Well it’s been about 4 and a half months since I joined the Yakezie challenge and it seems my Alexa rank has stalled just a whisker shy of my goal.  I have been hovering around the 100,000 barrier for weeks but just can’t seem to break it!

Still, I’m a lot better now then when I started!  My Alexa then was over 1.6 million, and I felt like I was talking to myself.

But thanks to Sam’s challenge I’ve gotten to know a couple of fellow bloggers, written a handful of guest posts at FreeFromBroke and Money Beagle and gotten listed on the Wisebread list of the top 100 personal finance bloggers.  Plus I’m actually making some money!

Blogging can be tough when you’re first starting out, but it helps to have specific goals and a way to track them.  Sam’s challenge kept me motivated when it would have been easy to throw in the towel, and for that I owe him a great big thank you.

Thanks Sam!

Here are a few recent posts that got my attention…

Evan from My Journey to Millions stirred up a little controversy with his post about why teachers anger him.

Frugal Dad discusses his secret to getting out of debt.

Mrs Money wonders if it’s cheaper to have a baby when you’re younger or older.

Free Money Finance shares 13 finance tips from the bible.

Financial Samurai gives us an inside look at the Yakezie .

Len Penzo discusses his shock when he received a cell phone bill for over $1000!

The Digerati Life stresses the importance of developing multiple streams of income.

The Wealth Pilgrim shares some tips on how to make your small business more successful.

Money Beagle asks do any of us have a chance in the stock market?

Saving Money Today was featured in the following carnivals…

http://funny-about-money.com/2010/07/11/carnival-of-personal-finance-2

http://www.wealthjunkies.com/money/festival-of-frugality-238/

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a link roundup so I figure what better way to start the week.  I always feel lazy on Mondays anyway!

Here are some of the articles that got my attention recently…

Jim from Bargaineering discusses 6 Documents You Need But Hate Thinking About.  PS – Welcome to the Yakezie Jim!

I love this post from Brip Blap called letter from a thief.  Read it all the way to the end, it may hit close to home.

Mrs Money gives instructions on How to Opt Out of Junk Mail and Credit Card Offers

Kris from Everyday Tips and Thoughts vents about When Ridiculous Rules Make Life Much Harder

Craig from Free From Broke asks When You Save Are You Really Saving?

Crystal from Budgeting in the Fun Stuff talks about her crappy Fedex Experience.

Daniel from Sweating the Big Stuff offers some tips for saving money on car insurance.

Financial Samurai got quite a discussion going when he posted Only The Poor or Super Rich Say, “Money Can’t Buy Happiness”

Saving Money Today on the Web

http://www.beatingbroke.com/weekend-wrap-up-memorial-day-yakezie-update-edition/

http://www.rainydaysaver.net/2010/06/carnival-of-personal-finance-260-forces-of-nature-edition.html

http://www.providentplan.com/2042/festival-of-frugality-232-anniversary-edition/

And don’t forget to follow me on Twitter!

This week I have the honor of hosting the latest edition of the Money Hackers Carnival, a roundup of articles posted by some of the finest personal finance blogs on the web.

The theme I’ve chosen is BBQ!

photo credit: Kurt Komoda

That’s right, it’s BBQ season!  So light up the grill and enjoy some burgers and beer can chicken with your friends as you discuss these top notch posts…

Editors Picks

Are you obsessed with other people’s opinions of you?  Then perhaps you need to read Len Penzo’s post so you can understand Why Your Expensive Luxury Car Doesn’t Impress Smart People. (Or Me.)

We’ve been doing a lot of spring cleaning in our home lately and we’re hoping to make some extra cash by unloading some of the clutter in our garage and basement.  Live Real Now’s Garage Sale Tips couldn’t have been more timely.

Silicon Valley Blogger shares a killer post with step by step instructions on How To Apply For A Loan At A Peer To Peer Lender.  If you have less than stellar credit you’ll definitely want to check it out.

Lean Life Coach tackles one of my pet peeves…printer ink cartridges.  Check out Frugal Printing, Is It Possible?

If you’ve always wanted to work for yourself there’s no time like the present.  Even if the economy is still weak, MoneyNing argues that a Recession is A Great Time to Start a Business.

More Great Posts!

Ok, who wants cheese on their burgers??  Someone pass me another beer!

photo credit: grenade

Wealth Pilgrim presents How To Get Working Capital For Your Small Business posted at Wealth Pilgrim

Craig Ford presents Faith Based Investing | Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down? posted at Money Help For Christians.

