Mother's Day is May 11. If you're wracking your brain for ways to show your mom appreciation for all the sacrifices she made while raising you, here's a thought: Why not offer to spend some time helping to sort through her financial, legal and medical paperwork to make sure everything is in order?

While flowers and candy offer immediate gratification, I'll bet your mom will truly appreciate the long-term value of getting her records in order now so that she – and you – will be able to take appropriate actions later on, should the need arise.

Some of the areas you might want to organize include:

Retirement income sources. Gather these documents so your mom will have a better idea how much income she'll have available throughout retirement:

•Register your mom at the mySocialSecurity website to gain access to personalized estimates of retirement, disability and survivors benefits, lifetime earnings records and estimated Social Security and Medicare taxes paid.

•You'll also need your dad's statement to determine any potential spousal or survivor benefits for which she might be eligible, so sign him up as well.

•Annual statements for pension, IRA, 401(k) or other retirement savings plans for which she's eligible. (Check your dad's statements too in case she's eligible for spousal death benefits.)

•Bank statements for checking, savings, money market and CD accounts.

•Company stock and bond certificates, and statements for other investment accounts.

Outstanding debts. Also gather monthly statements and outstanding balances owed for major expenses including: home mortgage or other property loans, home equity loan or line of credit, car loan or lease, credit cards, medical bills and personal loans.

Other important documents. Your mom should have documents instructing how she'd like her affairs to be handled, both while she's living and after death. Look for:

•Medical, homeowner/renter, auto, life, disability and long-term care insurance policies.

•A will (and possibly a trust) outlining how she wants her estate managed after death.

•Durable power of attorney and health care proxy specifying who will make her financial and medical decisions if she becomes incapacitated.

•Also, a living will tells doctors which medical treatments and life-support procedures she does or doesn't want performed.

•Birth certificate, marriage license, Social Security card, funeral plans, safe deposit box information, etc.

•Contact information for professional service providers (doctors, pharmacy, lawyer, financial advisor, bank, insurance companies, etc.) Also give these providers your own contact information in case of emergencies.

Review these documents regularly and make updates whenever her situation changes. For example, make sure that designated beneficiaries for your mom's will, life insurance and retirement plans accurately reflect her current wishes.

If you need help guiding financial discussions, Social Security has created a special website for women that provides information on retirement, disability and other issues – in English and Spanish. They also have a retirement estimator where you can enter her earnings information from their records to estimate her projected Social Security benefits under different scenarios (age at retirement, future earnings projections, etc.)

Another good resource is the Women's Saving Initiative, a program jointly developed by Heinz Family Philanthropies, the Women's Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER) and Visa Inc. This program features a free book called "What Women Need to Know About Retirement," which you can download as a PDF or audio file from the Practical Money Skills resources page.

If you need professional help, consult a licensed financial planner who can design a personalized retirement strategy. If you don't know one, try the Financial Planning Association.

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Jason Alderman directs Visa's financial education programs. Follow him on Twitter or visit  the Practical Money Skills for Life website.

 www.twitter.com/PracticalMoney

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Help your mom get organized for Mother's Day

CRESTVIEW — Baker, Crestview, Niceville and Shalimar residents are celebrating medals they won during the recent Area A 4-H Horse Show in the Jackson County Agricultural Center in Marianna.

Honors are as follows:

•Emily Stuckey of Baker, first place in senior training level dressage.

•Klarissa Williamson of Crestview, junior saddleseat overall champion.

•Kelvin Williamson of Crestview, senior western showmanship champion.

•Keenan Williamson of Crestview, first place in junior saddleseat showmanship.

•Two Okaloosa County team members tied for first place in senior english overall highpoint.

The team also brought home these awards:

•First-place awards: senior hunter under saddle, senior hunt seat equitation, handy hunter, first-level dressage, junior hunter showmanship, saddleseat type gelding, saddleseat equitation and saddleseat road hack.

•Second-place awards: senior hunter showmanship, working hunter, junior hunter under saddles, junior hunt seat equitation, junior equitation over fences, senior ranch riding, ranch ground handling, hunt seat equitation, pony hunter under saddle, junior saddleseat showmanship and junior training level dressage.

•Third-place award: junior hunter hack.

The show, which included participants from Escambia to Leon counties, took place April 12 and 13.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa County 4-H members celebrate horse show medals

Last year the IRS doled out over 110 million income tax refunds averaging $2,803. Another way to look at it is that collectively, Americans overpaid their taxes by nearly $310 billion in 2012.

Part of that is understandable: If you don't have enough tax withheld throughout the year through payroll deductions or quarterly estimated tax payments, you'll be hit with an underpayment penalty come April 15. But the flip side is that by over-withholding, you're essentially giving the government an interest-free loan throughout the year.

If you ordinarily receive large tax refunds, consider withholding less and instead putting the money to work for you, by either saving or investing a comparable amount throughout the year, or using it to pay down debt. Your goal should be to receive little or no refund.

Ask your employer for a new W-4 form and recalculate your withholding allowance using the IRS' Withholding Calculator on the IRS website. This is also a good idea whenever your pay or family situation changes significantly (e.g., pay increase, marriage, divorce, new child, etc.) IRS Publication 919 can guide you through the decision-making process.

Meanwhile, if you do get a hefty refund this year, before blowing it all on something you really don't need, consider these options:

Pay down debt. Beefing up credit card and loan payments can significantly lower your long-term interest payments. Suppose you currently pay $120 a month toward a $3,000 credit card balance at 18 percent interest. At that pace it'll take 32 months and $788 in interest to pay it off, assuming no new purchases. By doubling your payment to $240 you'll shave off 18 months and $441 in interest.

