I love credit cards so much! v6.0 - 2023 (see first page for add'l details)

[CyndiLouWho]

Ooh, what are you doing now? I’m not sure how many more years of icu nutrition I can handle.

I’m attempting to wait out the home infusion dietitian retiring, but who knows how much longer. She keeps telling me soon lol.

LTACH. Home infusion would be a dream but this is no weekends or holidays. 38 beds, 6 of them ICU. Primarily vented patients being weaned with average stays being a month or more. I just couldn't deal with the lack of staffing & lack of support at my old job anymore. Just as an example, there was literally no response to my resignation letter so after 5 days I sent a follow up email saying I hope you received my resignation and the response was "I saw it but I was too busy to respond." Also told by regional manager "I really don't think you have reason to complain unless you're frequently working 12 hour days and getting lots of calls at home."

 

[Haley R]

I'd go with whatever is available, or whichever you prefer. ORD can be a mess, so just make sure you have enough time for your connection. On the plus side, if you fly to ORD you get to be in the fancy seats longer.

We wouldn’t fly home until the next day so that shouldn’t be a problem. Dh thinks having a longer flight might be better in case ds sleeps but I honestly have no idea if he’ll sleep or not lol

 

[IFlossU]

LTACH. Home infusion would be a dream but this is no weekends or holidays. 38 beds, 6 of them ICU. Primarily vented patients being weaned with average stays being a month or more. I just couldn't deal with the lack of staffing & lack of support at my old job anymore. Just as an example, there was literally no response to my resignation letter so after 5 days I sent a follow up email saying I hope you received my resignation and the response was "I saw it but I was too busy to respond." Also told by regional manager "I really don't think you have reason to complain unless you're frequently working 12 hour days and getting lots of calls at home."

Sounds like you made the right decision! Best wishes in your future.

 

[wisconsinmom]

2 approvals at our house tonight. CIU for me and SW personal for DH. Will plan to do a SW bus for DH in the fall to earn a CP to use in late December and March.

 

[Communicore1991]

Got 10% back on between $700 and $800 in Gas, Groceries, and Restaurants for each month of Q3 on my Shop Your Way card. I've gotten the bonus all 3 quarters this year so far. Who says store credit cards aren't valuable?

 

[hsmamato2]

The disappointment? COVID killed us having to book and re-book.
I guess I'm not sure I want to put in the work to plan, earn points and book a vacation I know I might not take. It's hard to get enthusiastic for anything.
I'm actually not inspired to plan anything right now but I'm not sure it's the job change per se or the general stress of changing jobs and the overall stress of the past few years that's getting me.

I feel this....I'm just starting to even want to book things like I'm actually going to go there...

 

[hsmamato2]

Candlewood suites is my go to at WDW. It’s a newer property, the staff is super nice. The rooms are large and almost like staying in a one bedroom DVC.

nice- b/c we fly in, I alsways get suckered into somewhere near property where I don't need a car rental

 

[calypso726]

nice- b/c we fly in, I alsways get suckered into somewhere near property where I don't need a car rental

Definitely a consideration. I don’t recall if the property has shuttles or not to the parks. We always drive in so distance or transportation to and from the parks is never a factor.

Still, I’d say it could be worth doing some quick and dirty math to see if renting a car could be a benefit when staying with FN certs and points or even a cash stay as the Candlewood is fairly inexpensive. Then, compare that to the cost of an on-site WDW property with no car rental and the amount of time spent waiting on busses, boats, skyliner to and from places.

 

[Psychodisney]

I'm trying to plan our first empty nest spring break.

I'm stuck between Hawaii and Aruba. We've been to Hawaii a ton but we always love it! We've never been to Hawaii without the kids and are wondering if it will be weird being there without them. We've never been to Aruba, it would be an "exchange" using our timeshare points. I'm unsure about the quality of the resort since it is an exchange. Anyone out there have thoughts on Aruba?

We loved Aruba. Took the adult kids(20 somethings) in March 2020, so not sure if anything has changed post pandemic.
Definitely a shorter flight than HI. Plenty of restaurants. And casinos if that's your thing! The beach is nice and the water is calm on the side of the island where the resorts are. You won't find mountains or hiking. ATV tours are popular. We stayed at the Marriott Stellaris (not timeshare) just down the beach from the Marriott time shares.
I'd say try something new!