D4L presents 13 Dividend Stocks Raising Their Payouts And Yields posted at Dividends Value.

FMF presents Help a Reader: Discussing a Pre-Nup posted at Free Money Finance.

Madison DuPaix presents Comparing Different Types of Treasury Securities posted at My Dollar Plan.

Roshawn Watson presents Savings Down, Spending Up but What Does it Mean? posted at Watson Inc.

BWL presents Which IRA Should You Invest In? posted at Christian Personal Finance.

2 Cents presents Silence Is Golden: How Quiet Can Be Profitable posted at Balance Junkie.

Paul Williams presents The Importance of Values posted at Provident Planning.

Money Smarts presents Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps: Step 2 – Pay Off All Debt Using The Debt Snowball posted at Smart On Money.

Joe Plemon presents Which Comes First: Earning or Saving? posted at Personal Finance By The Book.

nissim ziv presents How to Negotiate a Pay Raise posted at Job Interview & Career Guide.

Jeff Rose, CFP presents How To Get The Best Rates For Term Life Insurance posted at Jeff Rose.

The ribs are ready!  Let’s dig in!

photo credit: a_roadbiker

Barb Friedberg presents A PERSONAL SECRET I SHOULD NOT DIVULGE posted at Barbara Friedberg Personal Finance.

Leave Debt Behind.com presents Credit Cards- Who Needs Them? posted at Leave Debt Behind.

Jason presents Should You Invest While Still in Debt? posted at One Money Design.

Michael Pruser presents Defining the Terms of the Stock Market posted at The Dough Roller.

The Investor presents Invest in antique furniture posted at Monevator.

Donna Freedman presents When you buy cheap, you get…longevity? posted at Surviving and Thriving.

freefrombroke presents Comparing TV Services With BillShrink posted at Free From Broke.

Miss Thrifty presents Guerilla Gardening: seedbombs in London posted at Miss Thrifty.

PT presents Excessive Credit Card Debt: How Much is Too Much? posted at PT Money.

Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents 5 Tips for Getting Back on the Credit Card Ladder posted at Canadian Finance Blog.

Hank presents Get the Most from Couponing Using Stackable Discounts posted at Own The Dollar.

Well that’s it for one day…we’ve eaten well and learned a lot.   Now please feel free to stay as long as you’d like, and don’t forget to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive free updates.

Here are a few outstanding posts that I’ve enjoyed lately…

Kris from Everyday Tips and Thoughts offers some killer tips for traveling with kids. I’ll have to save this one for our summer vacation.

Craig from Free From Broke argues that organic food isn’t as expensive as you think in the long run because it’s better for you.

Speaking of eating healthy, Budgeting in the Fun Stuff discusses the ridiculous amount of sugar in our food.  Do we really need high fructose corn syrup added to everything?

Green Sherpa had an interesting post about saving money by ditching your TV.  I’m not quite ready to go that route but they make a good argument.

Nicole from Rainy Day Saver posted about how to install a new air filter in your car.  I love a woman who can do things for herself. 

Saving Money Today was recently featured in the Carnivals below:

Yakezie Carnival: Scrooge McDuck’s Graduation Speech to Huey, Dewey, and Louie

Money Hackers Carnival #116: Back to Basics Edition

Happy Mother’s Day to all you mom’s out there.  Sit back, put your feet up, and enjoy a few of these fine articles…

Sam the Financial Samurai talks about the Dark Side of Early Retirement

Evan from My Journey to Millions asks Is Home Remodeling Really An Investment?

Flexo from Consumerism Commentary give details on how he earns money from blogging.

Budgeting in the Fun Stuff discusses how she uses multiple accounts for easy budgeting.

Free From Broke has a post that will help you determine how much insurance you need.

Mrs Money talks about her plans to develop multiple streams of income.

Christine from Money Funk asks if you would take a lottery lump sum payment or an annuity.

The Car Negotiation Coach shares 10 expensive car negotiating mistakes.

Simple Life in France discusses her favorite DIY projects.

SMT on the web

Check out a guest post that was published on Money Beagle…Redecorating Your Home Without Breaking the Bank

I was also featured in the Money Hacks Carnival #114

Sam the Financial Samurai sparked a bit of a controversy when he suggested that people shouldn’t be allowed to have children unless they can prove they can take care of them financially.

