A Frugal Chick Television

Hey guys!

You may have noticed two new names popping up on this website over the past few weeks.  I have been slowly breaking in two incredible VAs (virtual assistants).  While most bloggers don’t let you know who works for them I really want mine to be part of our AFrugalChick family.  Also if you see things that say “my kids” or “my husband” it might be good to know that I didn’t write them.

Christine Platz is a Chesapeake native who currently resides in Virginia Beach. After graduating from James Madison University with her Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Christine worked for the March of Dimes Foundation and a small marketing agency before settling into her current position as a Marketing Manager at Dominion Enterprises in downtown Norfolk.  She is an entrepreneur at heart, as she used to work in the wedding industry part-time as a calligrapher and also recently became a Stella & Dot Stylist.

If you ask anyone about Christine, they would tell you her true passion is writing. From an early age, Christine declared that she would write a best-seller one day (and she affirms that day is coming).  In her spare time, she enjoys running, including completing her first half-marathon last March at the Shamrock in Virginia Beach.  She also enjoys reading, cooking, and spending time with her family and friends, including her adorable nieces and nephew.  She is currently planning her wedding for this May.  She enjoys traveling and hopes to one day visit Italy, which combines two of her (other) favorite passions – wine and food.

Christine first learned about afrugalchick.com from her best friend, Kim, who taught her all about couponing and recommended following the site to stay on top of popular deals and couponing tips. Christine began following Laura’s blog and has redeemed many of her recommended deals from Amazon (her favorite online retailer), as well as Harris Teeter, Walgreens, CVS & more.

She currently lives with her husband-to-be in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

You will see posts from Christine very soon- including some yummy recipes- so be sure to give her some love! 

Hey guys!

You may have noticed two new names popping up on this website over the past few weeks.  I have been slowly breaking in two incredible VAs (virtual assistants).  While most bloggers don’t let you know who works for them I really want mine to be part of our AFrugalChick family.  Also if you see things that say “my kids” or “my husband” it might be good to know that I didn’t write them.

First up is Jana.  You will see lots of recipes from Jana (including the yummy Apple French Toast Casserole) and some give aways, crafts and reviews.

My name is Jana and if you read afrugalchick.com on a daily basis you may have noticed my name pop up on a couple of posts recently. I am a wife and mom. I have an amazing hard working and loving husband and together we have two cute and funny kiddos. My son M will be 4 in March and daughter A will be 2 in February. Currently, I job share as a middle and high school librarian at a local Christian school. I enjoy fostering a love for reading in my kiddos as well as my students and teachers.

I started following www.afrugalchick.com a couple of years ago when M was born. My husband and I felt strongly about me being home with our kiddo as much as possible.  However, with two teacher salaries it was going to be tight, so I went part time. With my salary cut in half, I needed to start saving money elsewhere so I started cooking, couponing and completing DIY projects around the house with help from blogs like Laura’s.

Several years later, I have learned a lot about how to save money by doing it yourself and cooking delicious food at home and am thrilled about the opportunity to share with afrugalchick readers.

As she posts more be sure to show her some love!

I’m going to miss you.

The thing is that we could be friends.

We could talk every single day.  I’m here.  Waiting for you.

You never call, you never write.

I’m talking to those of you who just come visit me for the holidays.  (To those who are already my friends- you know who you are and I know who you are.  I got your back.)

I want to know what I can give you to keep you coming back.

Can you answer these three questions for me? I am DYING to know the answer. And I promise if you tell me I will do what I can to become your BEST FRIEND EVER!

I have had a secret for weeks now.  I haven’t been able to tell any of my blogging friends.  I haven’t been able to post it on facebook.

I have been preparing to be in a flash mob.  I have been watching videos and practicing in my living room.  My cat has been watching me with great curiousity.

Tonight it finally happened.

And while it isn’t the greatest video ever you may as well see what we bloggers do when we go to conferences.

It was so much fun!

I mentioned to you all a few weeks ago that I was going to get new head shots.   And how much I hate getting my picture taken.

I really do- today friends at a bridal shower practically had to black mail me into getting in some group photos.

So when I went to Knox Studios September 18th to get new head shots taken I was NOT looking forward to it.  My goal was to get in and out as quick as possible with the least amount of trouble and to TRY to look relaxed.  (I always look like a robot in pictures.)

When I walked in I met Jim Knox the owner who put me at ease.  I had no idea Knox Studios had been in Chesapeake so long that some of my high school friends had their Senior Pictures done there (we won’t talk about what year I graduated but it was a while ago).   While I was waiting I got to see some of the beautiful family portraits they have taken and the amazing packages they do with new babies and families.

(Side note: they have this AWESOME package for new parents where you get pics of the new baby taken with family members as well as a picture taken each month to document the first 12 months for $40.)

After a very comfortable and thankfully brief photo session Jim told me I could come in the next few days and pick up a disc with my pictures.  He was going to let me look at them all without any touch ups (gulp) and then I could let him know which ones I wanted done.

I was ASTONISHED to find there were about a dozen shots I actually liked!  After conferring with friends and family (who are much less critical of the way I look) I asked them to do touch ups on a few of them.   And here are the winners:

For those of you who watch me on television you can see what a great job they did with these photos- I look like a much more professional version of myself!

So which one do you like best?