Tweaking

I’m lucky in that my parents are snowbirds and head south after Christmas. I’ve discovered a great way to get there without spending 18 hours in the car. Allegiant Airline flies out of Lexington and in two hours you have arrived. I’m always one who misses the best bargains, but this no-frills airline has them. The cheapest tickets cost about $65 one-way after taxes are added. Add another $20 for checking a bag if you haven’t mastered the art of packing light.

One sticking point is that it only flies to three Florida locations at present. It goes to St. Pete, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale. My nephew opted for the Orlando location and found a rental car for $20 to take him on the next leg of his journey.

Anyway, those wanting an ocean view in the future, you might want to check out http://www.allegiantair.com/

I’ve heard the expression, “Close enough for government work,” used, but don’t fall for it. When I decided i might like to dip into the federal governement’s pot of money being offered to census workers, I knew a test was required. I must admit I was a little nervous about taking the test because No. 1, my student days are long past, and No. 2, I took a practice test and missed about six of the 28 questions. I was glad I did the trial run, because it did help with the real test, but there were people in the room returning to take it again hoping to improve their scores. The tests have ended in Boyle, but more are being given in Mercer and Lincoln counties. In Boyle, about 160 people tested for the jobs that pay $13.75 an hour.  Look at our online calendar at www.amnews.com for testing in Mercer County. To register, call 1-866-861-2010. If you want to see what the practice test is like, you can go to www.2010censusjobs.gov and take it.

By the way, in Casey, where I live, census workers get paid $1 less on the hour. What’s up with that?

Editor’s note: Jennifer Brummett, mother of a 1 1/2-year-old, offers this advice about wipes.

Not all “wipes” are created equal, nor are all wipes the same. In my world, there are two types: the ones that go on the sprog — usually his bum — and the ones that don’t.
This morning, the ones that don’t go on sprog bum were used to clean up material from sprog bum.
My husband forgot to put a diaper on our 19-month-old before putting on his pants. As a consequence, we found little “gifts” in our kitchen and living room.
I thought it was a hoot, so I didn’t even mind cleanup duty. But I was eternally grateful for my Mr. Clean wipes with Febreeze. They didn’t have the weird, not-really-pleasing scent of most wipes, but the odor wasn’t so strong it made my head hurt.
So there’s my two cents: Mr. Clean wipes with Febreeze, for non-baby wiping up and disinfecting.

After a three-day hiatus my kids went back to school today. The worst part about them having a break is they don’t know what to do with themselves. I told them they must find a good book to read. I suggested they ask their friends for recommendations on what to read.

If we get another snow day Feb. 22, my husband and I may try to take them skiing. Watching the Olympics last night and seeing Lindsey Vonn make her run wore me out, but it also made me want to give it a try.

We went skiing a couple of years ago in late February at Paoli, Ind. This time we may try Perfect North. A check of its Web site shows tickets and skis are $68 for adults. Our son, being younger than 12, can get in for $53 Snow tubing is included with admission. The fact that a free ski lesson is part of admission also is a bonus.

At Paoli, a pass and ski rental is $68 for us and $62 for our son. Ages 6 and under are free. So it’s never too soon to get your young Olympian in training.

I’ve always been curious about whether I could have done better on my taxes. This year, I decided to take the H&R Block office up on its “Second Look” offer, a $29 service. My taxes are pretty cut and dried with W-2s and a mortgage. I used to try to fill out all the paperwork at home, but later when e-filing meant paying a fee anyway, I gave myself a break and went to a tax preparer.
But I always wondered, am I finding all the loopholes?
Well, an interview with Trina Sawyer, a enrolled agent with 25 years of experience, proved that my 2008 tax forms were correct. It still was a valuable exercise, because Sawyer clued me in to changes in tax laws that I hope will work to my advantage.
For instance, I didn’t realize that my property taxes can be added directly to my standard deduction  on the federal without itemizing deductions. Sawyer pointed out this year there is a form to file for this deduction. Last year’s 1040 form only required a check mark to take advantage.
Also, anyone who bought a new car that they are the original owner on can deduct the sales tax on the federal form, just like with the real estate taxes.
I didn’t have any ice storm damage to file a claim with the insurance company, but I’m sure many people did. If they paid an insurance deductible, they claim the deductible on their federal form. Also, if they didn’t have insurance or items the insurance didn’t cover, there may be a deduction.
For people with children in college, the American Opportunity Credit allows you a credit of up to $2,500 to cover college tuition, fees and required course materials. To qualify, the student may not have completed four years of college. There are also income limits, but up to 40 percent this year can be refundable.
I didn’t make a lot of energy efficiency improvements to my house, but those who did can count it on their taxes.  They can count 30 percent of the cost of improvements, such as: windows or doors, air conditioners or furnaces, or other energy-saving improvements, up to a maximum $1,500. There also is an energy efficient credit on the state return this year.
For people drawing unemployment, there may be some surprises. Unemployment money is 100 percent taxable by the state. The first $2,400 is not taxed by the federal government. Federal government also will withhold taxes.
Sawyer points out you don’t want a big return because it means the government had your money all year.
“It’s not always best for a taxpayer to get a large refund because the government had your money all year.”
Sawyer was more than accommodating in her time considering she expects to work with about 3,000 clients between now and April 15. She said Feb. 1 is a peak day and about 100 people will pass through the doors of Danville’s H&R Block two locations, Brent Avenue and Citation Drive

Every afternoon when I pick up my daughter our banter includes, “What’s for dinner?” Today, in opening my emailed daily thought from Real Simple I saw that it had 18 time-saving tips attached. One I liked is to put the kids in the driver’s seat answering the question of “What’s for dinner?”

