Paul and I are trying to aggressively pay off our loans (and save up for Greece). We can easily make minimum payments right now, but we’d really like to see them gone, and not hanging over our heads, so we can work on saving for other things – like a house, a car, and emergencies. We bought and read through Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover Workbook, and are trying to apply the principles we’re learning to put ourselves in a better financial position. It’s a somewhat uphill road, trying to undo some bad habits, but we know the reward will be worth it!

Today I asked Joanna what her favorite frugality & finance blogs were, because I’d like to expose myself more to people who are thinking wisely in regards to finances. She suggested the following, all of which I added to my Google Reader:

Frugal Upstate
Get Rich Slowly
Like Merchant Ships
The Mother Load
Walk Slowly, Live Wildly
Wise Bread

I’ll follow them for a few weeks, and then reevaluate if they are worth my time to read. I’m hoping to be encouraged and inspired! I have more to say about this subject, but that will be another post at a future time.

Speaking of Google Reader (that’s how I read all my blogs) , I spent some time today cleaning up my subscriptions. I deleted a whole bunch of blogs that have been abandoned, as well as a few whose posts I generally don’t read. I’ve found that I tend not to read those posts where you have to click through to the blog itself to read the whole post – is that true for anyone else? I know why people do that, but it does drive me nuts! Oh well, I have lots of blogs on my subscriptions list so it’s good that I cut down anyways. :-)

I also updated my Links page – check it out! There you have all the blogs and websites I read. Maybe you’ll be able to find a few new blogs to enjoy yourself. :-)

And last, but certainly not least, I received an award!

Heather over at Curious About George gave me this award, and I’m super excited! I don’t want to repeat any blogs I’ve mentioned in the past, so here are 5 fairly new reads that I enjoy. (None of them probably know I exist!)

• Shalee’s Diner: She cracks me up. I’m especially enjoying her recent posts about life lessons. I will also forgive her for using Comic Sans on her blog.
• Owlhaven: Mary recently returned from Ethiopia where they picked up their two newest daughters. Reading about the trip was fascinating, and I am loving the way she writes about her 10 (10!!) kids! Make sure to also check out this post she wrote on her Ethiopia Adoption Blog.
• It Coulda’ Been Worse: Another blog that cracks me up! DeeDee never fails to put a smile on my face. And, she’s a Gone With the Wind fan!
• Gerniums on a Wall: Ann is an MK from Spain – hooray for fellow MKs! Her posts always make me think and her photography is amazing.
• Untangling Tales: Okay, this blog isn’t a recent find, but I’m not a regular commenter here either. I enjoy reading Amy’s thoughts and stories – especially her Tuesday Tales.