When Matthew and I got married, we both had little cars. I was on my second Toyota Corolla and he had a Ford Focus. We quickly paid them off and then luxuriated in the absence of a car payment.
When we decided to send Matthew back to grad school for his MBA, we sold my car to my little brother and lived with his Focus for the next two years.
I thought we could live on just one car after he started his job with Air Products since I was a mom with a brand-new baby and Matthew's work wasn't very far away. At the very least I expected to wait at least a month before purchasing something. We had just moved and I was still adjusting to life as a mom, where was I going to need to go? Nope, I don't need a car, I reasoned, we should wait until Matthew got a few paychecks to see what our finances looked like before jumping into something so expensive. I lasted one whole week.
While we were still in State College and I was super pregnant, I researched and looked at and test drove a bunch of cars. I was thinking something Honda CRV size, but when I let Matthew have a say, he commented that if I expected to have three children in quick succession we would need something bigger - like a Honda Pilot. Ooooh. I had been dreaming of the Pilot, scoping out others when I saw them around town, but didn't think our situation necessitated such luxury (at least in my mind). But if Matthew wanted to buy me a Honda Pilot, who was I to say, "no"?
After a week of living a quiet existence with my month-old Boy Howdy, taking countless walks around our neighborhood, I needed to get out of the house. We went to the Honda dealership and bought my Pilot. I loved it. It was the nicest thing I had ever owned and had so much space for all the baby paraphernalia we had recently acquired to accompany this small person. This extra room was especially nice for our trips to visit my parents in Virginia. Or when we had our Chewkie, or went to IKEA, or the hardware store, or to the Christmas Tree farm, or when we had people visiting and all wanted to take one car. I LOVED my Pilot.
But then both kids started school and I began driving around by myself 9 out of 10 trips and I felt so wasteful driving such a big car with just me. I realized that I a small-car person. We recently paid off Matthew's newest acquisition, his Mazda 3, and expected to again luxuriate in not having a car payment until we are able to pay off our house, but Matthew (because I am blaming him) kept dropping hints about selling my car and buying something new.
So while we were on our way home from our semi-annual pilgrimage to the Tillamook Cheese Factory, we talked more seriously about what I would get. I had my heart set on a Volvo, something I've pined for since high school, except this one would actually be a nice new one, but I wasn't expecting its purchase for another 6 or 7 years. So when Matthew reminded me that we still have small children who make messes in cars, I decided my Volvo would need to wait. In that case, I wanted a Prius.
"What?!?" Matthew asked surprised and a little appalled. Prius say Oregon and crunchy and not remotely cool. Why would I want a Prius?
"Because they get great gas mileage and if I'm going to be able to justify selling a perfectly wonderful car, it's going to be because I can triple my gas mileage with a new one," I answered.
After I dropped off the family at home, I drove over to the Toyota dealership and found my Prius. It handled so smoothly, had sporty interior finishes and had a zillion new features my Pilot didn't. But was I really ready to make such a rash decision? I hemmed and hawed and reasoned and calculated for the next day before finally saying yes to the car. And even though signing for it took FOREVER, we just kind of ditched the Pilot to drive home. There was no closure, and it left Matthew and I a little heart-sick.
So here is my opportunity to formally thank my Pilot for everything it has meant to our family over the last, almost, 7 years. Pilot, thank you for being the car that helped me raise my babies. I have never questioned my family's safety while in this car. I have never wanted for extra space because of this car. I have been able to serve and host others with this car. And I have watched my children grow in this car. It has been reliable, comfortable, and completely perfect for our family.
But now it is time for a new adventure. We aren't having three children like we had originally envisioned for our family. We no longer need space for strollers and port-a-cribs. We don't have regular play-dates with friends who need a ride. And in another 9 years when I am ready to buy my dream Volvo, this Prius will make a perfect kid car for Boy Howdy and Chewkie. So thank you Pilot and welcome Prius.
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