trips until baby and mom are home and life is stable. But this is what I would do and not what you SHOULD do.

 

[Haley R]

I’d honestly just stop taking advice from everybody lol. You guys need to and will figure out what’s best. I enjoyed traveling with my daughters to WDW both before and after they turned 1. I’ve traveled (flown) with an infant at 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, and beyond. I honestly noticed no difference in traveling with them at any of those ages. It was always great, our kids were very well behaved. As parents we adapted to whatever stage our kids were at.

I would not travel internationally with an infant or toddler period but back to my first comment - you shouldn’t take advice from me. I’d personally be doing a much different trip than Europe. And if you want more unsolicited advice that you shouldn’t listen to, I wouldn’t plan any trips and actually book things before the baby is born. I’d be doing fully cancellable trips until baby and mom are home and life is stable. But this is what I would do and not what you SHOULD do.

Thank you for giving me my sanity back

We feel more comfortable waiting until after the birth so that’s what we’ll do. I plan to get the CSR early next year so we can get better redemptions. I’m sure there will be so many things people give me their opinion on when it comes to the baby so I need to just nod my head and say “I’ll consider that” like my book says lol

 

[GZanta77]

Someone at the gym today was telling me we should travel as early as we can with our baby since I mentioned traveling after the baby is 1. I wish we could do that but I just don’t think I can book flights right now before the baby is even born. If we wanted to go next September when the baby is 5 months we would have to book flights right now. Will it be completely horrible with a 1 year old?

Well - having travelled internationally with both infants and toddlers - sure, infants are easier......they are not mobile. Once they start crawling/walking...well, thats what they want to do....bulkhead seats can be a godsend here as you can put the baby on a blanket on the floor with some toys for a while. The key is to keep baby entertained (or sleeping).

As @SouthFayetteFan said, you adapt to changing ages and needs. We traveled internationally with our kids at least once a year from age 4 months to 18 years. There couldn't have been anything too terrible if we did it that often.

Just be prepared, do what you think is right and remember, everyone will view things differently so don't get too hung up on anyone else's opinion.

 

[Haley R]

Well - having travelled internationally with both infants and toddlers - sure, infants are easier......they are not mobile. Once they start crawling/walking...well, thats what they want to do....bulkhead seats can be a godsend here as you can put the baby on a blanket on the floor with some toys for a while. The key is to keep baby entertained (or sleeping).

As @SouthFayetteFan said, you adapt to changing ages and needs. We traveled internationally with our kids at least once a year from age 4 months to 18 years. There couldn't have been anything too terrible if we did it that often.

Just be prepared, do what you think is right and remember, everyone will view things differently so don't get too hung up on anyone else's opinion.

I had to look up what bulkheads seats were. Those would be our first choice if we can get them. I’m guessing they go fast so being able to book right when they’re released will be important. Does the tray you eat on come from the side of the seat then?

 

[miztressuz]

so.... say I wanted to book a cruise ,using the TC from CSR first...would that apply if I just called in? like apply the TC for deposit,and then use UR after that? And I need to pay all the UR at time of booking? So if price drops I'm out of luck?

Yes, you can pay any combination of points and cash you have available when you call in. You just need to use your UR points at the first payment. If you wanted to use the TC you would subtract that amount from the number of points needed and just use your card to make a $300 payment.
(example, for a $2,000 cruise total. $2,000-$300=$1700 you want to pay with points. $1,700/.015=113,334 UR needed. Tell them you want to use the 113334 UR and make a $300 cash payment on your CSR)

If you are concerned about price drops then you may have a reason to delay using your UR. Thinking back personally, I don't think we've picked a cruise yet that had a price drop before final payment. (It can happen, just not to us apparently) After the final payment date on NCL, price drops can get you OBC for part of the fare difference; otherwise if you want a refund, you'd have to cancel and rebook while paying the cancellation fees. Before the final payment date you can reprice if it's just a price difference. If it's a new promotion that you'd want to take advantage, that's considered a cancel and rebook situation. The Chase TA's can do all this for you but I'm not sure how any UR refunds would work. So it may be better to delay using your UR until final payment if you think you may want to take advantage of a price drop. (Or you can be a DP and let us know how it works out )

If you're going to be paying any cash OOP anyway then it may not matter as the reprice could just reduce your final cash payment. I think it would depend on how much you're covering with UR.

 

[wendow]

Yes! In years past you could 100% purchase them in the restaurant. Smart choice! I suggested my friend do the same thing with her Rose Gold. How many offers are you going for? IDK if I will be able to use more than 4 slices by March

I usually buy 2 $25 gcs and get 4 slices free. I’ll do the same this year, I think. I’m excited to get $10 back on it this year!!