 

[ten6mom]

About had a heart attack today- I had mixed up my (bill pay) payments on two of my CICs. If I hadn't just happened to go into my paperless billing spreadsheet, I would have incurred interest on one of them! The it was a small balance around $200 but STILL!

 

[amcc]

Okay, so I submitted what Chase asked for. When I called them, they tried to say they didn't have proof of relationship, which is uploaded and was confirmed on Monday. She said she would manually enter that when I spoke on the phone. They needed an email that said it was cancelled AND no refund was given. Apparently the email saying it was cancelled AND the cancelation policy that states NO REFUNDS, wasn't enough. And they needed the billing statements from the charges (though again, I uploaded prior). So I submitted it all again....we'll wait and see now! I'm so over this though. My BF had this issue when he made a claim on a rental car tire. He finally started yelling at them that he was going to report them for false advertisement of benefits, as he too gave them everything. He said the next day after that call they approved him. So I guess my next step will be to argue that. I have legit uploaded 14 different documents for this claim! Like COME ON! Do you need his 1st grade report card next? Maybe I should upload his hockey stats from last season.

The other thing is, my Spring Break is like 3 days after we get back from Ireland....I feel like that might be a lot to take on, LOL.

I would go. You can always just stay on the ship and go to the spa and enjoy the empty pool on port days if you are too jetlagged.

I’m still salty about canceling Ashford Castle in Ireland and a safari in Africa due to Covid. Haven’t rebooked either one. Normally, I’ve got almost all trips planned two years out. For once though, I’m purposely trying to not plan anything beyond our oldest niece’s graduation trip next summer.

Too many times I’ve had to pass up some super incredible deal or invite on a trip with friends because I’m all planned out and don’t have the vacation days available to do it. So I’ve decided to embrace a year of, let’s see how the wind blows and come what may. This is way out of my type A comfort zone

So naturally, I’m sorta kinda planning for the year after that. Thinking New Zealand may be up after my “surprise” year of who knows what.

Anyhow, all that to say that sometimes not having things planned can lead you to some wonderful unexpected memories. So if you can’t get enthusiastic about something specific, maybe embrace the surprise opportunities that come your way.

I'm going to need to file with Chase for some nonrefundable airfare from Icelandair. We were supposed to be on a cruise through Iceland and Norway next month but my 18 year old son had a bad accident and we won't be able to travel. We are extremely thankful that all his injuries will heal with time, therapy, and surgery, but we had this long trip planned for almost 2 years and there are quite a bit of reservations that we need to cancel and track the credits. Ugh, and Amex will surely claw back the 165,000 MR from NCL offers

I don't think I will plan anything that far in advance again...at least until I get my optimism back. The last few years with Covid, my dads death, my moms cancer (this is what I thought I would need insurance for), now this...I just am scared to look forward to travel. At the same time, I'm going to put a deposit on the same trip for next year and I'm looking for a cruise over New Year's to use up the cruise credit they kindly extended. There are so many places I want to go that if one doesn't work out, there will be another destination to take its place.

Reading about everyone's travel style helps to reassure me that different styles of planning, relaxing, visiting, and transporting all lead to great trips. @calypso726 2 year in advance advice will soon enough get me thinking about summer 2025 (let's make it super aspirational!) while @LilSweetPeaPhoto spur of the moment short / long trips all over inspire me to not just think of big 2-week trips in the summer but to take advantage of long weekends. Thank you to all who share your information and trips so generously

 

[djmeredith]

I would go. You can always just stay on the ship and go to the spa and enjoy the empty pool on port days if you are too jetlagged.

I'm going to need to file with Chase for some nonrefundable airfare from Icelandair. We were supposed to be on a cruise through Iceland and Norway next month but my 18 year old son had a bad accident and we won't be able to travel. We are extremely thankful that all his injuries will heal with time, therapy, and surgery, but we had this long trip planned for almost 2 years and there are quite a bit of reservations that we need to cancel and track the credits. Ugh, and Amex will surely claw back the 165,000 MR from NCL offers

I don't think I will plan anything that far in advance again...at least until I get my optimism back. The last few years with Covid, my dads death, my moms cancer (this is what I thought I would need insurance for), now this...I just am scared to look forward to travel. At the same time, I'm going to put a deposit on the same trip for next year and I'm looking for a cruise over New Year's to use up the cruise credit they kindly extended. There are so many places I want to go that if one doesn't work out, there will be another destination to take its place.

