Friday, May 26, 2006

Chauffeuring us into Middle Age....


Dan and I bit the bullet this week and bought our first (of probably many) minivan. Dan's car blew a head gasket about 3 weeks ago and we have been a single car family for the time being. The single car thing worked out fine, almost perfectly perhaps. The only time we ever absolutely needed another vehicle was on Saturday night when both he and I worked. It took away some of our freedom to be confined to one vehicle. I had to wait until he got home from work to do errands and he was stuck at home while I was working. We even considered staying a single car family, which would have worked out fine if our only car was not a teeny, tiny Cavalier. With the Deuce on the way this fall, we knew we needed something a bit bigger. Sure, we could fit both carseats in the back of the Cav, but that would be it. The trunk was puny at best, so long trips were out. And forget about Elvis ever seeing the farm again. He wasn't riding on my lap!

We found a wonderful Nused (new to us used) Chevy Venture on a small lot in Xenia. It was the first van we test drove. We tried a few others, just for argument's sake, but we were sold on the first one. We brought home our minivan on Wednesday, and bid our youth good bye. I guess a small price to pay to ever visit our families again. Now Aveline and the Deuce will have the second row of seats and Elvis with lounge in the third. We even have a little extra space for luggage. Dan and I also like the fact that we will be able to haul larger things, like lumber or carpet. I think it was the right time.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

We're glad someone else finally joined the ranks! You will love the mini-van (except for the jokes from friends!). We prefer to call ours a Caravan, it does not hurt as much to say it! We are all getting old.

Casey

Jamie said...

Sounds like you've been needing a mini van all along! You'll definately wonder how you did it before now that you have some nice interior space.

Rosemary said...

Mini-van, shmini-van. It's just a streamlined, roomy SUV, right? Seriously, the advantages will so far outweigh the teasing that you're not going to be thinking about "middle aged" at all.

PS. I'd like to invite you to join our brand new, family friendly BLOG VILLAGE TopList at http://blogvillage.gotop100.com/ .

Anonymous said...

I saw it today and I think it's great!!! You guys picked a good one!

Anonymous said...

Looks good to us!!! Wow! WE are happy for you. We love our van and we are empty nesters!!! Hauls lots of stuff----you'll be pleased. Kristi---again, please consider writing a book--you are so very talented in your writing. Love reading your blog!!!

Anonymous said...

Mine is really just a small station wagen. I like the "Silver Bullet". I'm sure that one will be parked in our driveway. Loading the car top hauler is fine once in a while, but not all the time.

FOUR whole sentences without saying Mini-van.

SMAC said...

Congrats on the new wheels. I think it is quite becoming! I hope it provides you with many comfortable and safe voyages for many miles to come :)

Christina said...

Congrats on the van! If Aaron gets a new job, we'll probably be looking into a used van as well.

Pete said...

We have a minivan. It isn't so bad. It beats an SUV on gas mileage and comes in handy for space.

My wife did fight the transition kicking and screaming, however.

Jessica said...

Well, as long as you can get used to the comments about being a "soccer mom" like I heard at first, you will love it! We have had our van for about a year now and I can't imagine going without it. It is great for ANY family, no matter what size.

Enjoy!