Monday Links-A-Lot

The Festival of Frugality was hosted at Frugal For Life this week. It included my article Stamp Prices Are Going Up, Even if You Don’t Care.

More terrific articles to read:

• I enjoyed The Ethics And Economics Of Used Baby Clothes by Kelly at My $mall C€nts. I have also sold at garage sales, but you get much less there than on consignment or on Ebay. I’m very excited that I just finally found a kids’ consignment store near me. Yay!!! If items were handed down to us I offer them back to the person who gave them, but if they decline I feel no remorse for selling them. I give away many of Son’s clothes, too.
• Cash Money Life’s Save Money with Refurbished Electronics is very informative. Now I ‘ll actually consider buying a refurbished product!

The Carnival of Money Stories was hosted at Free From Broke this week. My article My Economic Stimulus Check Didn’t Arrive When Promised!, my most popular article ever, was included. Apparently lots of people didn’t get their checks!

Great posts include:

• Fire Finance’s $6000! Save Your Hard Earned Money! . The little things really add up!
• PaidTwice’s post Healthcare Feel Like Throwing Money Down A Drain? Good, Sometimes. I feel for ya. I have one of those coming up, too. Do we know how to have fun or what?

The Money Hacks Carnival was hosted at Save and Conquer and included my article Bank Fee Phobia. I’ll try not to be insulted that he thought it only “somewhat humorous”.

I also liked:

• Single Guy Money talks about Reasons to Join A Credit Union. I was in one in college and joined one after I bought my last car to get a really good extended warranty for a really good price. They’re not nearly as hard to get into anymore, either. The one I joined has a branch in my local WalMart!
• Dough Roller wrote a great roundup of Tax Rebate Deals–Supersize Your Economic Stimulus Payment. I’m not going to be using any of them, but I keep checking back to see if Costco or Publix appears on the list!

I’d also like to thank Quest for Four Pillars for including a link to my post I am a Stay at Home Mom. Here’s How I Finagled My Finances to Make It Happen. in their post Everyman’s Guide to Decreasing Expenses.

I’d also like to thank Donna at MSN MoneyBlog for including Stamp Prices Are Going Up, Even if You Don’t Care in her post Snail-mail bargain: Time to buy forever stamps.

Another great week. Thanks to all the hosts for their hard work, and to all the bloggers for great material!

Monday Linklet - I’m Feeling the Love!

The Festival of Frugality was hosted over at Sound Money Matters this week. I’m honored that they chose my post Bigger Packages Are Not Always A Better Value as an Editor’s pick. Thanks!

Other clickworthy articles:

• Buxr wrote Understanding “refurbished” — practical shopping tips. I’ve always been wary of buying refurbished items, but these tips make me think I may can get a good, safe buy.
• Funny About Money’s article My Most Cost-Effective Renovation Projects shares her great reasons for the choices she made.

Lazyman and Money hosted the Carnival of Personal Finance this week and read all 114 entries. I can forgive him not putting my actual blog name or the actual title of the post, as he did include Why I Don’t Let My Mortgage Company Pay My Insurance and Taxes.

I admit I didn’t read all of the included articles, but these two caught my eye:

• I loved, loved, loved How to benefit even more from your Flexible Savings Account. Melissa at Finessing My Financials thought of something I didn’t. I’m not sure I can do it since my FSA is automatic debit, but I’m going to find out!
• Chica at One Snarky Chica with Issues lives up to her blog title and writes an almost painful to read article called Watching Others Be Financially Retarded. We all know people we’d like to shake, don’t we?

The Carnival of Money Stories included my post Husband Had a Date With Another Woman, And I’m Worried.

The stories this week were great!

• I nodded along with Becky at Family and Finances when I read her article How NOT to Handle an Inheritance. She wants to shake people, too.

• Happy Rock wrote Breakdown - Is Triple A(AAA) Worth The Money?, and for me the answer is a resounding yes! First, my Dad still pays for this and I’m not even embarrassed. Family plans are cheaper, and he likes knowing we’re safe. Who am I to argue? Second, I’d buy it anyway because of the other discounts I get (did you know about the 10% off at Payless Shoes?). Most importantly, if I break down on the side of the road I like the peace of mind of not having to figure out whom to call.

