Tax Tip: Add Up Your Charitable Donations

April 1 -- When you sit down with your tax records, it ought to be easy to tote up your big charitable contributions — what you gave to your church or synagogue.

But don't forget to check your pay stub for how much you gave to the United Way or other charities via payroll deduction.

And don't throw away tax savings by overlooking the little things, like out-of-pocket expenses paid while doing good work, such as volunteering at a school or helping with a charitable fund-raiser.

Deductions include things like parking fees, tolls, stamps, long-distance phone calls and 14 cents a mile if you drove your own car. Did you prepare food for a church-sponsored homeless shelter? The cost of the ingredients count as a deductible expense if you itemize.

All this might sound like nickels and dimes, but it can really add up. And don't feel chintzy about it either; the more you save in taxes, the more generous you can be this year.

One other tip: if you and your husband or wife use different checkbooks, make sure you go through both registers to uncover all contributions you made.