The champagne corks haven't yet popped, but divorced women all around the globe know it's just about that time to make resolutions again.

So, what should it be this year? A sharper focus on health and fitness? Maybe a vow to show more appreciation of family and friends? How about a promise to do greater good for mankind? OK, for 2008, I resolve to cease procrastinating!

What does that mean? For starters, it means I just called my attorney and scheduled an appointment to review and update my last will and testament. After all, it's been 10 years since it was last updated, so on Jan. 7, 2008, this will be done.

Secondly, it means that I'm conducting a careful review of my insurance policies by getting quotes from three other carriers. I'll finish the comparison by January 15 — no excuses. For the record, I'd promised myself that I'd undertake this review in October (when my policies renew), but Halloween came and went, and just like last year, I renewed without shopping around. I justified it by telling myself, "I'll do it next year when I have more time."

Here's the big one — the one I've been tap dancing around for three years now: I'm going to the computer store during lunch today to buy software to help devise a renovation and construction plan for my basement. As much as I hate to do it, I know it must be done, so here goes: I resolve to completely renovate my basement by March 30.

Now, let's recap. What did I do?

1) I recognized that I needed to stop procrastinating.

2) I set specific goals, and I made sure everybody knew about them. You see, a goal isn't a goal unless it's written down and everybody knows about it. Without this, it's merely a wish.

Does investing in mutual funds make sense? For busy women juggling divorce, jobs, children, and dating, the answer might be a resounding "yes".

Mutual funds have come a long way since 1924 when three Boston executives launched the first fund. Within a year, there were some 200 mutual funds. Now there are more than 140,000 funds worldwide, with assets exceeding $10 trillion U.S. dollars, according to fund tracking company Lipper.

The reason for this massive expansion is simple: Mutual funds give average investors the opportunity to invest in ways they otherwise couldn't. For example, typical investors often can't acquire shares of hot IPOs which are often available only on a very limited basis. But fund managers, with their many billions at the ready, frequently get first dibs on the hottest picks.

Mutual funds help investors in other important ways too. Because funds are diversified, they spread risk across a spectrum of assets which minimizes risk to investors. After all, the chances of each investment in a fund ending simultaneously in failure is remote.

Even so, investing in funds still means taking a chance. But one thing is absolutely certain: The sun will rise tomorrow (and the day after), and with each new day, inflation and higher living expenses will arrive. This means we need to lay seeds that might blossom into greater wealth for our future use.

Bank savings accounts are safe, but they usually don't generate enough of a yield for us to acquire the wealth needed to get to the finish line. This means we have no choice but to enter the very complicated world of bulls and bears.

Most of us have little time to track investments daily, or to speak frequently with brokers about buy and sell strategy. In the end, mutual funds are just a service; one that makes sense to those who need to rely on help from others.

Just about everyone hates car shopping. Whether you’re buying or leasing, it always seems to end same way: The dealer does well and you lose your shirt.

If you’re tired of getting stung, maybe you need to become a more savvy buyer—the kind that dealers cry themselves to sleep over. We’ve compiled a few ideas that might help you. These tips apply to all buyers, but are especially useful to divorced women, who are sometimes are among the most vulnerable buyers.

1. Thoroughly research the cars you want to buy via the Internet. Cars.com is just one of many great car Web sites that provide outstanding resources to help buyers prepare. If you’re comparing different makes and models, try to equip them as similarly as possible. Get to know the various packages offered, dealer cost, MSRP and any special incentives being offered.

2. Know the true value of your trade-in. Use those same Web sites.

3. Shop with your head not your heart. If you “love the car” too much, you're already at a disadvantage. Moreover, the idea of buying a two-seat convertible might be a wonderful distraction for a while, but if you’ve got three kids, it just isn’t going to work for you.

4. Always remember that you’re the boss. Tell the dealer your terms. If they don’t accept them, you may need to walk out to prove that you’re committed to your position. If you do, they’ll reach out to you if your offer was in the ballpark. Except in cases of rare and hard to get cars, you should avoid paying more than 5 or 10 percent over dealer cost. On some cars your target should be between zero and 5 percent above dealer invoice.

5. Do your window shopping after hours. This way, you won't deal with salespeople before you’re prepared to negotiate. The car dealers are closed on Sunday in my area — that’s when I go.

We've received letters from readers asking how best to go about paying for self education in order to become better positioned for new career opportunities. This is a question that many divorced women face when they are re-entering the workplace.

