And admittedly when it comes to horses and horse equipment, I’m just a girl who can’t say no. That’s me. And the bad part is, for the past few years, I’ve been lucky enough to be able to buy a lot of my horse gear at wholesale. Believe me, I’ve taken advantage of this delicious little benefit of my sometimes frustrating day job.

When I left for this particular trade show, my husband asked what my budget is. I told him that I’m pretty well set for horse gear. Everyone has pads and bridles and brushes. I have supplements and medications and linament and shampoos and whatever else you can think of. So I told him I wasn’t going to buy anything at all. Not a darn thing.

What’s that saying? Best laid plans of mice and men? Yup, not only did I blow my nonexistent budget, but I blew it big time. I bought a saddle. Not just any old saddle, but a very nice, supremely comfortable imported German saddle. For about a third of the retail price.

Colleagues on this business trip who listened to me lament the spending of my hard-earned dollars reminded me that I can sell the saddle on eBay for just under retail and still make a whopping profit if it doesn’t work out for Belle. Somehow I have a feeling it will fit her. And if it doesn’t, no harm done.

A life coach once told me to stop worrying and enjoy my success. She gave me a mantra—to love my money spend it on what I love (within reason) and stop beating myself up. After all, I’ve earned it. Belle will have a nifty new outfit to wear, and I’m a little poorer. But as my friend Kent used to say, no one died regretting they didn’t pay off their Master Card bill.