Note: If you carry balances on multiple cards, always make at least the minimum payments to avoid penalties.

The same strategy will work when paying down loans (mortgage, auto, personal, etc.) Ask the lender to apply your extra payment to the loan principal amount, which will shorten the payoff time and reduce the amount of overall interest paid. Just make sure to ask whether there's a prepayment penalty before trying this strategy.

Boost your emergency fund. As protection against a job loss, medical emergency or other financial crisis, try to set aside enough cash to cover six to nine months of living expenses. Seed the account with part of your refund and then set up monthly automatic deductions from your paycheck or checking account going forward.

Increase retirement savings. If your debt and emergency savings are under control, add to your IRA or 401(k) accounts, especially if your employer matches contributions; remember, a 50 percent match corresponds to a 50 percent rate of return – something you're not likely to find anywhere else.

Finance education. Enroll in college courses or vocational training to gain additional skills in case you lose your job or want to change careers. And ask whether your employer will help pay for job-related education.

You can also set money aside for your children's or grandchildren's education by contributing to a 529 Qualified State Tuition Plan. As an incentive, the government allows your contributions to grow tax-free until they're withdrawn.

And finally, to check on the status of your refund, go to the IRS's Where's My Refund site. You can usually get information about your refund 24 hours after the IRS acknowledges receipt of your e-filed return or about four weeks after filing a paper return.

Jason Alderman directs Visa's financial education programs. For details on Practical Money Skills, go to www.practicalmoneyskills.com.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: PRACTICAL MONEY SKILLS: Spend your tax refund wisely

DeFUNIAK SPRINGS — The romance and adventure of the musical stage adaptation of Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" bursts onto the Florida Chautauqua Theatre stage May 9-11.

The wicked Maleficent, one of the film and literary world's most legendary witches, casts an evil spell over Princess Aurora when not invited to her christening.

Fairy godmothers soften the curse, but of course, only true love will awaken this Sleeping Beauty.

Fortunately, there's always a handsome prince at hand just when you need one.

Like the classic film, the stage musical incorporates music from Tchaikovsky's 1890 "Sleeping Beauty" ballet, including the beloved "Once Upon a Dream." New numbers for the stage musical include the "Goon Conga" and "Let's Have Some Magic Now."

The Florida Chautauqua production features 28 young actors, clad in colorful costumes for which the youth theatre is renowned, and performed in historic downtown DeFuniak Springs' former movie house.

WANT TO GO?

WHAT: Florida Chautauqua Theatre's production of "Disney's Sleeping Beauty"

WHEN: 7 p.m. May 9 and 10; 2:30 p.m. May 11

WHERE: Florida Chautauqua Theatre, 840 Baldwin Ave., DeFuniak Springs

TICKETS: $15 adult, $10 students 22 and under, available by phone, 850-892-9494, online www.fcweb.org, or at the box office.

Email News Bulletin Staff Arts and Entertainment Editor Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'Sleeping Beauty' awakens at Florida Chautaqua Theatre May 9-11

Northwest Florida State College's Professional and Continuing Education department offers summer fitness courses on the Niceville campus, in room T 314, as follows:

•ZUMBA GOLD: Mondays, 5:30-6:30 p.m. May 19 through June 30 and July 7 through Aug. 4. Wednesday classes are 5:30-6:40 p.m. May 21 through June 25 and July 2-30. Cost per class is $20.

•POWER YOGA: Classes are Mondays and Wednesdays, 7:30-8:30 a.m. May 19 through June 25 and June 30 through Aug. 4. Cost per class is $20.

•YOGA: Tuesday classes are 5:30-6:30 p.m., May 20 through June 24, and 5:30 p.m.-6:40 p.m. July 1-29. Cost per class is $20.

•PILATES: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 a.m., May 15 through June 24; and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7:30 a.m.-8:30 a.m., June 26 through July 31. Cost per class is $40.

•YOGA: Thursdays, 5:30-6:30 p.m. May 15 through June 19, and June 26 through July 31. Cost per class is $20.

Contact Amanda Barker, 729-6085 or barkera@nwfsc.edu, for details. 

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Fitness classes at NWF State College begin in May

CRESTVIEW — Show tunes fans, rejoice!

Schola Cantorum's May 5 spring concert is heavy on favorites from the Great White Way in addition to several more traditional selections.

The Northwest Florida State College-based community choir's Crestview performance opens with Louis Vierne's "Kyrie Eleison" before selections by Schubert, Mozart and John David's lyrical "You Are the New Day."

Director John Leatherwood then turns to musical theatre with Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's classic "Some Enchanted Evening" from "South Pacific."

Numbers from Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Phantom of the Opera," "Jekyll and Hyde," "Man of La Mancha," "Les Misérables," and "Guys and Dolls" follow.

The concert closes with the Academy Award-winning "When You Believe" from "The Prince of Egypt."

Admission is free, though donations are accepted to help support the choir.

WANT TO GO?

WHAT:"When You Believe," Schola Cantorum's spring concert

WHEN: 7 p.m. May 5

WHERE: First Presbyterian Church of Crestview, Courthouse Terrace at State Road 85

COST: Free but donations accepted

Email News Bulletin Staff Arts and Entertainment Editor Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Schola Cantorum sings Broadway and more tonight