Reading about everyone's travel style helps to reassure me that different styles of planning, relaxing, visiting, and transporting all lead to great trips. @calypso726 2 year in advance advice will soon enough get me thinking about summer 2025 (let's make it super aspirational!) while @LilSweetPeaPhoto spur of the moment short / long trips all over inspire me to not just think of big 2-week trips in the summer but to take advantage of long weekends. Thank you to all who share your information and trips so generously

Sorry to hear about your son. I hope he has a speedy and full recovery! Also hope your claim goes smoothly.

 

[calypso726]

I would go. You can always just stay on the ship and go to the spa and enjoy the empty pool on port days if you are too jetlagged.

I'm going to need to file with Chase for some nonrefundable airfare from Icelandair. We were supposed to be on a cruise through Iceland and Norway next month but my 18 year old son had a bad accident and we won't be able to travel. We are extremely thankful that all his injuries will heal with time, therapy, and surgery, but we had this long trip planned for almost 2 years and there are quite a bit of reservations that we need to cancel and track the credits. Ugh, and Amex will surely claw back the 165,000 MR from NCL offers

I don't think I will plan anything that far in advance again...at least until I get my optimism back. The last few years with Covid, my dads death, my moms cancer (this is what I thought I would need insurance for), now this...I just am scared to look forward to travel. At the same time, I'm going to put a deposit on the same trip for next year and I'm looking for a cruise over New Year's to use up the cruise credit they kindly extended. There are so many places I want to go that if one doesn't work out, there will be another destination to take its place.

Reading about everyone's travel style helps to reassure me that different styles of planning, relaxing, visiting, and transporting all lead to great trips. @calypso726 2 year in advance advice will soon enough get me thinking about summer 2025 (let's make it super aspirational!) while @LilSweetPeaPhoto spur of the moment short / long trips all over inspire me to not just think of big 2-week trips in the summer but to take advantage of long weekends. Thank you to all who share your information and trips so generously

Sorry to hear about your son and hope he has a speedy recovery.

 

[mom2febgirls]

How do you see the miles needed for flights on Hawaiian airlines? When I search it won't let me see miles because I don't have any.

 

[WaltsMartini]

DOC has the link posted for random Chase bonuses. I found 5x points gas, groceries and restaurants on my Disney card and DH's SW card. 7/1-8-9/30. Obviously we have gas on CF but I like these little bumps!

Thanks for sharing! Got the 5x on the Disney card and 4x on Amazon (I use this only for Amazon purchases, then use points for Christmas gifts). I had just wrapped up the SW offer so good to keep the 5x flowing

 

[IFlossU]

How do you see the miles needed for flights on Hawaiian airlines? When I search it won't let me see miles because I don't have any.

Hawaiian’s IT (website/app) is almost as bad as Disney’s. Incredibly frustrating to use. Did you create a Hawaiian miles account? And it still won’t show you the miles? If so I can look up the miles for you with my account. You can send me a private message or just share the itinerary here and I’ll look it up.

 

[djmeredith]

I am going to WDW over Labor Day at Swan Reserve thanks to a family member having 5 free nts from the Marriott bonus last year. We went in fall 2020 and stayed at the Dolphin, which was our first time to stay in the Epcot area. We really loved that location and are excited to try SR. In fact, I began this hobby as I planned for that trip.

I posted this in the dining thread, but thought it might help someone here. Today was my 60 day dining res day. I got up early and jumped on the website (and app). It would only let me see availability for the second day of our trip instead of the length of stay (or so I thought). I jumped on chat and after some back and forth I remembered that I had booked our first night separate from the other 4 nts, in case I needed to change our arrival day. Turns out, I had inadvertently created a split stay and each "stay" must be booked separately for dining. However, after a quick Google search I learned that phone CMs can/will sometimes be able to make reservations for your whole split stay. I called right at 7:00 and got a very nice CM who was able to help me. It took me a total of 2 hours from wake up to booked, but I was able to get all 4 ressies I wanted.

