Congratulations, MomVesting reader. You've made it through yet another Christmas season. Who's for looking ahead to next year's holiday season? Now, don't click away just yet; hear me out. Yes, many of our seasonal lights are still blinking away after the sun goes down, and many of us have just finished carting out the large garbage bag stuffed full of wrapping and tissue paper. And some of us – the lucky ones – still have a few Christmas cookies or goodies hanging around the house.

Resolutions may seem intimidating, especially when they are financial resolutions. Trying to resolve in one day to overhaul any or all aspects of your finances can be a nightmare. However, when you break down your resolutions into goals that are accomplishable, financial resolutions aren't quite as scary. Let's look at some of the best ways to make financial resolutions in the new year.

Think Big

New Year’s always holds a sense of wonder and excitement for me. What can I do with this new year? How can I improve my life? What goals can I set that will both be attainable and challenging at the same time?

This year, my resolutions are rather simple. Since I plan to gain twenty pounds rather than take it off, I think I can easily check the weight goal off the list. Of course, I want to gain the poundage in the healthiest way possible, so while I eat for two, I vow to focus on eating more…but more fruits, vegetables, lean meats and dairy.

What New Year's party is complete without at least one decadent dessert? If you're throwing a party or have been asked to bring a side dish, you might want to consider lemon bars. These sugary yet tart pieces of heaven can serve a few purposes: one, they're a sweet completion to almost any meal; and two, they can be used as a palate cleanser, with the lemon helping diners ease their way from the flavorful meal to the piles of desserts.

Frugality has been a topic of conversation with many finance bloggers in the recent the months, and there seems to be a consensus that it is possible to be too frugal. This may seem surprising at first glance. I mean, how can it hurt to save as much money as possible? Let's take a look at the principles behind frugality and how being too frugal can be detrimental to your finances.

How Do You Define Frugality?

With New Year's Eve on the horizon, there may be another mad dash to set up for yet another holiday party. If you're all out of ideas for a quick and easy, stay-hot side dish to serve, then you've come to the right place. I'd like to share my absolute favorite side dish recipe, Confetti Beans (aka Calico Beans or Cowboy Beans).

This flavorful side dish is always a hit, and thanks to the crockpot simplicity, making this dish ahead of time is possible for the busy season. In fact, the longer the beans sit in the crockpot, the more flavorful the dish becomes. So here it goes: Calico Beans!

As we continue our investment definitions series, we come to Automatic Investment Plans (AIP). Just like it sounds, this type of investment plan works on the basis of using automatic withdrawals to invest in a retirement account, mutual funds or stocks. One of the more common places that an AIP occurs is through the workplace, where contributing to a 401(k) offered by your employer can be easily accomplished through a paycheck deduction. Automatic Investment Plans can also occur in other situations, though, so let's look a little more closely at this new investment term.

I don't know about you, but sometime it's so easy to become almost lost in the rush of days leading up to your holiday celebration. There are presents to buy and wrap, goodies to make, parties and gatherings to prepare for...and all of this falls on top of the normal stuff of life like school, work and home. There's something about this season that makes life just busier, as if it weren't busy enough.

Frugality seems to be making a comeback these days; saving money is hot, especially now that Christmas is right around the corner. We've brought you some ideas on buying gifts that are cheap (and some that don't cost a penny!), and now we add a few make-your-own ideas to the table.

Making your own Christmas gifts need not be daunting or dismissed as too chintzy or cheap. It's a way to give something that you've crafted with your own hands specifically for someone; the fact that it traditionally doesn't cost a whole lot is just a bonus.

Bake or Cook a Gift

Although MomVesting has focused on the holidays in the last few weeks, we do realize that there are many people of differing religions. In fact, I am one of the few. As someone of a differing faith who dislikes commercialization, I know that I’m not alone in my “Bah Humbug” mentality. However, I also realize that I must make it through the holiday season somehow, so I want to share how I skate through the holidays, even with a distinctly pro-Christmas family.

Accept Your Differences