It may not come in baby shit green or have wood paneling like the Griswolds drive in National Lampoon's Vacation, but the Teisings officially have a "family truckster" of their own-- a 2007 Honda Odyssey Touring! Yes, folks....we are living the mini-van dream and it's parked right outside our house!
My husband will tell you that the pride I exude in talking about our minivan is a complete 180 from a year ago. Since 2005, I've been driving a silver Saab 9-2X. It's a sensible car-- a great grocery getter with AWD and a manual transmission. Although the interior space resembles a clown car, Silvia, as I like to call her, is fun to drive and hasn't ever given me any problems. (As a side note, I've named all my cars...my first, a navy blue 1986 Chevy Blazer was Bessy...then there was Ruby, my red 1999 Plymouth Breeze...and then my beloved Silvia...)
However, once we became pregnant, I began to think about upgrading so that Rich could drive my car. My sweet husband drives a white 1995 Toyota Corolla given to him by his Nana. Despite the deteriorating paint job, he claims people are "jealous" of this vehicle with it's ability to get good gas mileage. (Ha!) Nicknames for the Corolla include Pimpstrolla (retired since meeting me in 2008), Rockinrolla and Slowrolla. While Rich loves this car, there is no way in hell I will allow our son to ride in it. After years of wear and the eau de metal smell that emanates from the interior due to years of building his steel fabrication business from the ground up, it became clear that we needed another car suitable for our growing family. After lots of research, I decided on a Subaru Outback. Hands down. No bones about it. An AWD, reliable vehicle with high safety ratings....and one that doesn't immediately scream soccer mom. Yes, it would be me and every lesbian I've ever met driving the sporty Subaru.
Rich has been in love with minivans for years. Our sister and brother-in-law drive a Chrystler minivan and take pride in the practicality of it. Rich even made them a generator for brewing coffee in this thing for camping trips and he always bragged he could get several kegs of beer into one. His dream minivan of choice? A Chevy Astro. No joke. I have no idea why this particular brand of minivan is/was so appealing to him. Nonetheless, Rich is the only man I've ever known outside of a colleague that coveted one pre-wife and kids. And this is something I've always found endearing, despite my strong resistance.
So, he's been trying to sell me on the minivan for about four years now. I didn't buy it until I was about six months pregnant. I witnessed a dear friend push a button on her fab to open the sliding doors of her 2006 Honda Odyssey Touring, thus efficiently and effortlessly buckling her 14 month-old in for the drive home. The ease of these automatic sliding doors really got me thinking and the vision of stooping down to wrestle a heavy baby carrier into a car, even if it was my longed for Subaru, suddenly no longer held any appeal. Just like that.
So now, wouldn't you know it? I enthusiastically drive a minivan. I am a convert. I look like a Mom in it because I am about to become one. The leather interior is easy to clean, the sliding doors are pimp and we can fit seven comfortably! It even has a DVD-- perfect for long road trips. Now, unlike the Slowrolla, this is a vehicle that could definitely cause some jealousy.
Congratulations!! -Kate
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