 

[georgina]

I am going to WDW over Labor Day at Swan Reserve thanks to a family member having 5 free nts from the Marriott bonus last year. We went in fall 2020 and stayed at the Dolphin, which was our first time to stay in the Epcot area. We really loved that location and are excited to try SR. In fact, I began this hobby as I planned for that trip.

I posted this in the dining thread, but thought it might help someone here. Today was my 60 day dining res day. I got up early and jumped on the website (and app). It would only let me see availability for the second day of our trip instead of the length of stay (or so I thought). I jumped on chat and after some back and forth I remembered that I had booked our first night separate from the other 4 nts, in case I needed to change our arrival day. Turns out, I had inadvertently created a split stay and each "stay" must be booked separately for dining. However, after a quick Google search I learned that phone CMs can/will sometimes be able to make reservations for your whole split stay. I called right at 7:00 and got a very nice CM who was able to help me. It took me a total of 2 hours from wake up to booked, but I was able to get all 4 ressies I wanted.

Have you called the Swan Reserve and asked them to link your reservations so you can stay in the same room? I suspect Disney linking them for dining reservations will not do that. You will probably still have to go down to the front desk to check out after the first night and then check in for the 2nd part.

 

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

So after looking at the airfare for Spring Break and the risk w/ non-rev, I went back and looked at the summer 2024 dates...And the Mardi Gras ship had an opening right before school starts. It's a lot easier to non-rev in the summer, and I can do it a few days earlier if needed or flights should be cheaper, LOL.

So it looks like cruise my son gets is a year from now, LOL. But hey, he gets one on a "fun" ship. With 3 days at sea, I hope there's enough for him to do. Next up is calling on the MSC cruise tomorrow maybe since that's now a 10 day cruise! And try and book the Holland Cruise for December.

which ship? we've been on almost every cruise line! food wise, Virin, Disney, Carnival and Princess have been the best. with your 14yo carnival will be fine!

I gave up on Spring Break, I'm going August 2024 on the Mardi Gras ship now

I would go. You can always just stay on the ship and go to the spa and enjoy the empty pool on port days if you are too jetlagged.

I'm going to need to file with Chase for some nonrefundable airfare from Icelandair. We were supposed to be on a cruise through Iceland and Norway next month but my 18 year old son had a bad accident and we won't be able to travel. We are extremely thankful that all his injuries will heal with time, therapy, and surgery, but we had this long trip planned for almost 2 years and there are quite a bit of reservations that we need to cancel and track the credits. Ugh, and Amex will surely claw back the 165,000 MR from NCL offers

I don't think I will plan anything that far in advance again...at least until I get my optimism back. The last few years with Covid, my dads death, my moms cancer (this is what I thought I would need insurance for), now this...I just am scared to look forward to travel. At the same time, I'm going to put a deposit on the same trip for next year and I'm looking for a cruise over New Year's to use up the cruise credit they kindly extended. There are so many places I want to go that if one doesn't work out, there will be another destination to take its place.

Reading about everyone's travel style helps to reassure me that different styles of planning, relaxing, visiting, and transporting all lead to great trips. @calypso726 2 year in advance advice will soon enough get me thinking about summer 2025 (let's make it super aspirational!) while @LilSweetPeaPhoto spur of the moment short / long trips all over inspire me to not just think of big 2-week trips in the summer but to take advantage of long weekends. Thank you to all who share your information and trips so generously

Everyone thinks I'm insane w/ my short trips. I mean who goes to Vegas for 24/36 hours, LOL. But honestly do enough short trips and it becomes more normal, LOL. Also I hope your son is better soon. I kinda went through that cancelling Ireland on my daughter's bday trip

 

[djmeredith]

Have you called the Swan Reserve and asked them to link your reservations so you can stay in the same room? I suspect Disney linking them for dining reservations will not do that. You will probably still have to go down to the front desk to check out after the first night and then check in for the 2nd part.

Thanks, you are correct. The "temp reservation number" had nothing to do with my actual reservations. I have not contacted SR yet. but plan to. I have done this many times, so I am used to checking out/in while staying in the same room.