Married To My Hero

Random.org picked comment #24 which is Darcie!!  Congrats Darcie!!!

My husband was recently home for R&R from Afghanistan and I was not prepared, obviously!  I am very sorry!  I'll admit that I am new to the blogging world and underestimated the time commitment!  However, I am back and ready to get this going again!

I am going to open up the PopATot giveaway for 2 more weeks, so it will end Jan 20th at 11:59 p.m. and the winner will be announced January 21!!  Sorry for any confusion this causes!!  Remember there are multiple ways to enter so make sure to get as many entries as possible!  If you need any help please feel free to send me an e-mail at marriedtomy.hero@yahoo.com!!

Here is the PopATot giveaway post!
http://marriedtomyhero.blogspot.com/2009/11/popatot-review-and-giveaway.html

Congrats to Spahr and Meghann!!  Thanks to everyone who entered and check back for more giveaways soon!!

Random.org picked numbers 2 and 16!

My husband and I have 2 vehicles, but they're both in his name.  So technically he has 2 and I have none.  Although, he's deployed so physically I have 2 and he has none...

We did this so that we wouldn't have to worry about registering them in every new state we have to move to, since legally I have to change my residency status to any new state we live in for more than 60 days.

All that is changing though, thanks to the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act that President Obama signed.

President Barack Obama signed into law the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (PL 111-97), which will ensure that the spouses of military personnel who move because their spouse is posted for military duty will be treated as not having changed residency for tax purposes.

Under the act, the fact that a military spouse is present in or absent from a jurisdiction in the United States will not affect that spouse’s residence or domicile for tax purposes, as long as that presence in (or absence from) the jurisdiction is due to the service member’s compliance with military orders. In addition, any income the military spouse earns in a jurisdiction will not be treated as income from services performed or sources within that jurisdiction if that spouse is not treated as a resident of the jurisdiction under the act.

The act conforms the treatment of military spouses to the treatment accorded military personnel under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). Congress was concerned that in certain cases, military personnel were losing the benefits of the SCRA where they held property in joint title with their spouses. For example, where the family car was not titled in the service member’s name only, some states were collecting personal property tax on that car. In addition, military families were subject to return filing complications when the service member retained residency in the home state, but the spouse was treated as a resident of the new state.

The act also accords similar treatment to military spouses for voting and certain land rights residency requirements.

The act is effective for any state or local tax return filed for any tax year beginning with the tax year that includes the date Nov. 11, 2009.

This can be read here:
http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Web/20092342

Similar to MotoMail, HooahMail.us will send messages to soldiers who are in Afghanistan!  Since my husband is in Afghanistan, I just signed up!  It's really quite easy, as long as your know where your soldier is.

I'm not an expert, but I think I understand how it works.  The letters that we write are sent to little computers over in Afghanistan.  They are printed out at each FOB and delivered to the soldiers.  So instead of going through the post office taking up to a few weeks, it can take as low as 24 hours!  Unfortunately, it's just a one-way service at this time, but I like knowing that I can get a message to my husband quickly!

I hope everyone finds this service useful!!

And if you have a soldier in Iraq and haven't heard of motomail.us, it's the same thing!

When I first saw the PopATot I knew it was a product we needed.  With a 3 year old and a 7 month old, I feel like we are constantly on the run.  We love being outdoors, but my 7 month is not at all interested in strollers.  He wants to be held or in his Jumperoo.  And for anyone who has ever used a Jumperoo, you know that they are not portable in the least bit.  I was absolutely delighted when my PopATot arrived in the mail!!  We immediately ran into the house and put it together, despite that it was 5 p.m. and in the middle of dinnertime.  The PopATot was already assembled in the box, and on the first try, it took my 3 year old and I about 2 minutes to set up!  It was so easy!!

Since then we have taken the PopATot to countless parks and playgrounds, grandparents houses, our back patio, play dates, the gym, McDonald's, etc!  Since my husband is deployed I wanted to see if I was able to set it up myself while still holding the baby, and I can!!  Actually, I can set it up easily, and when we're done I am able to fold it up and put it back in its carry case all while holding the baby!





I could go on and on about how much I love our PopATot, but I think I'll let some of our pictures do the rest of the talking.  Ryker was 6 months old in all of these pictures.

Shortly after we first set it up.  I put him in it, and he was at home right away!

Going Overboard:  The Misadventures of a Military Wife by Sarah Smiley has been on my book list for awhile.  It was actually this blog that encouraged me to sit down and read it.  And I will be honest, at first I wasn't so impressed.  Smiley's writing is easy to read and entertaining, and she really knows how to tell a story.  But I wasn't sure about the story I was reading.  This book basically follows the events as Smiley endures a sudden deployment of her husband, who is in the navy..  She has two young sons at home and is left far from family with only her military spouse friends to depend on.  This situation is a reality for many many military wives everyday.  And the fact is, when our men leave, our lives are not perfect.  We have difficulties and need help!  And in this book, Smiley does not hold back.  She tells it as it was regardless of what is politically correct.  So often it feels like we have to put on this front like everything is perfect, even when they are far from perfect.  Perhaps it is time to start talking about what is really going on, and perhaps this book will be the starting point.

And so, I have 2 copies to give away!!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment with your favorite military spouse book, fiction or not.

For extra entries, leave additional comments:

1.  If you follow the MTMH blog!  (2 comments if you followed the blog before November 27, 11:59 p.m. EST!)
2.  If you're a fan on our facebook page! (MTMH Facebook Fanpage)
3.  If you are a member of the MTMH forum with at least 1 post!

Remember to leave a comment for every entry.  The winner will be picked by random.org based on the number of your comment. 

The contest will be open until next Saturday, December 5th, at 11:59 p.m. EST.  The winners will be announced Sunday, December 6th on this blog!!  The winners will be e-mailed, so make sure to either post your e-mail or have it in your blogger profile.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED