Thank you so much! I wasn't sure if my 3rd bag would possibly be considered a "1st" (paid) bag or if it indeed counted as a 3rd bag. Wishful thinking on my part, I guess lol. Naturally the rep I spoke to was completely wrong, as he told me my 3rd bag would be $25 and my 4th bag would be $85. No clue where he got $85 from!!

I'm flying direct unfortunately JFK > LAX so no luck on the 3rd bag free. I'll be lucky if I can even snag an upgrade at the gate!