You might want to look at the AC short-haul awards chart at 15,000 miles each, for example YYZ-ATL, if you're planning on being on this side of the pond in the near future. Use your UA or BMI miles for the TATL, then take side trips if you can, using the short-haul awards for you and the Mrs. to the U.S. from here or further in Canada. You can keep the account alive, as stated above, by using some AE miles for donations once a year, thereby giving you seven years to use up the balance while giving you some extra time for using the miles for a couple of short-hauls or a Classic award at 25,000 if you can find one available.

bj-21.