 

[wendow]

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[wed100105]

Would anyone be willing to help me out with this planning conundrum?

I'm planning a Mother-Daughter trip for DD's 12th birthday. We're arriving at 7 PM Thursday night and departing at 11 AM Sunday morning.

Flights are on Frontier; hoping to trigger an Amex credit with my Aspire card and use a voucher from Frontier. Data points seem all over the map on this, but otherwise, my and DH's $250 airline credits for 2019 are going to expire. I might as well give it a shot.

Park Tickets- only buying 2 tickets to Disney After Dark. The rest of our time will be swimming, shopping, and eating.

Hotel--I have 2 free night certificates and booked Waldorf Astoria. I have points (1,000,000 between DH and myself) to use on the other night. Points are 80,000 per night. I have the $250 resort credit available and DH does as well. I don't think we will be at any other compatible resort to use it next year. I do have about 750,000 UR. Is it better to book using them?

Is it true that I can't uber from MCO? I see that the Waldorf has a shuttle, but it's almost $80 for DD and myself roundtrip. I'm considering staying Thursday night at a WDW value resort and taking ME. Can I take ME for my return trip though? I feel like I've read about it somewhere that you can change the date/time. (I don't see how that would work though.) I don't need to rent a car and pay for parking fees. I'd appreciate any help!

Thank you in advance for any help! <3 I know I've been MIA. Life is crazy busy right now.

 

[wendow]

Oh, yeah, it’s yucky out there I seriously doubt we’ll see our snow removal folks until tomorrow, so I don’t know that I’d be able to get out today! Luckily, my work also made an early decision for a change and closed today. Can you say ‘BF planning day’?! Got my iTunes GC at Costco this weekend; time to sign up for Disney+. Looks like a binge-watching, shopping kind of day

Gonna be a hangout day here too! I was supposed to meet with a client about booking her trip but she cancelled. I could make the kids do school but it’s thanksgiving break. My hubs is home. My teens don’t work. I see some Disney+, peppermint hot chocolate and online shopping in my future as well

 

[GZanta77]

I had to look up what bulkheads seats were. Those would be our first choice if we can get them. I’m guessing they go fast so being able to book right when they’re released will be important. Does the tray you eat on come from the side of the seat then?

Yes - tray is in the armrest.

Note: Airlines will often block the bulkhead seats from online booking, especially if there is a bassinet option at those seats. You may have to call to request those seats which they should release to you as traveling with baby.

 

[Judique]

.

Just for the heck of it I 'loved' this '.'

edit: just to be clear, I just loved the period - not any comment that I didn't get to read.

 

[hsmamato2]

Yes, you can pay any combination of points and cash you have available when you call in. You just need to use your UR points at the first payment. If you wanted to use the TC you would subtract that amount from the number of points needed and just use your card to make a $300 payment.
(example, for a $2,000 cruise total. $2,000-$300=$1700 you want to pay with points. $1,700/.015=113,334 UR needed. Tell them you want to use the 113334 UR and make a $300 cash payment on your CSR)

If you are concerned about price drops then you may have a reason to delay using your UR. Thinking back personally, I don't think we've picked a cruise yet that had a price drop before final payment. (It can happen, just not to us apparently) After the final payment date on NCL, price drops can get you OBC for part of the fare difference; otherwise if you want a refund, you'd have to cancel and rebook while paying the cancellation fees. Before the final payment date you can reprice if it's just a price difference. If it's a new promotion that you'd want to take advantage, that's considered a cancel and rebook situation. The Chase TA's can do all this for you but I'm not sure how any UR refunds would work. So it may be better to delay using your UR until final payment if you think you may want to take advantage of a price drop. (Or you can be a DP and let us know how it works out )

If you're going to be paying any cash OOP anyway then it may not matter as the reprice could just reduce your final cash payment. I think it would depend on how much you're covering with UR.

Thanks for all the replies....so my goal is to use the TC,and then UR,which I don't mind parting with now- and that means no price adjustments in future (right?) alhto it's possible to cancel by calling chase, gte points back in account,and rebook if desired before cruise (?) I think I've got this right,I'm nervous to book elsewhere and try to transfer...

 

[Haley R]

Yes - tray is in the armrest.

Note: Airlines will often block the bulkhead seats from online booking, especially if there is a bassinet option at those seats. You may have to call to request those seats which they should release to you as traveling with baby.

Okay that’s good to know. Do you know if we book through chase whether we would call chase or virgin? I’m guessing chase would handle that but I don’t know. Maybe we book with them first and then call virgin?