The Carnival of Family Life was hosted at Diary of 1 this week, and included my post Love Uncluttered.

• I was chastened reading Debbie at Destroy Debt’s article Paying Attention to the “Fill Line” Will Save You Money. I do not pay attention to the fill line. I don’t even use the cap - I just depress the pump until I think I’ve poured enough. How embarrassing.
• I got a laugh out of Tipper’s article Lightning Strikes & Granny at Blind Pig and the Acorn.

There were lots and lots of non-carnival mentions this week, which are super-flattering:

• Thanks to Emily at Remodeling This Life for including my post Free Yourself in her Weekend Roundup - The Happiness Edition.
• More special thanks to PaidTwice for including Am I Getting Smaller or is the Furniture Getting Bigger? in her Carnival Fun From Around the Web.
• Even more to Mrs. Micah for including How I Use My Bank Accounts to Manage My Bills and Save, Save, Save in her 6 Word Autobiography Roundup.
• Many thanks to Funny About Money who mentioned Why I Don’t Let My Mortgage Company Pay My Insurance and Taxes in her Moments of Fame roundup.
• My Daily Round, a blog I’d not visited before, mentioned I am a Stay at Home Mom. Here’s How I Finagled My Finances to Make it Happen in her post Living A Decent Lifestyle.
• Frugal Babe, another new-to-me blog, also mentioned that same article in her post Carnivals and Festivals.
• Alison at This Wasn’t In The Plan included Wish I Had Some Pretend Money in her Link Love post. Thanks, Alison!
• Another great Personal Finance blog, Can I Get Rich on a Salary, mentioned My Husband Had a Date With Another Woman in their Blogorama—Weekly Carnival Round-Up.
• A post I wrote that didn’t get nearly much attention as I thought it would, Is Your Decision Not to Vaccinate Your Child More Important Than the Population’s Health at Large?, was mentioned at Wife, Mommy, Writer, Etc. in her post Dodging the Shots. I’m glad you liked it!
• I was inspired to write Why Life Insurance for Kids Isn’t Always a Bad Idea as a counterpoint to a post Mom wrote at Wide Open Wallet. She was kind enough to link back to it. Thanks, Mom!

Whew! That’s a lot of link love! Thanks so much!

Monday Evening Linklet

The carnivals were packed with great articles this week. Thanks to all the hosts for doing the work. I can’t imagine the time it takes.

Here we go…

The Festival of Frugality hosted at On Financial Success included my article I am a Stay at Home Mom. Here’s How I Finagled My Finances to Make It Happen. I really hope that other men and women who want to stay at home can find a way to do so.

Also check out:

• Mrs. Nespy’s World’s post 10 Things You Should Never Buy Used (and Three You Should Never Sell). I would never buy any of the things on her list used. Those of you who read me regularly will probably guess that I will sell them. Yes indeed, I will. Everyone’s grossness factor is different, and who am I to judge?
• Pennies to Nickels wrote a terrific article about Shopping The Ethnic Aisles. What’s funny is I had the exact same suspicion when I was in Wal-Mart last week, but didn’t have time (or, honestly, the inclination) to do the research PTN did.

I just love the Carnival of Money Stories. I love reading everyone’s personal stories. It was hosted at Can I Get Rich on a Salary and included my article Am I Getting Smaller or Is Furniture Getting Bigger?

Some other great stories this week:

• Single Guy Money depresses me a bit with his post Handling My Finances in a Slow Economy,but he’s making some smart choices. Saving money doesn’t have to mean not socializing, and I think he and his friends have come up with a great frugal solution.
• How I Saved Over 3,000$ In One Hour is an article I obviously HAD to read. The Personal Financier really knows how to title an article! Refinancing is certainly worth looking into, especially since this stupid sub-prime fiasco and the ensuing housing market debacle has screwed up our plans royally. Nah, I’m not bitter.

The Carnival of Personal Finance was hosted at The Happy Rock this week, and included my article How I Use My Bank Accounts to Manage My Bills and Save, Save, Save. That’s two weeks in a row I remembered to submit. I’m on a roll!

