Hi there, Felicia!
First of all, congratulations on the upcoming finalization of adopting a child into your family! What a magical way to celebrate by taking a family trip to Walt Disney World!
In my opinion, either of the times you mention are fabulous crowd-wise. The week of Thanksgiving has historically been a very busy time, but the week before will have lower crowds. I have traveled several times during the first week of December and that is actually my favorite week to visit during the winter holiday season. For my family, the festivities of Christmas starts after Thanksgiving and I find that time of the year so magical! We have a tradition of hopping on the monorail from Magic Kingdom Park and we get off at each one of the monorail Resorts to walk around their lobbies and take in the sights and smells of the season. It's a real treat!
You will all just love
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party! The special parade, fireworks, dance parties and Characters in their holiday best costumes are such a treat! The all-you-care-to-enjoy cocoa and cookies included with your party ticket are yummy too!
As for a possible Free Dining Promotion, you just never know what dates are going to be included. My best advice is to keep an eye out on the
Special Offers page for any future announcements.
I sure hope this helps! Please don't hesitate to write back in if we can help with any additional questions!
Wishing you Pixie Dusted vacation planning!
~Jackie