Christmas

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!

Holiday Cocktail Recipes for Newlyweds

Tis the season for holiday cocktail recipes! After shopping, wrapping, cooking, and traveling, it can also be a stressful time as you figure out your holiday plans with both families. So, if you need a cup of cheer (read alcoholic beverage) to make the next few weeks more manageable, or if you are entertaining guests, below is a fabulous recipe for a Karma Apple Cocktail. It’s simple to create, and brings together the flavors of caramel, apple, and cardamom. Consider it comfort and joy in a glass!

Karma Apple Cocktail
Makes 1 serving
2 oz. applejack brandy
2 oz. salted caramel vodka
4 oz. spiced apple cider
1/8 – 1/16 tsp. cardamom
1/2 cup ice
Garnish: thin slice of green or red apple
Shake together the first four ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Pour over ice into a lowball glass and garnish with a thin slice of apple. Make one for a friend, too, to ensure good karma.

Interested in more amazing yet easy holiday cocktail recipes? Visit TheScramble.com! You’ll find endless unique recipes for beverages and food. More of a cooking video gal? Check out The Scramble channel on YouTube. You’re welcome and happy holidays!

Photo & Recipe credit: The Scramble

3 Newlywed Holiday Tips

Looking for newlywed holiday tips? Being newlyweds opens an entirely new life…a life together. Most of the time that is an amazing thing to explore. Occasionally newlywed life can be a little scary as you navigate two families and holiday expectations. The worst thing you can do is “go with the flow” and make everyone but yourselves happy. Your first holidays together and how you handle them with your family will set a precedent for the rest of your married lives. Read on for a few tips to make the holidays more comfortable as newlyweds.

Holiday Tip 1: Know what you want for “your” holiday
If you and your spouse never discuss what would make you individually and collectively happy over the holidays, you’re setting yourselves up for unhappiness. Understanding the key thing for each person that makes a holiday special and making sure you prioritize those two things is tangible goal you can set and work to achieve together. If you have made a holiday plan together, it will be easier to communicate with your families. Instead of stammering and somehow agreeing to a dinner you know your spouse will hate. You can say “We made a plan to spend Christmas Eve in front of the fire together as newlyweds.”

Holiday Tip 2: Set gift expectations
Even if you have been dating for years, marriage can change a person’s expectations around the holidays. Talk about setting a gift budget for each other and your families. You won’t lose the element of surprise, but you will mitigate the disaster of supremely mis-matched gifts and hurt feelings. Unsure what to get each other? Consider booking a trip or purchasing a gym membership together. Memories and good habits early on will influence your marriage for years to come!

Holiday Tip 3: You can’t do it all
As you are building your married relationship, you can be tempted to do everything possible to make your spouse, family, their family, and friends happy. Don’t, it’s a recipe for burnout. Take this holiday season as a time to reflect on who is important to you and spend time with them. Not everyone needs a gift. Sometimes a coffee, cocktail, or email is all you need to spread cheer and good will.

As you enter into the holiday season with your husband or wife…remember how blessed you are to be spending it with the person you love. Don’t forget to tell them, take pictures, make memories, and have fun! Happy holidays newlyweds!

5 Ideas For Creating A Holiday Moment Together This Year

Creating a holiday moment together is SO important! Whether you’re planning your wedding or celebrating your first Christmas as newlyweds the holidays hold a host of parties, activities, family gatherings and maybe a few stressful questions. What are you buying your spouse? Are you now in charge of his/her family Christmas gifts? Where are you spending the holiday this year? Who’s traditions will be honored? What is your holiday budget?

In the midst of the shopping, baking, wrapping and traveling, I have one piece of advice for you. Plan time for just the two of you to make a memory. If you don’t plan to do this now, the holidays will have already whirled past before you have a chance to connect.

Short on ideas? You could go ice skating, make out under the mistletoe, take a walk through holiday lights, make an ornament to remember your first Christmas or have breakfast in bed together as you exchange gifts. You can also surprise your spouse with a name change. We’ve had clients slip their new driver’s license showing their married name into a card. So cute!

Whatever you choose, you’ll be able to look back over the years and remember “your holiday moment” as a nearlywed or newlywed!

We’d love to hear about how you’re creating a holiday moment together! Please leave a comment below.

Holiday Married Name Change & a Cyber Monday Deal

Are you contemplating holiday married name change? Thanksgiving is over and whammo…it’s Cyber Monday. Married name change can easily get back burnered over the holidays, but as you begin to receive and send holiday cards it may feel like the right time to make the switch. I remember my first Christmas signing cards as “The Tates”…it was a silly little thing that made me feel very happily married and grown up!

If you are considering changing your name, you can painlessly make the transition from Miss to Mrs. with MissNowMrs. Here’s our Cyber Monday Deal: use MRSNOW to save $5 off our easy online name change service or app! You could even surprise your spouse with your name change by keeping it a secret and putting your new driver’s license in an envelope in his/her stocking this Christmas.

Whatever your holiday and name change plans, be sure to savor this time as newlyweds. It’s your first Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa together, so be sure to take time for yourselves during the mad rush.