I remember reading through one or two of these threads in the past. The general advice at the end of the day was basically what the two previous responses said. If there is time, why not just go ahead and do it now?
Thanks for the reminder, I just put an appointment in my calendar to remind me a year ahead of my next expiration. Boy does the time fly...
https://www.usa.gov/passport recommends renewing 9 months before you expire. With a June 9 trip and a passport expiring this year, if it was my passport, I would just go ahead and pay for the regular expediting and get it done now.