Name Change Advice

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!

Maiden to Middle Name Change

Taking her maiden name as a middle name after marriage is one of the more popular name change choices of newlyweds today. Many women are attached to their maiden names for various reasons: they built a career using it, they are the only child to carry on the family name or they can’t imagine “being anyone else”. Adding her maiden name as a middle name allows for a woman to “keep” her maiden name while taking her husband’s last name, but avoid the mouthful of a hyphenated name.

News flash! More and more states are no longer recognizing a woman’s right to change her middle name based on marriage. What does this mean to newlyweds in the middle of name change? If you live in California, New Jersey, New York, New York City, Ohio (unless your Marriage Certificate shows your intended middle name), Pennsylvania or Washington you are unable to take your maiden name as your middle name as part of your married name change.

Be aware of your state’s policies regarding name change. If you file your government forms with a new middle name, but live in a state that disallows maiden to middle name change you will end up with mismatched identification documents. The reality of having a different name on your state driver’s license and your U.S. Passport can be unsettling. Travel will be tedious as you need to book any international flights in the name on your passport, but local flights should match your state driver’s license. There can also be issues if security is requiring two forms of ID (as yours won’t match). We highly recommend choosing one married name option and using it on ALL of your documents.

Petitioning the Court System

If a bride is dead set on changing her middle name, she will have to petition the U.S. court system via an attorney for a legal name change. This can be a very long and expensive process, but it might be the only way a couple can come to a married name they can agree upon. The moral of this blog posting is be sure to research your state’s name change policies before you begin your name change.

If you’d like to speak with a married name change expert about your particular state and situation, call the gurus at MissNowMrs. They’ll provide you with the most up-to-date information on your state for free! They can also help you consider alternate name change options if you end up being in a non-middle name change state.

Have you tried to change your name and run into red tape and state-specific issues? Share your story today and help another newlywed avoid unnecessary name change hassle! You can also check out our name change checklist for more help.

9 Ways to Have a Happy Wife Starting Right Now

Want to ensure you have a happy wife? If you’re settling into you’re happily ever after role of Prince Charming (aka husband). While most princes have Disney to script all the right things to do. It might be a little daunting to realize that you now have a wife and that you play a huge role in her happiness. Here are nine simple ways to make your wife happy today.

Buy her a just-because card. A romantic or steamy card costs less than $3 and will brighten your wife’s whole day. She will also probably keep it forever!
Do a chore you know your wife hates doing without telling her. When she pulls into the driveway and sees the recycling bins already at the curb you’ll be a hero.
Pour her a bubble bath and light a few candles. There is simply nothing better than coming home to such a thoughtful and pampering gesture.
Surprise her with breakfast in bed. Worried about your cooking skills? Zip out for pastries and coffee before she wakes up .
Brag about what a great wife she is, in front of her. She may be a bit embarrassed at the time, but you’ll show her how happy you are to be her husband.
Keep a secret stash of your wife’s favorite candy. The next time she wishes for M&Ms, you can instantly grant her wish!
If you’re going out to eat with a buddy, bring something back for your wife. It could be her favorite appetizer or a mini dessert. You’ll get the green light to go out more often after this one!
Do something nice for her family. Send her mom flowers, rake their yard or help her brother with his car. Your acts of kindness will warm her heart and score you son-in-law points to boot.
Tell your wife something you love about her every day. They all don’t have to be romantic. You may love how well she balances the checkbook or loads the dishwasher…just tell her. These little compliments go a very long way to making your wife feel loved and appreciated.

As you start to follow a few of our suggestions, you’ll see how easy it is to make a woman smile. The thought behind the act is always appreciated and usually reciprocated. Remember, a happy wife equals a happy life! Ladies, if your husband has done something great for your lately we’d love to hear about it. Please leave us a comment!

Newly Married & All Wedding’ed Out

Have you and your spouse found yourselves to be all wedding’ed out!? I’m not talking about feelings of exhaustion from your own wedding, but suddenly now everyone you know is getting engaged and shower and wedding invitations are flooding your mail box! Everyone seems to say the same thing, that if you’re one of the first of your friends to get married, you will have one “golden” year where you will find yourself loading up your calendar with showers, bachelorette parties and weddings to attend.

Of course you are so excited for your friends, and look forward to sharing this special time with them and helping with preparations for their special day, but you may also find yourself feeling somewhat overwhelmed, and unfortunately not being able to accept all invites due to other schedule conflicts, and not to mention the obvious… budgetary restraints.

My husband and I have now attended 4 weddings so far this year and still have another 5 remaining in 2010! Is it selfish of me to want a vacation of my own? Well I’ve come to grips that it’s not going to happen this year, so my husband and I have promised each other that we’re going somewhere fabulous in 2011!

With so many weddings, and your free weekends becoming well… non-existent, how do you choose when to decline some invites, and… if you have mutual friends, when is it OK to decline some and accept others?! This is becoming an on-going, harder-to-handle issue as you certainly don’t want to create hard feelings!

There are a few obvious questions that come into play when making your decision on whether or not to accept your invite! Are you available that weekend? How far away is the wedding (is it a destination wedding with plane tickets and a car rental), and can you afford it? Is it a family member’s wedding? Did you invite them to your wedding? Did they attend your wedding?

I have recognized one thing when making your decision to attend or regretfully decline… Remember to make your decision based on logical factors, not based on whether or not that couple attended your wedding! Even if you’re not the best of friends, the couple must have thought highly enough of you in the first place to put you on their guest list, so you should take a moment to decide on how to mark your reply card. Sometimes you will be forced to decline if you have a conflicting event or just don’t have the funds, but do be sure to mail a card! It is considered courteous and acceptable to send a card and/or gift up to six months after the wedding date.

