Newlywed Needs

Looking for name change advice or some tips for newlywed life? The MissNowMrs experts have created state-specific name change articles and checklists for you. We’ve chronicled our recommendations for how to travel while changing your name AND how to handle voting during the transition.

We’ve also compiled our best guidance for how to handle difficult sister in laws, holidays as newlyweds, the ever-annoying baby questions, and much more. Why? Because, while we are name change experts, we’re also newlywed wives, moms, and sisters.

We hope our name change advice articles help smooth your transition to your new name, and a whole new phase of life. Congratulations and best wishes from the entire MissNowMrs team!

Newlywed New Years Resolutions II

Have you made any newlywed new years resolutions? While there’s great debate about whether anyone keeps the resolutions that they make, just the creation of a resolution can be helpful to a new marriage. If you haven’t made any resolutions with your spouse, here are a few resolutions that may be worth talking about:

1. Use Your Words – This is a cornerstone of my marriage. We promise to use our words to tell each other how we’re feeling and what we need. It keeps little things and annoyances from brewing into big things and arguments. If you and your spouse could use a little more communication, consider resolving to “use your words” in the new year.

2. Make Time – Every newlywed couple I know is juggling careers, families, friends, hobbies and figuring out how married life works. Making time once a week or twice a month to spend an entire day together without family, friends and cell phones will do wonders for your relationship. By scheduling “couple time” your making sure that your marriage remains a priority amongst the million other things clamoring for your attention!

3. Do Something Positive – Whether you join an indoor soccer league or soup kitchen, doing something positive and new in the new year is only going to benefit your marriage. You’ll have new experiences to talk about during dinner (instead of re-hashing work drama) and a new network of friends to explore. There’s also the great feeling of helping others or being part of a team to boost your mood.

If you’re unsure what new thing might work for you, check out www.charitynavigator.org, which helps people find the best charities in their cities.

Resolutions or not, this is going to be a great year for you as a newlywed! Do you have any newlywed new year resolutions that you made with your spouse? I’d love for you to share them in a comment!

If name change was one of your newlywed resolutions, MissNowMrs can help! Use our name change app or online service to save 13 hours of hassle.

Help Me Change My Name

Top 3 Newlywed Gift Ideas For Hard To Buy For Spouses

Hard to buy for spouses are the worst during the holidays. While there is so much anticipation to spend the holidays as a newlywed, there is also the feeling that you need to create the perfect moment/buy the perfect gift to treasure always (thanks Hallmark). Looking back at my first Christmas, there was definitely a good bit of (self inflicted) pressure to find just the right gift for my husband. I trolled the mall, braved Best Buy and even flipped through the seemingly thousands of catalogs that kept coming in the mail.

Are you feeling freaked out about what to get your spouse this holiday season? As the woman married to the man who has everything, I feel capable of giving you some ideas.

1. Hobby Subtlety: Does your spouse have a hobby? If so, don’t buy him the obvious (fishing flies for the fly fisherman)…go for something special like a monogrammed case to hold his fly collection or a special gear bag designed for his specific sport.

2. Photos: If you’re newlyweds, this is the one time you can give him an amazing photo of you two without being lame. This acrylic photo block is really cool and would look nice on any desk in any office.

3. Adventure: If you’re totally stumped on what to give him, consider some sort of adventure activity. Often Groupon or LivingSocial have local deals for skydiving, kayaking and race car driving. Can’t you hear him telling the guys at the office..”Oh yeah, I didn’t get a golf club this year. My wife got me passes to race Ferraris!”

So what did I get my husband for our first newlywed Christmas? This is terrible…I can’t remember! What I do remember was deciding to open our gifts for one another on Christmas Eve instead of during the big family hubub of Christmas Day. It has become a tradition to light a fire, pop a bottle of champagne and open our gifts privately.

Moral Of The Story: No matter what you end up buying your spouse, the time you spend together will end up being what you remember. Try not to over emphasize the gift…emphasize the love!

What are you all getting your hard to buy for spouses this year? We’d love to hear from you in a comment.

Kahnoodle: A Relationship App for Newlyweds

How do you feel about a relationship app? When you think of all of the time and effort you put into planning your wedding, it is kind of amazing that there isn’t much done to prep you for being a newlywed. Sure, you may have done some pre-marital counseling through your church or synagogue, but whats 3-5 hours versus the 12+ months of wedding planning?

Technology to the rescue! Kahnoodle is a free newlywed app that allows you to communicate what you need from your partner and give him/her kudos for the kind things they do. There’s a calendar feature/reminder that will keep you both from falling into a rut and even a challenge to keep their “love tank” full. I love that this app is fun and functional!

No one wants to sit down and write a list of what the want and with that their spouse would do for them…it’s tedious and can offend the other person. However, communication is key to a happy marriage. Using an app reminder to challenge both sides to step up their relationship game equals a fun way to keep your newlywed love on track.

Have you used Kahnoodle? We’d love to hear how it’s helped your relationship and what your favorite feature is! Also, if you’re into marriage apps, don’t miss the MissNowMrs app. It helps users streamline the 13 hour name change hassle into 13 minutes on their phones!

Help Me Change My Name

Go Vote Ladies!

It’s time to go vote ladies! As newlyweds it can be easy to focus on how awesome married life is and miss out on what’s going on in the rest of the world. Newsflash: Tomorrow is Election Day! Don your blue or red ensemble (depending on your party preference) and go cast your vote.

Women fought for generations for the right to be heard, so I feel that it is our responsibility to do just that…voice our opinions via ballot. Worried about long lines? Plan a time to go vote with your friends or co-workers. You can use the wait as time to catch up on the weekend and holiday plans.

Heads up if you changed your name after marriage. Be sure to bring your new driver’s license in your married name to make sure that you get to vote. If you haven’t changed your name yet…no worries you’ll be on file under your maiden name. You have no excuses, go vote ladies!

Get Out While You Can: Vacation Before the Holidays

Pro tip: vacation before the holidays! Has all of the recent bad weather left you wanting to get away from it all? What better time to schedule an impromptu vacation then now? You’ll be back in plenty of time to prep for Thanksgiving and shop for the upcoming holiday season. Now where to go…

If your idea of vacation includes white sand & turquoise water look no further than Turks & Caicos. Instead of hanging with the masses at Beaches or a hotel, consider a Grace Bay rental condo. Imagine your own private 2 bedroom place with access to an amazing beach and the largest pool on the island! You’ll feel super swank and can use the money you save to splurge on some resort wear or a few fabulous dinners out.

Travel budget at zero? Plan a stay-cation. Take a day or two off of work, crank your thermostat to tropical temps and blend some beachy drinks! Reading your kindle and painting your nails a fun new shade will make you feel relaxed no matter what your location is.