I think I will try putting each kid in charge of planning a meal one night a week. Of course, I might have to put some stipulations on my son because I can predict that he will take the easy way out and say, “Pizza.” We live too far away from Danville to order carryout, but we eat a lot of frozen pizza. Sometimes, the kind we buy, Red Baron, is on sale for $3.33 each, so that’s not too bad.

The real simple tip says the rules are a different menu every night and only one pasta dish per week. A dish duty signup is part of the plan.

Anyway, I’m going to try this experiment of putting the kids in charge. We’ll see how it goes.

We’ve been printing a lot of honor rolls lately in The Advocate and I’m sure those earners of good grades expect some type of reward. One I just heard about recently is a free scoop of ice cream at Graeter’s. This store has four Lexington locations, Palomar on Harrodsburg Road, Tates Creek Road, Romany Road and Helmsdale Place.
The scoop is offered to students in kindergarten through eighth-grade. It’s a “promotional” scoop, which is smaller, than what you would pay for. Children have a choice of a plain sugar cone or a cup.
Bring in the report card to have it initialed.
Even kids who didn’t make the honor roll are eligible. All you need is one A or an equivalent to an A. Homeschooled students can participate if they show their report card.
When asked many children take advantage of the honor, the clerk I talked to simply, said, “Tons.”

The forecast says get ready for maybe 6 inches of snow. That prompted my husband to stop putting off buying a set of tires. They look really nice. They should. And for $700 you get three free oil changes. He told me about a few other perks, but I guess I couldn’t focus after I heard $700. Wow.

In case you’re postponing buying tires, you might want to act. The tire store clerk told my husband that the price of tires probably will rise three times this year because of an embargo on tires from China. In the long run, the embargo is good for us because it saves jobs at U.S. tire plants.

Hey, I don’t get many comments, but “When did we get so boring?” was the one my girlfriend — my alleged best girlfriend — offered on my post about children’s clothing. I always call her with my doctor questions so maybe a medical post would be more intriguing. My mother, who I share a birthday with, recently had a stroke. She was 41 the day I was born, so now she is 87. A couple of weeks after the stroke, she had another one. She knows some things and not others. For instance, she can’t remember how to flush a commode, but my dad decided they would make their annual journey to Florida. When they arrived at the condo, she immediately noticed that the old shag carpeting had been replaced with berber. I bet my dad didn’t notice that.

Here is the big medical tip pertaining to my mother’s condition. She had to get a primary care physician, so when she went to the office visit, she couldn’t even remember her name. The doctor determined my mom had a serious urinary tract infection, which causes senility in older people. I didn’t know that. They put my mom on antibiotics and she is much better.

I’ve always said if I’m doing as well as she is at 87, I’ll be pretty happy. She’s someone who always looked younger than her age and acted it, too. I know this is the beginning of my mom’s decline and I’m sad about that. But if your elderly relatives ever start acting senile, think about checking for a UTI.

Jennifer Brummett, mother of a 1 1/2-year-old, has some observations about how different brands of baby clothing fit. Here are her thoughts:

I’ll tell ya one of the greatest things ever: Okie Dokie “grow with you” pants. Okie Dokie is a JCPenney house brand, and these pants feature an elastic waist and, like, cuffs at the bottom (only they’re like sweats — they’re tapered in to conform to the ankle) that can be turned up if the baby is shorter, and turned down as he grows. They’re great “romper” pants, and I have several pairs in different colors for Beckett.
Brands that I think tend to be small: Gerber and Child of Mine (a Carter’s branch) and some Carter’s items
Brands that I think tend to be a proper fit  but with little or no room to grow: Ralph Lauren, OshKosh, Old Navy (although Old Navy does make nice, stretchy, two-piece jammies that are great)
Brands that I think have room to grow, have good stretch or might even run a little big: Tommy Hilfiger; Baby Gap; The Children’s Place; Gymboree
In addition, Gap has a “range size” as I call it — in other words, items are 12-18 months or 18-24 months. My big boy can wear 18-24 months stuff — but not straight 18 months stuff. He’s too big.

Gap is my favorite, and the best place to find it is online, at eBay — recycling clothes is always a good thing.

Gymboree DOES make items — pants, specifically — with an adjustable waist, making them more appropriate in the “room to grow” list. I just put a pair of these on Beckett this morning.
Shoes

For indoor shoes, BTW, I’m quite partial to Robeez (found at Kids Alley) and Jack and Lily (a Canadian brand. They make really, really, REALLY cute shoes with soft, suede-feeling soles. I haven’t tried any of the harder-soled Robeez, but I’m looking for a bargain!

For kids walking, Stride Rite makes a number of styles, sizes and colors. I liked SR b/c my son has EXTRA-wide feet, and Stride Rite makes extra-wide shoes.