Remember, it’s an honor to be invited to someone’s wedding, so always be sure to handle your response with care… but above and beyond anything, be sure to respond! There’s nothing more awkward and annoying for a bride and groom than having to call guests who didn’t respond! So hang in there if you’re trudging through your golden year of weddings, and do yourself a favor and keep a photo book of the weddings you attend… its fun to reminisce about these events down the road!

How have you handled being all wedding’ed out? We’d love to hear your solutions in a comment.

3 Things You Can Do to Keep Your Guy Friends and A Happy Wife

Now that you’re married, how do you keep your guy friends? Guys always tend to have a posse of guy friends. After all, they are who you watch your favorite sports games with, sometimes they are who you work with, and overall, they are who you have a good time with. There are some times though, when your wife may not be particularly thrilled with some of your buddies. You may be lucky and everyone gets along beautifully. But then there may be a few moments when you realize things are becoming a bit tense between times when you hang out with the guys and when you are with your wife.

Seeking out the right balance between your friends and your true love can occasionally seem a bit tricky, but try following these three simple concepts:

1. Don’t let the guys talk you into anything you are uncomfortable with (or that you know your wife would seriously object to!).
Many women object to a man’s friends because of the things he does with them. From getting drunk to doing something ridiculous, your wife might worry that they are a bad influence on you. Their potential bad influence as well as your wife’s disapproval can lead to a knot of problems. Any time you go out with your friends, remember that you are an adult and will make adult decisions. Your friends should not be able to talk you into anything that you do not want to do. Likewise, if you know your wife has a serious problem with something in particular, you can make her a much happier woman by agreeing to stop that specific activity and stick to your promise.

2. Make sure to balance out time with the guys and time with her.
It isn’t hard to understand that men will need some time with other men. Just as your wife goes out with her girlfriends for a fun day of shopping or a spa treatment, she understands your need to hang out with the guys and relax. As long as you balance out time with your friends and time with your wife, everyone will be happy. If you spend each and every night with the guys and never spend any alone time with your wife, it won’t be any surprise that you come home to a very unhappy woman! She married you – she loves you, and she wants to be with you. When you show her that you can manage time with her and time with the guys, she will feel comfortable in your commitment to her.

3. Remind her that she is #1 in your heart.
When it comes down to the wire – the guys or your wife – let her know that she is your #1 choice. Sometimes it may be as simple as telling her you love her and you intend to be home by a specific time and then honor that promise. Or it may mean staying home on your anniversary when the guys have prime hockey tickets. Just remember, honoring your new wife will only result in good things for you. Trust us….it’s worth it!

5 Reasons to Feel Good about the Raise in Passport Agency Fees

The Passport Agency fees to apply for a new U.S. Passport Book or U.S. Passport Card as well as the fees to renew your current U.S. Passport Book or Passport Card are going up as of Tuesday July 13, 2010. We know what you’re thinking, not another raise in fees! Unfortunately, yes that is exactly what is happening with the U.S. Passport Agency, but with good reason. Here’s a breakdown of the new fees along with some reasons not to sweat the extra money!

First time Adult U.S. Passport Book: $110 (payable to Department of State) + $25 (payable to Acceptance Facility)
First time Adult U.S. Passport Card: $30 (payable to Department of State) + $25 (payable to Acceptance Facility)
Renewal of Adult U.S. Passport Book (DS82 Form): $110 (payable to Department of State)
Renewal of Adult U.S. Passport Card (DS82 Form): $30 (payable to Department of State)
Expedite Processing Fee (added to the above mentioned fees if you need your Passport in a rush): $60

1. Fees cover more than the cost of your new Passport Book or Passport Card:
Believe it or not the fees are also used to cover the costs of providing emergency services for American citizens who have been the victims of crime (or a crisis; such as an earthquake) while traveling or living abroad as well as providing support to the families of American citizens who have died overseas.

2. Application fees allow us to keep up with the latest technology in fraud prevention:
You don’t want just anyone to be able to obtain a U.S. Passport, do you? The Passport Agency has received great praise from document security specialists all over the world and views the prevention of Passport fraud as a key ongoing priority.

3. Fees help fund passport infrastructure and service.
Offering more timely service to the traveling public is always a number one priority at the Passport Agency Office, but it is equally as important to maintain high standards for adjudication in accordance with US citizenship laws.

4. Millions of Passports are requested each year.
The demand for passports has increased to an average of 15 million per year in recent years. For example, in FY 2005, the Passport Agency issued 10.1 million passports, 18.4 million in FY 2007; and they predict to issue over 15 million in FY 2010. The new fees will help them to increase their presence in underserved areas such as communities affected by the land border-crossing requirements associated with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. They expect to have 23
agencies providing emergency passport services to the general public, three high-volume application processing centers, and two large-scale document print centers by the end of FY 2010.

5. Passports are no longer used just for travel.
The U.S. Passport Book and U.S. Passport Card serves as proof of U.S. citizenship and identity for important purposes such as: work authorization and eligibility for many Federal benefits. Keep in mind that Adult U.S. Passport Books and U.S. Passport Cards are valid for 10 years, so paying these fees once every 10 years with all of the benefits listed above sounds not too shabby to us!

* Information for this post on Passport Agency Fees was obtained via the State Department website. For more details, please visit www.state.gov. If you need to change to your married name on your U.S. Passport, check out MissNowMrs.com/Passport-Name-Change.aspx for the inside scoop!