What is Taxes and Stuff?

Taxes and Stuff is a place where you can find down-to-earth commentary on complex subjects like taxes and new federal legislation, fun stuff like playdate ideas for toddlers, and practical stuff like easy/inexpensive dinner menu ideas.

Who is Taxes and Stuff?

I created Taxes and Stuff because I like sharing with others lessons I’ve picked up over the years through professional and personal experience (oftentimes the hard way). For years, I was the Personal Budgeting & Finance Feature Writer for Suite101.com, but I wanted something to call my own; hence, Taxes and Stuff was born in early 2011.  

I hope Taxes and Stuff will eventually become a one-stop-shop for all things personal finance, from tax planning to debt management.  As the site’s name suggests, any topic is fair game.  I’ll partly use it as a way to chronicle my own efforts at saving money, from the beginning to present day and all along the way.

I’m a stay at home mom who works at night and during nap times.  When my kids are awake, you can find us out and about at playdates, driving to and from preschool, and spending too much money at Target.  Despite working only when my kids sleep, I manage to contribute a good amount to our annual household budget and constantly get questions from friends and former co-workers about how I am able to do that.  I expect this will be a common topic on the blog as well.  I love telling others about different ways to make money from home.  I’m hoping that if I chronicle my advice on here, perhaps I won’t have to repeat myself quite so often!  ;)  

More than anything, Taxes and Stuff is about empowering the average American to make informed decisions.

I’ll try to keep the blog interesting, but I must warn you that some of it will be boring tax talk.  For instance, when a new tax law is passed, I will translate it into real people words so you can know exactly what changes to expect in the coming months and years.  There’s not a lot of this type of translation available online, and I want to change that.  I like to back up my analysis with thorough research & even links to the original source documents (in case you want to review the actual legislation yourself).  I don’t anyone to take my word for anything – I want everyone to have a chance to review the original documentation and join in on a meaningful conversation.

Very Important: While I am a tax accountant, but I am not YOUR tax accountant.  In fact, please read my disclaimer to this effect.  :)  

~ Lena