:)UPDATE!!!
I just figured out what was causing my boot hiccup / slowdown after I moved / changed my SWAP UUID and also extended my .vdi using the unallocated space I mentioned at the beginning of this crazy adventure! It turns out this was causing my issues!

Not only did I have to update the new UUID in /etc/fstab but I ALSO have to follow this guys info!

https://linux-blog.anracom.com/2020/...the-initramfs/

My /etc/initramfs-tools/conf.d/resume file still had the old UUID for my swap when it was on /dev/sda5
I simply changed this to match my new UUID and now it boots super fast again!:)

The fstab entry above which you posted in post 30 is not from an installed system but from a 'live' system, CD/DVD/USB as it shows /dev/sr0 and the mount point as /media/cdrom0. In all your other posts the drive you are using with Mint shows as sda??

Yeah, I'm not sure. It probably put that field in because I initially did the install with an ISO mounted to the VM in Virtualbox. That's probably why it shows that mount point. I'm just glad the issue is resolved since it was annoying me. I don't think I'll need to extend my .vdi disk space for a while but at least I know what to do if this happens again. Appreciate all the input. :hattip: