Week in Review: March 13 – March 19, 2011 (Military News) #MilitaryMon

Popular Military Family Articles for the week of March 13th – 19th on

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Willard: Assisting Japan is ‘Highest Priority’: U.S. forces in Japan are engaged in one of the biggest natural and manmade disasters of a lifetime, Navy Adm. Robert F. Willard said here tonight. Willard, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, spoke over the phone from Hawaii to the Pentagon press corps about what the U.S. military is doing to help the Japanese Self-Defense Force respond to the disaster caused by the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and subsequent nuclear emergency. …

Emergency Preparedness: Disasters like Japan’s recent earthquake and then tsunamis are hard to shake. You may not be in an area that has to worry about tsunamis (my closest body of water, Lake Erie, is certainly not a threat) but there are other emergencies that may send you into a flight-pattern. Just in this past two weeks my own home has been threatened by flood (emergency phone call from the school saying they might not be able to get the kids bussed home) and fire (neighbors house)! …

U.S. Forces Provide Relief Aid to Japan: U.S. military forces are working alongside their Japanese counterparts to provide aid as the country digs out in the aftermath of the massive 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that struck March 11. “Because of the longstanding and close working relationship between the U.S. military and its Japanese counterparts on a daily basis, the United States military has humanitarian assistance capabilities positioned in the affected regions that are ready to support emergency relief efforts …

BratConnect, the power to connect!: I am a 100%, through and through, Brat. My dad joined the Air Force right out of college around 1971 and retired 30 years later, in 2002. I was born at Nellis AFB, Nevada where the Lt and Mrs (aka Dad and Mom) brought their brand-new baby home to Indian Springs, Nevada (which is now Creech AFB, NV). I started Kindergarten at Howard AFB, Panama … made a “few” more moves (six more to be precise) before finally graduating high school at Keflavik NAS, Iceland. …

Japan-based Troops, Families Use Social Media Sites: Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Joy Josephson was in her office on Misawa Air Base, Japan, on March 11 reviewing paperwork with a maintenance technician when the computers started shaking. Josephson, the detachment superintendent for American Forces Network Misawa, figured it was a mild tremor, not uncommon to that area in Japan, but then the shaking “got violent.” “We get earthquakes up here and tremors, … but this one wasn’t stopping,” she said. …

Family Matters Blog: Childhood Obesity Hits Home for Blogger: My 7-year-old son came home from school the other day and told me another boy had called him fat — several times. My heart sank as I struggled for the right words to comfort my son, and promised to call the teacher on his behalf. While I was upset with the boy who called my son a name, I was even more upset with myself. My son is overweight, obese by the doctor’s standards, (see the blog I wrote last year) and I don’t think I’ve been doing enough to help. …

Hello, I’m an Information Junkie: I admit it. I love information. I love reading about what is going on around me. I love being in the know. I am discerning though… and there are a few GREAT resources for staying in the know that I thought I would share with you: MilitaryAvenue Newletter, Military OneSource Newsletters, Better Business Bureau Newsletters, Military Saves Newsletters If you like being in the know like me we have two great ways to sign up for MilitaryAvenue’s monthly-military family newsletter …

Eight years old, going on 16: I admit it. Saving money makes me feel good. We do a pretty good job of it around the house. Although, sometimes it takes a bit of creativity and willingness to learn. But I’m always up for a challenge. One of the big ways we have saved over the years is investing in hair clippers. Once a month the ‘Kocsis Household Barbershop’ opens and everyone gets ready to be sheered cut and styled. Some ‘customers’ are easier then others. My husband is hair-follicle challenged (Yes, he is bald.) so he is easy. …

Stretch Your Food Budget: The Military Saves campaign encourages service members and their families to develop financial fitness habits that lead to personal financial stability, and ultimately, to mission readiness. To help attain those goals, there’s hardly a better habit to embrace than choosing the commissary for all your grocery and household needs. After all, “Extending the paychecks of military members with savings of 30-percent or more is the reason the commissary benefit exists,” said DeCA Director …

6 Ways to Get an Extra Tax Cut: Do you like keeping the money you earn? Read this checklist to make sure you’re doing everything you can year-round to not pay more taxes than you should. Some 10% of taxpayers file late, according to Cohesive, a tax-preparation/planning firm in Cypress, Calif. But they might as well be taking money out of their bank account and dumping it onto the street. …

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byUnknownonMonday, March 21, 2011Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to PinterestMilitary Life:diet,Disaster Response,Household Budget,Japan,Popular Articles,Taxes,USAA