As usual there’s tons of great information there. I particularly liked:

• Squawkfox did a great article about Ten things you should never carry in a purse or wallet. I knew most of them, but there were a few I hadn’t thought about.
• Smart Easy Money describes in her article How I Save Money (aka Why I Have Seven Savings Accounts) how she uses her bank accounts very much like I do. She counts her IRAs, though, which I didn’t. But suffice to say that adds about 6 more accounts. I don’t even want to add them all up. Yikes!

Too much money talk makes my head spin. Things lightened up for me when I wrote How Men Hang Curtains, and I’m happy it was included in the Carnival of Family Life April 21st 2008 Edition hosted at Vanilla Joy.

Other readworthy articles:

• Amy Vernon, a contributing author at Ice Cream Is Not For Breakfast, wrote a disturbing post called How the Cost of Food Can Make Children Less Healthy. How sad that so many unhealthy foods are so much less expensive that healthier choices.
• I really liked the last tip in 6 Ways to Be a Friend Without Involving Money, Gifts or Obligation, posted at Slow Down Fast. I like random acts of just about anything, and fun will surely do.

That’s it until next week.  And I won’t spoil the suspense about whether or not I remembered to post to this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance .  Tune in next week, (or read the carnival, as it’s already up) to find out!

The I’m So Behind Monday Linklet on Tuesday

Last week I entered several carnivals with just one post. I thought the subject matter so important I wanted to get the word out to as many people as possible.

That’s why you’ll see my post Important Safety Alert: Rethink Plastic! if you visit any one of the following carnivals:

The Carnival of Tips hosted at Tip Diva

Anything Goes & General News Carnival hosted at Anything Goes & General News

Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog Carnival hosted at FitBuff.com

The Carnival of Family Life hosted at On the Horizon

Mom’s Blogging Carnival hosted at Australian Women Online

Women’s Festival hosted at Pajama Mommy

I also entered a couple of other articles in these carnivals:

The Carnival of Money Stories hosted at The Baglady included my article Self Storage Part 2 - When Paying to Store Your Stuff Is a Bad Idea.

The Festival of Frugality hosted at Rather-Be-Shopping.com included my article Self Storage Part 1 - When Paying to Store Your Stuff Is a Good Idea.

Sorry, no links to other articles today, even though there are many that are really good reads. I’ve been spending some serious family time the past two weeks, and am surprised I’ve managed to post every day at all!

So please visit all of the carnivals. Next week will be back to normal, I promise!

Monday Evening Linklets Deux

Another slow week for the carnivals for me. I’ve just been too busy to submit. Ah, well…

I finally remembered to submit to the Carnival of Personal Finance last week. MoneyNing included my post Two Steps Forward, One Step Back, so thanks!

Other readworthy articles:

• Starving Artist from Indebted 2 You presents Phone Calls Saved Me $185. So many people pay unnecessarily. I love hearing these types of stories. We can all learn from what Starving Artist did wrong and from what Starving Artist did right.
• Chief Family Officer’s Creative strategies for coping with rising costs - Part Four: Unusual Ideas For Saving Money Without Reducing Your Standard Of Living. To me the most valuable part of this article is that it tells us to think outside the box of what we normally do.

I also participated in the Carnival of Money Stories. The Financial Blogger’s Dad included my article Red Flags and FedEx and Are You Sure That Check’s Not Going to Bounce? in a really fun take on carnivals.

Check out:

• The situation PaidTwice described in A Tale of Two Doctors really irked me. I’m glad she’s following up with her insurer to get her money back.
• I had to laugh at Going bald is a blessing in disguise by Pinchingcopper. We’ve saved a fortune in haircuts since Husband stopped trying to pretend he had more hair. His new, close cropped do is sexy, and since we use our own clippers they’re quite the frugal coup!

That’s it for this week. Next week I entered one article in a bunch of Carnivals because I was really trying to get the word out on plastic. That should be a fun linklet.

Monday Evening Linklet

I only entered three carnivals last week.  I got distracted by all the news, I guess.

Still, I did manage to get included in the Carnival of Family Finance with my article Today My Son Broke a Cherished Glass Container. Hallelujah!. Thanks to Pickel at My Two Boys for including it!

Other articles:

• Jennifer in OR had a big scare and wrote The Poison Post at Diary of 1.  She posts tips on there prevention and what to do if you find yourself in this scary situation.
• All Rileyed Up wrote about  the kind of friend many of us have in  her post Lost in Translation.  I want  to party with HER!

