What’s Your Dream Car?

Hands down - a minivan. Bliss, nirvana, never looking back. Even my husband openly laments, "Why didn't we get one sooner!?!" Although he‘d never publicly admit that too loudly. Hey, he drives a minivan. He wants to hold onto a bit of his manhood.

Background:

Whilst pregnant with our first child, we knew we soon would need a bigger car. We picked the GMC Acadia which was a brand

new model back in 2009. Right? A cool, rugged yet sporty SUV? Minivan did NOT EVEN CROSS OUR MINDS. Only really uncool, boring parents (or unfortunate teenagers) have to drive minivans.

Looking back, I remember a few mo

ments that slowly began building my consciousness towards my dream minivan . . .

1. In a postpartum haze, I made it through the grocery store with my newborn taking up most of the shopping cart, sleeping in her bucket car seat. When I got out to my cool, hip SUV, someone had parked next to me (which isn’t really that unusual, but I was a hormonal hot mess) & I could not open the car door wide enough to get my kid/car seat into the car. Same situation on the other side. Tears, panic, anxiety, heart palpitations & sweat all thundered down onto this new mom. Do I leave the shopping cart AND my daughter off to the side, get in the car, and move it? I honestly can’t remember what I did. (I think I may have threw open the tailgate, loaded her into the back, moved the car, and then re-situated her in the car. With the sleep deprived

delirium new parenting is, I'm actually pretty impressed that I obviously did figure it out). Anyway . . . .

2. I split a kick pleat 3 times hoisting myself into that SUV. I am 5'2", but still.

3. We were at a playground for a play date in mid-summer. Super hot, humid day. By this point, I had a toddler and an infant. The sky opened up & torrential downpour ensued. Moms with miscellaneous kids & gear sprinted to their cars. (Smart) moms with minivans just pressed a button on their clicker/remote/fob (whatever you happen to call it), and voila! Rear sliding doors -- opened! Stiflin

g air — escaped. Moms got kids in vans. Moms ran around & got themselves in. And after the minivans cooled down a bit, moms reached over their heads to delicately (and maybe smugly, in full view of the SUV drivers who thought minivans were for dorks) pressed a button that then effortlessly slid the doors shut.

This mom, this one here, was running back & forth around the SUV, opening doors, shutting doors, getting soaking wet. Who's the dork now?

4. "Be careful! Don't slam your broth

er's/sister's fingers in the door!!!!" TWICE. EVERY. SINGLE. TRIP.

5. "Be careful opening the door!!! Don't ding the car next to us!!!"

The epiphany

A friend, a more seasoned & cool mom than me, who drove a Volvo SUV showed up one day with a new black minivan. What happened to the Volvo!? "Oh, I've been dreaming of a minivan. This thing is amazing! I love it!"

Huh? Really!?!?! . .Ok . . . I'm listening . . . Tell me more.

Subconsciously, I had been observing moms & minivans for a few years now. I couldn't quite put my fin

ger on it, but there was something there. What did they know that I didn't know? Do tell!!

More seasoned, cool Mom: "Well, my kids won't hit the car next to them when they open the doors & there's a sensor that won't close anything in the doors. I can open & close the doors with a touch of a button. The dog & my (elderly) parents can easily get in & move around. And the doors open so wide that I can fit almost any size box in. The middle row also comes out, just like carrying a suitcase & then it's like an ENCLOSED pick up truck. And the kids love how high they sit, with the nice big windows to see out. Oh, you've got to see this. There are footrests!"

Bam, lightning bolt. SOLD!!

We special ordered a Toyota Sienna Limited edition because 1) we wanted AWD & at the time Toyota was (maybe still is?) the only company that made an AWD minivan; 2) we wanted all the bells & whistles & safety features; and 3) we did NOT want the entertainment package with the DVD player which is standard on the Limited. For the extra $4k cost of the entertainment system, we could buy a lot of Ipads & headphones to use anywhere. Besides, we are a podcast & audiobook family. Our van cost around $41k in 2015.

From the passenger seat alone, I can reach & use 6 cuph

olders. Six!

Jealous, aren‘t you?

My husband once made the mistake of telling me he was going to use MY minivan to drive the kids to a hockey game in Rhode Island. I flipped a gasket: "GET YOUR OWN FREAKING MINIVAN, BUSTER!!!"

I was sort of joking / not joking.