I can’t thank all of you enough for the support and encouragement on my post about homesickness. I’ve found so much support in the blogging community for the past two years, and I know that all of this would be so much harder if I didn’t have such wonderful readers and bloggers to help me through it. To all of you in the same boat: we can get through this! We just have to stick together. :)

At the advice of the wise Kacie at Sense to Save, I’ve decided to try harder to find an in real life support group here in North Carolina. I’m searching for a book club to join for the next 16 months until we move. I’ll let you know how it goes. Those of you who commented to say you’re in the same situation, how have you reached out to meet people? If you haven’t, let’s all try! Let me know how it works for you!

The past three weeks have been CRAZY. Between the Paul McCartney concert in DC and our trip to Indiana last week, we haven’t had any time to just relax. I can’t wait to get home, park myself on the couch, and try to move as little as possible for the next 48 hours.

As always, there are errands to run and laundry to do and house cleaning, but other than that, I mean it! Laaazy weekend. We’ll see, though. :)

Now for my first round up in way too long:

From the Pecuniary Associates:

• Counting My Pennies hosted this week’s Carnival of Pecuniary Delights. Also check out her post on Kiva loans. It’s a cool concept for a great cause.
• Pecuniarities shares what she learned from a summer without air conditioning. Even if you can’t turn off your AC completely, you’ll definitely be able to lower your bill with some of her tips for staying cool.

And from the rest of the blogosphere:

• Bargaineering explains how to cash out your IRA without a penalty. I don’t recommend doing this unless you have a really good reason, but if you’ve already cashed one out, check and see if you qualify for these tax exemptions. Tony and I cashed out his IRA for tuition, and we would have paid the 10% penalty of an accountant hadn’t told us we qualify for the higher education exemption.
• The Happy Housewife is sharing some great tips for menu planning. Check out her series if you’re just getting started or looking to improve your skills.
• If you’re like me, then you’re probably starting to get tired of the heat and humidity of summer. On Simplicity has some great ideas for summer activities you can enjoy as the season winds down.
• My Two Dollars shows you how social networks can save you money.

That’s all from me for the week. Happy Friday and have a great weekend!