The Carnival of Everything Finance, appropriately enough at Everything Finance, included my article Change Some Habits, Save Some Gas. And Some Money.

Some clickworthy articles:

• I loved 90 Low Cost or No Cost Activities to Entertain Your Kids All Summer Long posted over at Destroy Debt.  There are some great ideas!  I have to admit to being totally intimidated by  the Simulate Stocks activity.  Son and I are both novices at the stock market. I better learn about it before Son is old enough to actually do it, as I think this is a terrific way to teach kids about finance and have fun at the same time.
• nickel at fivecentnickel.com wrote a good post on Uncommon Charitable Tax Deductions.  The Accountant’s Daughter is impressed.

The Carnival of Money Stories was hosted by Chief Family Officer on April Fool’s Day.  My rant Shrinking Package Sizes Screw up My Recipes was included, as were fun April Fool’s Day facts.

Check out:

• Ben at The DebtFree Playbook Blog shows that patriotism, honor and duty aren’t the only reasons to go to Iraq in An Interesting Way Out of Debt.  I’m glad our government gives those soldiers  tax-free income.
• WBL’s 10 Tips On How To Negotiate posted at Wealth Building Lessons reminded me of my ex.  We’d go to the local swap shop and he’d see an item he liked and inquire about  the price.  The dealer would say $60.  He’d say, “50 dollars?  40 dollars?  You want me to pay 30 dollars for that thing?”  Thinking about the look on the dealer’s face even now, almost twenty years later, still cracks me up.

I also want to thank the Silicon Valley Blogger at The Digerati Life for including my article Saving by Delusion in her carnival round-up.  It was even including it in the post title, Learn How To Haggle, Defeat Debt and Save By Delusion @ The Carnivals.

That’s it for now.

Monday Morning Link Time

Another great round of carnivals this week. I’ve been extra-posty lately, and so more carnivals are being entered. Sue me.

First, I’m thrilled that my post Twenty Things to Do Before We Buy a House was chosen as an Editor’s Pick in the Carnival of Personal Finance: The Baby Education Edition hosted at Million Dollar Journey. I’d not been submitting to that carnival lately because I keep missing the deadline.

Posts of note in this carnival include:

• A guest post written by a for-profit company on FMF’s blog Free Money Finance titled How to Keep Your Child’s Identity Safe had some great suggestions, and also increased my worry factor. Their suggestion that the last “four numbers of the child’s social security number can be easily used to obtain the full social security number, creating numerous opportunities for a child’s identity to be stolen,” gives weight to a concern I’ve long had about many companies’ practice of asking me for the last four digits of my own security number to “prove” my identity. Yikes.

• Squawkfox’s article Just say ‘NO’ to crap! is really good, serious article, but I confess that the title me laugh. All my Mommy friends know how much I love talking about poop, and crap is a close cousin.

The Festival of Frugality #118: ABC Edition, all 57 articles of it (!) was hosted over at My Dollar Plan this week. One of my favorite recent posts, I’ve Finally Found the Line, was included.

Some great posts:

• I loved Uses for Aluminum (tin) Foil, submitted by Frugal for Life. There are tons of great tips!

• CAN I GET RICH ON A SALARY’s post How The Word “Free” Makes Us Lose Our Minds was very good, and talks about the same thing I talked about in my post, Buy One Get One Free. Sort of., only much more thoroughly.

The Carnival of Money Stories was hosted at Dividend Growth Investor this week. My post about my phone service, Turning Phone Service Lemons Into Satisfying Lemonade, was included.

Check out these posts I really enjoyed, and all of the others, too:

• I was a bank teller when I was in high school, so I thought Finance Gets Personal’s post Confessions of a Former Bank Teller was hysterical. Just so you know, though, my kid’s fish faces are really, really cute.

• Family and Finance’s article We Got Rid of Our Escrow Account! proves that you never know unless you ask. I don’t escrow for taxes and insurance because I put 20% down, and I knew I could insist on it. I think I need to write a post about homeowners insurance and how mortgage companies can really screw you up! Stay tuned…

MixedMetaphor.net hosted the All for Women Blogging Carnival, one I’d never entered before. They accepted my post Perfect Day at the Beach.