Common solutions:

The obvious solution is to borrow money to pay for tuition and related expenses. Most colleges and universities have a financial aid office prepared to provide students (and prospective students) with information about local, regional and national programs.

Some programs are available to students regardless of the school they attend, others are school-specific, and some are specific to a particular discipline. The financial aid office can help you navigate.

A word to the wise about borrowing: Remember that borrowed money must be repaid, so borrow wisely and spend carefully only for the purpose intended. Even though student loans are often at low interest rates and can be repaid over the longterm, interest accumulates over time and can greatly increase the amount borrowers owe.

The financial aid office is also aware of scholarships and can help steer students toward those best suited to them. Stipends are sometimes available too; however, these are typically offered to graduate students working on research projects. It doesn't hurt to ask, though. A financial aid advisor can assess your needs and help identify programs that suit your requirements.

Alternative solutions:

We are all adaptive and creative, especially in the face of need. Below are a few examples of creative solutions that people have used to pay for college. These are just a few examples of success stories that others have shared with us. You might have a personal success story that you'd like to share. If so, please email your idea to us or add you comment to this post.

Chances are good that you have full or partial custody of your kids. This means that you play an extremely critical role in their development, and possibly, a larger role than ever before.

If you're like many divorced moms, this might sometimes cause sleepless nights as thoughts of future tasks and responsibilities limit your ability to rest.

Everyone wants their kids to be successful and happy in life. Family counselors hear this all the time. Amazingly, so do financial counselors. Why? Because feelings of self-doubt about one's financial prowess and economic success aren't uncommon. Let's face it, living well (or at least looking like we do) costs a lot and sometimes causes financial mistakes.

As parents, we must respond to every facet of childhood learning, and foster an environment of optimum development for our young. Anything less exposes them to the potential of making some of our mistakes again. Teaching kids about money to improve financial awareness and aptitude is a big deal.

Teaching them prepares them for the challenges ahead and fortunately, also helps us to pick up a few pointers at the same time. Below are a few tips for teaching kids about money:

1. Demonstrate your dedication to effective financial management by devising an overall budget that identifies all expenses and income, sets reasonable spending controls and includes a plan for contributions to savings.

Do this monthly and get the kids involved too. Meet to collectively discuss and establish a plan that includes any expenses that the kids anticipate also. This helps eliminate surprises and teaches them the process of monthly control and review.

Determining the best alternative for financing a child's education is often a daunting task for married couples.

For divorced families, the task becomes even more complex. In cases involving divorce, not only are there often differing opinions about who should pay education costs, parents often have opposing views about the schools kids should attend or what their academic focus should be.

Here are some strategies for how you can plan to pay for your child's college education:

College is costly. Here are some rough estimates: In the United States, the cost of higher education increases by approximately 6% per year and has consistently increased this way since the 1960s. At this rate, higher education will double in cost in about 12 years. This means today's six-year-old will face costs that roughly double what college freshman pay today.

Fortunately there are savings and investment plans to help, and you don't need a CPA to understand them.

In recent years a growing number of parents have discovered 529 College Savings Plans (named for the section of IRS tax code they fall under). The government gave 529s special tax treatment because of a general concern about the spiraling cost of higher education and inflation.

Government economists believe that a day will come when costs for a four-year college will reach as much as $250,000. The government passed legislation in support of 529s with the hope that families would embrace them in the same way many have latched onto 401(k) plans for retirement.

So just what makes 529s so attractive? First, 529's (under the current legislation) aren't subject to capital gains tax as long as the money is used for qualifying higher education costs.

Secondly, 529 assets are owned by individual parents, not the student. This gives parents control and keeps your child from using the money at age 18 for buying a new Harley or taking a trip to Cancun.

Research purchases carefully. Use the internet to find the best products and to identify the lowest cost suppliers.

Spend in a disciplined manner. Buy only what you've budgeted.

Pay attention to coupons. Yes they're a pain, but they actually do save money when used for planned purchases.

Take public transportation instead of buying a car. At the very least, carpool whenever possible. Just one day of car pooling weekly helps automobiles last up to 20% longer, and also lowers other transportation costs too.

Track all spending. Keeping a spending log will open your eyes to "holes" in your budget.

Barter baby-sitting services with friends and family.

Carry your snack to the movies instead of buying there. Popcorn — at $4.50 a box and Coke for $4.75 a cup — are bad for your wallet, or your date's. Carry an apple and bottle of water in your purse instead. You'll save big bucks for you and make a great impression on him.