Evan from My Journey to Millions discusses his plan to create multiple streams of income.

MoneyFunk offers 8 tips for organizing your life.

My Financial Objectives offers some tips for dealing with after lunch fatigue.

Smarter Spend shares a series of free Excel spreadsheets to organize your finances.

You should also check out a guest post that I wrote for Free From Broke…Frugality Doesn’t Mean You Have To Deprive Yourself

And here are a couple of Carnivals I participated in recently…

Money Hacks Carnival #112 – The Savannah Edition

Festival of Frugality #226 – Earth Week 2010 Edition

Time to post another link roundup of some of the best blog posts I’ve read lately…

Neal from Wealth Pilgrim discusses the power of attorney and gives some damn good reasons why you need one.

Nicole from Rainy Day Saver offers some killer estate planning tips.  It makes sense to plan ahead now while you’re sound of mind and body.

Craig from Free From Broke explains how to invest in certificates of deposit.

Evan from my Journey to Millions discusses the difference between value and worth.

Money Beagle enjoyed one of my recent posts and he decided to put his own spin on it.  Check out his article on things that worry him.

Mrs Money gives step by step instructions on making your own deodorant.

Lakita from Personal Finance Journey discusses 7 actions for financial spring cleaning.

ChristianPF discusses 4 common credit card mistakes…are you making them?

And finally Greg from Eliminate the Muda discusses how to work with aging parents to make sure they are financially secure.

The other day I mentioned I was taking part in the Yakezie Challenge, which started out as a way to improve Alexa ranking and has turned into a real community of personal finance bloggers working together to help each other succeed. 

Many thanks to Nicole from Rainy Day Saver for posting a list of  bloggers participating in the Yakezie Challenge.

Part of the Yakezie Code is to selflessly promote others.  That includes sharing links to their best articles to help them grow.   This will be easy for me because I’ve already been posting regular roundups of articles I find useful or interesting. 

Of course, I won’t just be linking to articles by fellow Yakezie members…any blog is eligible as long as I feel it could be valuable to my readers. 

Here’s a selection of some of the best articles I’ve read lately:

Interviewing for a new job can be a stressful and grueling ordeal.  But Financial Samurai has put together a killer list of interviewing tips that will help you get the job! 

Craig from Free From Broke asks is it ok to make copies of your children’s DVDs?  Please note he doesn’t mean copying as stealing…he means making backup copies of DVDs he already purchased.  As a dad myself I understand his point.  We already have a few discs that little hands have rendered unwatchable.

All Financial Matters offers a neat list of 30 financial lessons he wants his kids to learn before they grow up and move out.

The Frugalista shared a scary video showing how Classmates.com was selling credit card numbers to third parties.   Just watch how they managed to get user’s permission to do it…and keep an eye on your credit card statements!

Mrs Money continues her series of fun money facts of all 50 US states.  She’s up to Arizona now.  I can’t wait until she gets to New Jersey!

Jim at Bargaineering reminded us of the outstanding American Express purchase protection program.  I’ve had Blue for years and honestly I didn’t even realize this policy existed.  Thanks for the heads up Jim.

It’s been awhile since I posted a roundup so I figured it’s time to spread a little love to some of my favorite bloggers.

Frugal Dad offers some advice on doing something you love before you have to do something you don’t want to for money.

Not Made of Money shares 47 ways to save money to put towards paying off your debt.

Pete Anderson offers some great tips for diversifying your income and making extra money outside your day job.

Mrs Money asks where have all the housewives gone?

FreeMoneyFinance discusses 4 questions you should discuss before getting married.

Karen from Living Well on Less shares some simple tips for saving time and reducing stress.

Kacie of Sense to Save suggests skipping the gym and trying some cheaper exercise options first.

Finally, I read a very scary article about a Citibank branch that closed a customer’s account without warning because he was a blogger and they didn’t approve of the content he was posting.   If you have a blog yourself you’ll want to read this one.

Time for another roundup of the best articles I’ve read lately…

FreeFromBroke had a great guest post about eating healthy on a budget. 

Mrs Money shares a recipe for homemade toothpaste.

Len Penzo shares his thoughts on the 5 worst US State quarters.

Get Rich Slowly suggests paying your bills as soon as they arrive.

A guest post on Clever Dude asks when is the right age to start teaching children money management.

Check each of them out and let me know which were your favorites.