Also check out:

• Mommy Cliques: A Ninja Survival Guide at ParentingSquad. As much as I hate to admit it, there’s something about a group of women that can immediately make me feel twelve again. The difference at age 43 is that I’m much more willing to take the initiative, I can laugh about it, I care a whole lot less, I don’t mind looking silly (and often do!) and it certainly matters much less to my general state of well-being.

• Blog Against Sexual Violence Day 3 April 2008 at abyss2hope: A rape survivor’s zigzag journey into the open. Just because.

Next up is the Money Hacker’s Carnival #5 - Haute Couture Edition hosted by Antishay Ventenne. My article Time To Increase the Grocery Budget. Or Eat A Lot Less. was included.

Other articles that I liked:

• How To Make Sure This Is Your Dream Home by The Personal Financier. It’s a great complement to my own article Twenty Things to Do Before We Buy a House.

• PaidTwice not only picks up another notch in her 50 Editor’s Picks in 52 weeks goal, she echoes my own eye-rolling experiences about a myriad of poor choices portrayed as “the thing to do” in the media in her article Critical Thinking and the Media - Awareness Brings a New Eye.

Finally, I’d like to thank Funny About Money for including my article Saving by Delusion in her Saturday Round-up, and PaidTwice for mentioning Shrinking Package Sizes Screw up My Recipes in her Sunday Morning Link Love. I’m so glad you thought them worth mentioning!

Thanks to all of the carnival hosts and participants, and a special thanks to you, who take time out of your busy days to read my ramblings.

Monday Links - My Birthday Edition

Happy Birthday to Me! Okay, enough about that. Let’s talk linkage.

PaidTwice hosted the From Theory To Practice: The Festival of Frugality this week, and my post What I Like About Wal-Mart was included. I was struck by Savvy Frugality’s post Extreme Frugality: Freegans, a much so that it inspired me to write I’ve Finally Found the Line. I also liked But Why Doesn’t It Grow On Trees’ post Cash to Burn: Why a Credit-Only Lifestyle Works for Me. I carry very little cash partially because I’ll fritter it, but mostly because I want to get every cent possible from my credit card rebates. There are tons of great posts there, so be sure to visit!

The Carnival of Family Life: St. Patrick’s Day Edition was hosted at Colloquium this week and included my post What to Know About Buying and Redeeming (Unless They Are from Sharper Image) Gift Cards. Paid Twice’s article One Way To Get Over the Bath and Body Works Habit at I’ve Paid For This Twice Already should have warned me that I’d be called The Devil when I offered a Bath and Body Works Deal of the Day. Sorry, PaidTwice! Also check out Five Cent Nickel’s postThe High Cost of Instant Gratification. The need for instant gratification is a problem for many, and not just kids. Thought provoking, at least in my house.

The Carnival of Money Stories #51 was hosted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife this week. My post Buy One Get One Free. Sort of. was included - and no I have not heard back from Publix yet. That Was Worth the Phone Call! posted at Stop the Ride! is a good reminder to call and talk to someone before assuming you need to pay that late charge. I’ve had great luck with that the few times I’ve lost my mind temporarily. I also liked Top 10 Dollar Store Buys posted at FIRE Finance, as the Dollar Store is one of my favorite places to shop. Don’t assume they’re always the lowest price, though; I’ve found the same things for a few cents cheaper at WalMart and other discount stores before.

I also made an appearance in Carnival of Everything Finance - #15 over at Everything Finance. Don’t Let the Dust Settle Before the Dust Settles settled in quite well over there. I enjoyed CreditAddict’s article FICO Credit Score Changes Looming, and if CA is right Husband and I will see our score increase. That’s a good thing! Livingalmostlarge is pretty peeved about parents spending their children’s education funds in Children’s Gift Money?. I understand how she feels. In my opinion it’s not the parents’ money to take, unless they funded it. That said, when you mix gift money with money you put in yourself, it’s not easy to keep track. In any case touching Son’s college money would be a last resort for us.

Finally, I want to wish Funny About Money a speedy recovery from her recent spill, and thank her for thinking enough of my article Time To Increase the Grocery Budget. Or Eat A Lot Less. to include it in her weekly round-up.