Organize a weekly "night-in" with your friends as opposed to going out. Take turns hosting, but require each guest to bring food to share with the group.

Pack your lunch. Carrying twice a week lowers costs by 40% a month!
Buy soft drinks in bulk and keep supplies in your desk at work instead of buying drinks at the café.

Drink tea at work instead of coffee — keep bags in your desk.

Pay cash instead of charging. At 18% APR, a thousand dollars in revolving credit results in almost $15 in interest in just thirty days. In a year, that adds up to $180 of your hard earned cash!

Buy insurance from one company to get a multi-policy discount.

When buying clothes, select separates that coordinate.

Right now you're probably wondering what this has to do with women, divorce, or anything even remotely related. Keep reading.

The foot was amputated to save his life after a severe and uncontrollable infection spread through it. Over the next two years he tried without success to get a good job, but as luck had it, he just couldn't get the chance he yearned for. We talked several times, and even though he claimed to be optimistic, I knew he probably wasn't.

On a few occasions he'd say things like: "If I could just get a prosthetic foot, I be able to stand, feel better about myself, and project the image I want others to see. I'm certain that it [a new foot] would change my luck, but I've tried everything. Nobody is going to give it to me, and I can't get a job that will give me any chance of getting what I need for myself".

As a financial advisor, I wasn't very well informed about prosthetics, but I promised to help find a solution that might improve his luck.

The search was on. I Googled every possible phrase I could think of that might return potential leads, and I checked each out. I called every public and private charity in the region. After more than a week, not one penny was raised. I too was starting to think that he'd spend the rest of his years on wheels.

I was about to throw in the towel when I thought of a friend that might just steer me toward something. Marilyn had worked for several companies in various PR and Community Relations roles, and after her husband's death, she joined the staff of the company where I worked. Her office was right next to mine.

So, I told her about a Home Equity Line of Credit or HELOC. It's a revolving line of credit, typically with a variable interest rate. A fixed home equity loan (sometimes called a "second mortgage") is just that: a loan for a fixed amount, term, and interest rate.

With either, the amount you can borrow is based on the equity in your home and typical credit underwriting factors. Both are subordinate to primary mortgages, but because fixed home equity loans work somewhat like conventional mortgages, people sometimes refer to them as "seconds."

What the difference? HELOCs are revolving lines of credit in which the lender sets a credit line for you. You borrow by using the line as you wish to pay for repairs, consolidate bills, a vacation, cosmetic surgery, whatever. HELOCs are often offered with low application fees and closing costs (and sometimes with no costs at all). Interest rates are usually somewhat higher than for fixed home equity loans.

HELOCs often have terms of 10 or 15 years and at maturity, the entire remaining balance is due in full (unless you refinance your mortgage). During the term of the HELOC, you pay at least the minimum each month (just like a credit card). In most states, the mortgage company can foreclose if you default on a HELOC or fixed home equity loan just as they can on first mortgages.

Through divorce and property settlements, women sometimes end up as the sole owners of homes that they previously owned jointly with their spouses. Women are frequently happy when this happens, but getting the family home in a settlement isn't always a big win.

Take for example, the case of a woman who, after careful planning and some spirited negotiation, got the family's luxury home in a hotly-contested divorce settlement. Located in an upscale neighborhood, the home was valued at more than a million dollars. And because it had originally been purchased with her ex-husband some fifteen years earlier, the property had more than quadrupled in value over the years. What's not to be happy about?

Yes, a mortgage was needed to secure the home, but the monthly payment was well within her ability (or so she thought). She felt compelled to keep the property to avoid changing schools, and to minimize the impact of the divorce on her two sons. "Besides, on my salary, there's no way I'd ever be able to afford another home as nice as this one," she told me.

Less than two years after the divorce, things started going downhill. First, the water heater needed to be replaced — a $700 expense, charged to her VISA card. Then, there was a leaky roof — $1,600, also charged to the card. In the summer, the pool's filter pump died right after she returned from vacation (the repair and the vacation went on the card too). She wondered what might come next.

Then, toward the end of summer, her car's transmission failed. Because the warranty had expired a year earlier, she was facing a nearly $2,000 repair bill.

The woman's brother came to her rescue and helped negotiate the purchase of a new car. Given the condition of her trade-in and her desire for a "larger and safer car," she ended up with a monthly payment of roughly $200 more than she'd been paying. The car also required more gas, nearly twice that of the previous car.