I think I’m ready to file my taxes for 2008 (using turbotax.com), but I’ve learned a couple things.

1. In order to be able to use mortgage interest as a tax-deduction, the amount of interest you pay must be more than the standard deduction, which is $5715. And now, I’m not particularly complaining about this, but my monthly interest is about $500, and right now it is the highest it will ever be. So I take that to mean, I *might* be able to take an itemized deduction for the 2009 tax year, but after that my total interest paid isn’t going to be over $6000 anyway. (Although now that I look at it, would the mortgage interest paid also be added to the standard sales tax deduction ($1000 this year) paid and the real estate taxes ($1300) each year? That would more easily become greater than $5715).

2. California owes me about $450, but they apparently do not know when they will actually reimburse tax returns that are filed. It also costs $34.95 to file California online with Turbotax, so I’m thinking of doing that one manually since who the heck knows when I’ll get the money back anyway.

3. I qualify for this first-time homebuyers tax credit of $7,500. It’s not really just free money… it is a zero interest loan for the next 17 years. Starting in tax year 2010, I’ll start paying it back in $500 increments each time I file my taxes. The caveat is that if I SELL the house before 2025, I have to repay the loan at the time of sale (or when I file for that tax year). HOWEVER, if when I sell, I do not make a profit on the house, then I do not have to repay. So it seems to me, if I take this credit and just put it toward the principle on the house, I will SAVE my 6% interest on that 7500 for the next 15 years, or for as long as I own the house, and I will walk away with more after a sale because I have paid more on the mortgage, regardless of if the value goes up or down.

4. Another option would be to put that money back into the house to do some upgrades that it needs (the electrical system, a dishwasher, grass for the backyard, etc). I guess my biggest dilemma is if I should save the money until I need it, or put it toward the mortgage and then borrow additional money (at possibly lower interest rate than the mortgage?) when it’s time to do repairs.

Hmm… what would Dave Ramsey do?

Oh, and by the way.. looks how nice the backyard/side yard look when they are a little bit cleaned up ? I can’t wait to see how it all looks when the leaves are green again.

p.s. These pictures are a few weeks old… I’m SLOWLY working at getting those piles of leaves taken care of… gotta bag them up and get them in the dumpster, but the trash guy only comes once a week.

First things first… the last few days have been epic failures in my “eat less, move more” campaign. 1) it’s been FREEZING and rainy, so who wants to walk to that meeting clear across campus? 2) I have been hanging out with people a lot lately, which is a pro, but not being careful about what I eat, which is a con. No matter, next week is a new day. Well, actually, tomorrow is a new day!

Another reason I’ve been eating so much is because Monday night I tried another bread recipe (inspired by Mel), this time a braided egg bread traditionally called Challah. As I was making it, I was remembering having dinner with some friends in California and they thought they had ordered a special Challah bread for the evening, but the bakery forgot their order. Oh dear. In retrospect, I wish I had known how easy it was to make something like this at the time. I could have baked some and brought it over to save the day!

First out of the oven, this bread was kindof so-so, but that might be because I didn’t really have any idea what to expect. It’s not really a butter it up right out of the oven sort of bread I’ve learned. However, I have been slicing a piece or two each day before and after work, spreading with a thin layer of butter, grilling in a frying pan, and then spreading some honey on top after it’s nice and browned. Oh dear, it is YUMMY. These three things… white bread, butter and honey… not the main ingredients of most diets I know.

So, anyway, here is the recipe (again from allrecipes.com).

Holla for some Challah

1/3 cup white sugar (more if you want sweeter bread)
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/4 cups warm water
2 (4.5 tsps) packages active dry yeast
3 eggs
6 cups bread flour
1 egg white
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1. Place sugar, salt, and oil in a large bowl. Add hot water, and stir to dissolve the sugar and salt. Stir in yeast, and let stand until mixture gets foamy. (It didn’t really get that bubbly for me, but I could smell the yeast working and see the foam).

2. Add the 3 eggs, slightly beaten.

3. Add 4 1/2 cups of flour to the yeast mixture. Mix with a wooden spoon or whatever until flour is mixed in, and dough gets stringy. This stringiness indicates that the gluten has developed.

4. Turn soft dough onto lightly floured surface, and work in 1 to 2 more cups of flour. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.

5. Place dough into a greased bowl, and turn several times to coat the surface. Cover bowl with a damp cloth. Let dough rise until doubled in bulk. Punch down after first rising, and allow to rise a second time. The first rising is about 1 hour, the second about 45 minutes.

6. (This is the fun part) After the 2nd rising, divide dough in half, and divide each half into three equal parts. Make two braids, and place both breads on a greased baking sheet. Cover, and allow to rise until doubled. Brush with beaten egg. Sprinkle with poppy seeds.

7. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 minutes until golden brown. Allow loaves to cool on a wire rack.

I love the color it gets while baking. So beautiful! Next I want to try Cinnamon Raisin Bread, and then Rye Bread or maybe Pumpernickel. Any recipe suggestions?

I’m going to go make myself some dinner… tilapia and quinoa, I think. A bit healthier, anyway.

25. I once asked the United States Director of Homeland Security where the gas tank on my car was.

p.s. I’m at a girl’s night at Caryn’s… the world outside is covered with ice. I’m praying for a late start tomorrow at work.