Medieval Times

There is a Castle in Chicago... That's right, you heard me, a Castle! A Medieval Times Castle, but a Castle none the less.

Luke and I had an absolute blast! Dennis will never admit it, but he had fun as well.

Lincoln Park Zoo

One big thing you need to do as a Military Family is enjoy the local flavor. You should always see what the area you are Stationed at has to offer. Chicago offers TWO zoos! One is a massive size ordeal and there is a smaller one, that is FREE, right by the lake. We went to the latter one, the Lincoln Park Zoo. It was pretty fun! A little cold, but tons of fun.

Dennis and Luke with the Rino

The Rhinoceros

Luke and I riding a Hippo!

Luke and Dennis watching the Zebra.

It was a fun day!

White Sox Game!

One of the perks of living in a big city: Major League Baseball. And if you live in the City, you can a great deal on tickets. Yup, Our seats were literally 16 rows from 1st base. I could see the sweat on the players brow!

The night we went was US Army night!

Hooah!

Future Soldiers swear in on White Sox Field

My friend, Amanda, and her Princess joined Luke and I for the game. Gotta love a girlfriend who is game for anything! God has blessed us with some amazing friends here in Chi-town.

Luke and I with a Sox security guard. Pretty cool!!

The family at the end of the game.

I highly recommend baseball games of any caliber. 

It is as American as apple pie and good time to be enjoyed by all. 

God Bless the USA (and the White Sox)!

IRS Grants Military Spouses Six-Month Extension to Pay 2009 Tax (MSRRA)

I've already filed our taxes, but I didn't work last year. For those wives getting a little nervous, here you go! I know this year is beyond confusing with the passing of MSRRA, but the Government is meeting us halfway.

Good Luck filing ladies!

"IRS Grants Military Spouses Six-Month Extension to Pay 2009 Tax

On April 15, the IRS issued Notice 2010-30, which gives certain civilian spouses of service members on active duty an extension of time through Oct. 15, 2010, to pay their 2009 federal income taxes. However, civilian spouses were not granted an automatic extension of time to file a return.

The extension applies to civilian spouses of service members who were away from their tax residence during 2009 to be with their service-member spouse serving on military duty in American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands and who maintained their tax residence in a state or in D.C. under the terms of the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (PL 111-97), which was enacted Nov. 11, 2009.

To be eligible, the civilian spouse must have worked in a U.S. territory and claimed tax residence in a state or D.C.; however, federal employees working in American Samoa, Guam or the U.S. Virgin Islands are not eligible for the extension and neither are individuals working in Guam or the Northern Mariana Islands to whom IRC § 935 applies (under which taxpayers may treat amounts withheld and paid to the relevant U.S. territory as being paid to the IRS).

The notice provides procedures for eligible taxpayers to follow. These include marking “MSRRA” in red ink at the top of the tax return and attaching a signed and dated declaration, using wording specified in the notice.

Under the Military Spouses Residency Relief 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.

According to the notice, certain taxpayers who worked in a state or D.C. in 2009 and who claimed residence in a U.S. territory in 2009 under the act can apply for a refund of federal taxes that were withheld by the taxpayer’s employer or for estimated tax payments. The notice outlines the procedures civilian spouses should use to submit a refund claim under these circumstances."

http://ow.ly/1zbRt

Airplanes and Infants

This Easter weekend, Dennis and I flew down to Savannah to spend a long weekend with my parents. It was such a wonderful vacation! The wisteria and azaleas were blooming, Savannah was lush and green... Plus Luke was such a cutie in his little Easter outfit that his Nana got for him.

I will tell you this about the trip; it was a learning experience about flying with a baby. I learned:
- You need your child's birth certificate, shot record, and SSN card to fly according to the FAA.
- TSA will not tell you that you need proof of your child's identity if you call them asking about flying with a 4 month old.
- You have to take your child's coat, sweater, and shoes off to go through security. Yes, I will repeat that: You must remove your 4 month old child's shoes, coat, and sweater to go through security.
- Buy your child a seat if you are flying alone. Holding my 18 pound son for 4.5 solid hours wore me out! Though my biceps do totally rock now.
- Fly Southwest if you can. They are fabulous and you can check two bags (under 50lbs each) for free!
- Don't check a bag if you are flying US Airways. They sent my husband's bag to Miami instead of Chicago. But I can see how anyone could make that mistake.

This is why I love my life. It is always an adventure!