Imagine I am doing a happy dance. Well, I actually am sitting at my desk at The Monroe Evening News office and drinking a cup of coffee. But I can do a virtual happy dance!

When I launched this blog, my intention was to write for the local audience in and near Monroe, Mich. Over time, I found other blogs that hit on personal finance. I read them. I bookmarked them. I commented on their blog pages. I’ve posted some of the links on my blogroll and in the posts. Some of them saw the pingbacks (that’s when one blogger comments on another blogger) and followed the trail. … and came to this site.

The result: I was catching more of a national audience than I expected.

In the meantime, I came across a networking feature among bloggers called a Carnival. That’s a traveling showcase of the best blog posts on the designated topic, with the selections made and / or ranked by another blogger. It’s like reading a “best of” list. Many times, carnival hosts add their own comments or “top 10″ rankings or trivia to the blogroll.

The BlogsMonroe bloggers do link to each other, especially when individual topics overlap to more than one audience. But the only thing we’ve formally done as a “collective” is when Evening News managing editor Dan Shaw, who hosts News Notes, asked some of the bloggers to comment on a specific news article.

On occasion, I do have posts that could work for national carnival audience. I decided to give it a try the next time such an opportunity came up. Christmas cards on a budget, a post I made on Nov. 28, seemed to be a good fit for the Carnival of Personal Finance, so I submitted it for the Dec. 3 edition. And … I was accepted for the Carnival list!

You’ll find a link to my post and all the other featured blog entries at Cash Money Life.

Here are some of my favorites from this week’s edition:

• 5 “Cheap” Date Ideas to Keep Your Date and Your Money Happy from Comp Gifts: The Frugal Way of Living. Following up on this article, I do have to laugh at all the TV commercials airing in recent weeks of engagement proposals as part of a fancy dinner / night out on the town. My husband proposed to me in when we were on a walk in a park! (This was something he planned in advance, and yes, he did have the ring with him that day.)
• The 10 Most-Hated Money Saving Tips at Free Money Finance. Yeah, I’ve had some rants myself. Here’s my Top 10 Most Annoying Tips. Seems like we’re thinking along the same lines on a couple of these topics!
• Just in Case – How to Make Sure Your Spouse Knows Your Financial Passwords at Interesting Money. You’ll need to figure out what approach will work best in your home, but there’s good reasons for both of you to know how to access critical household accounts.