Meal Deductions For Infants

[Sunchimes]

This was the post further on down titled "transitioning from jar to solids". I realized it wasn't clear that was a tax question, but I couldn't get the title to change, so let me try again. I'll try to delete that one.

I'm not on a food program, and I didn't know until a couple of months ago about the meal deductions. (Yea!)

I have a couple of questions. While my kids were on jar food, mom brought most of it, but I bought a fair amount. Sometimes, we ran short or she forgot. I always liked to have extra food on hand. I bought toddler snacks and teething biscuits and juice. The transition from jar to solid was gradual, and I can't really pinpoint one day that we stopped jar food. Can I use my grocery receipt that shows me buying something that I know I fed the baby, and start claiming meals from that day?

Also, during the time that I bought some jar food and crackers and juice, can I claim them as supplies or something, even though they don't really qualify as meals yet? I spent a lot of money on the extra stuff and hate to not find a place to deduct it.

Thanks

[TomCopeland]

Infant food

If you served infants any food at all (that you bought) as part of a meal or snack, you can count this meal as a business expense using the standard meal allowance rule. One cracker or a little juice that you bought and served counts as a meal or snack, even though the parent may have brought some jar food. If you are not sure if you always served some food that you bought, don't count every meal or snack.

[Sunchimes]

Ok, that makes sense. Thank you Tom. I got the Tax Companion yesterday. I'm going to give it and the Record Keeping Guide (the green cover one) to my tax lady and insist that she go by them instead of just the tax program she usually uses for us. I appreciate all you do for us.