Monday Carnival Roundup - Editor’s Pick Edition

I picked up my first carnival Editor’s pick this week, and I’m thrilled at the honor. A blog I’d not visited before, Green Panda Treehouse, hosted Festival of Frugality #116 : Great Designs this week. Apparently she liked my post Too Much Clutter? 20 Tips for a Successful Garage Sale. Thanks! While there check out Why I’m in love with the forever stamp , by Pinching Copper. I’d just only recently heard about this stamp, and you can bet I’ll be stocking up! Also check out Save Money With Someone Else’s Wireless Internet posted at Money Blue Book. Do you think it’s morally wrong?

Mike at Quest for Four Pillars hosted the Carnival of Money Stories this week. Included was my post about my Mom being able to get a tax rebate even though she has no income, Show Nana the Money!. I liked Million Dollar Journey’s post about determining his life insurance needs. He’s right about Mortgage Life Insurance not being a good product or a good buy. I also thought CashMoneyLife wrote a great article about ethics with The Choice of What is Right, and What is Easy.

I also made an appearance at the fabulous The Digerati Life in her Carnival Roundup post Buxfer.com, Buyer’s Regret and Tossing Your Clutter @ The Carnivals. She liked my article Too Much Clutter? 20 Tips for a Successful Garage Sale, too. This post also was mentioned over at Save and Conquer in his Review of the Festival of Frugality and at Pennies to Nickels in her Weekly Links post. Thanks to all of you for the mention!

I also wanted to thank KCLau for including my post Why You Should Consider a Personal Liability Umbrella in his Personal finance money tips - March 08, 2008 round-up.

That’s it for this week. I didn’t enter many carnivals last week. Next week is a different story.

What a Weekend! Monday Evening Carnival Catch-Up

The Carnival of Personal Finance #142 - The Homeless Edition was hosted at BagLady this week. My article Concierge Doctor Plans - Not Frugal But Perhaps Money Well Spent was included, and I’ve gotten lots of good feedback for introducing a subject many people had not heard of.

There’s always a ton of informative articles over there. I liked MoneyNing’s post Walking to the Supermarket. Before Son was born I often thought about how I would walk to the supermarket, pushing baby in the stroller. Yeah, it never happened. Still, a really nice idea. I also liked Madison from My Dollar Plan’s article Dear Husband: What to do if I die!. We all should have a plan for the unthinkable, but most don’t because it is, well, unthinkable. Since Husband barely remembers the name of our bank, he’d be totally in the dark if something happened to me. Must get on this straightaway!

There’s a new carnival in the blogosphere and I’m happy to have been a part of it’s inaugural week. The Fresh From the Farmer’s Market carnival hosted by Modern Beet included my post Amazing Maize. This was the first recipe-ish post I’ve done, and I was happy to find the perfect outlet. I can’t wait to try Recipe Bank’s French Bean Casserole!

Also this week my post Shame is a Powerful Incentive, Darn It was included in the Carnival of Ethics, Values, and Personal Finance hosted at RealEstateUndressed. I also enjoyed The Choice of What is Right, and What is Easy at Cash Money Life.

My old article Why You Should Consider a Personal Liability Umbrella made an appearance at KcLau’s Personal finance money tips - March 08, 2008. Scott Siegel at Scott’s Beat The Gas Pump Blog tells us how to save even more on gas by buying gas gift cards in his article How to save 14% on your gas costs! Now that’s frugal!

The Carnival of Family Life was at Discussing Autism this week, and they were kind enough to include my article Redemption is a Ten Letter Word. I hope to one day be able to use the information in j’blu’s article 7 Family Activities to do in Honolulu posted at Local Kine Hawaii. Yes. Definitely. I also hope a certain person I know runs across Aparna’s article Home remedies for body odor posted at Beauty and Personality Grooming. I remember my Mom making me tell a male friend of mine about his body odor, and I’m still scarred from the experience. Some great tips there, though.

This week’s Festival of Frugality was hosted at Broke Grad Student. Always a terrific carnival, I enjoyed Alison’s article What Do You Freeze? at This Wasn’t in The Plan. I admit I’ve always been a fraidy-freezer . I’m also saving the link for Niharika Das’s article How to Throw a Kickass Frugal Bar Mitzvah at Frugal Panda. After all, it’s less than ten years until Son’s Bar Mitzvah.

Oy.