New Year, New You!

I love to say that. It makes me laugh and gag at the same time. It's corny and trite and yet, there is that little part of me who gets turned on by the thought of reinventing herself.

I've been so many things in my short life. My Sagittarius moon keeps me dabbling and I'm interested in just about everything (except sports. I hate sports. Sports and electronics. OK, It's not that I'm not interested in electronics, I just don't care how they work. I want to push the thingy and have it go. Period.). As an adult, I've been a full-time student, a Mom, a real estate agent, a restaurant hostess, a small business owner and a full-time babysitter.

But here I find myself welcoming Twenty Ten (that is my stand, I won't say "two thousand ten", it just feels wrong) and, for once, am feeling some foresight into the many changes coming my way. I'm pushing 40, the kids are getting bigger, my husband's career is about to take off in exciting new directions and, yet, instead of feeling the excitement of new things to come, I'm dreading that when the platter of opportunity is presented to us, we will have to pass because we've gotten ourselves into a mess financially.

OK, so now my secret is out. My husband and I are educated and we come from good families. We have great friends and we love our kids. We move through the world with enthusiasm and a zest for life and we have been very, very stupid about money.

Sure, we started off great...moved out of the overpriced NYC suburb and into a small town where we could afford to live on one income, so that I could stay at home with the kids. But then we started getting lazy. I will admit that I like instant gratification and I definitely have an entitlement complex. I mean, I'm FABULOUS, why shouldn't I have everything I want?!? But, a few years went by...a new car, another kid, credit cards piled up, a re-fi to pay off debt that went to I don't know what instead. Oops, we did it again! A small second income that was to pay off debt that just became more money to spend every month. Another new car. It goes on and on. We've had our share of unexpected expenses, thankfully nothing catastrophic, but largely our mess is our own fault. And I do mean OUR. I take responsibility for my champagne taste, but Hubba Bubba has his own version for sure. I will say, though (and I do believe that this will be our saving grace), that as much as I am perfectly willing to spend liberally, I can be one helluva cheapskate. And now it's time for me to get my thrift on. But for real.

So, hello, New Year. Here is the New Me. I will get my family out of debt and into shape financially. We will have everything we need and take a look at why we want the things we want. To this end, we will use our talent and all of the resources available to us. And we will have fun and be fabulous along the way. I promise.