Well....It's OFFICIAL!!!

I, Julie Renee Weite, am a MINIVAN driving Momma!! And, I still can't believe how EXCITED I am!!! I'm excited for the EXTRA ROOM, I'm excited for the CONVENIENCE of AUTOMATIC SLIDING SIDE DOORS, and I'm EXCITED about getting better GAS MILEAGE. Who would have ever thought that I'd EVER be excited about driving, much less OWNING, a MINIVAN!!! I mean, this is coming from the girl who was NEVER, EVER, EVER going to own a MINIVAN. I was NEVER going to be caught dead in one and I was certainly NEVER going to expose my kids to a minivan....boy, have times changed!!!

Let me take you back about a decade and a half when I had my first experience with a minivan...a 1990 (I think that was the year) GM Safari...gray exterior with gray interior and the CUTEST gray curtains on each window. (Mom, in NO way am I complaining...that van was PERFECT for all of our softball road trips and had lots of room for our family...so don't take any part of this paragraph personally! That van was definitely good to us!!) BUT, driving a minivan in high school was NOT cool....not that I was caught up in the material world, because my siblings and I were definitely raised to appreciate things and to work hard and take care of what we had. (But, all the cool cars parked in good old Marquette High School parking lot were something that I was a little envious of ;) Anyway...that HOOP-T van toted around my friends and I on a many, many weekends and never let us down. I hyper-extended the passenger side door...(if that's even possible on a car) and once left a gallon of milk under the seat in the summer (after a grocery store run for my mom) for at least a good week in the hot, hot sun. I'll let you all guess how long it took to get that STENCH out!!! So, as much as I loved that ride, I swore to myself, back when I was 17, that I'd NEVER buy a minivan. I was definitely going to be a SUV kinda Momma!!

Well...not that there's anything wrong with SUV's, but with soon-to-be three little kids, it just doesn't seem practical...not to mention the gas mileage on the BIG ones I like!! Besides...my priorities have changed my ways and opinions of the good old minivan......

We're going with a 2008 Toyota Sienna XLE...not my dream minivan, but a definite great purchase...especially with EVERYTHING else we have going on at the moment!!! (It also helps that Trey & Tylee love it....and, that's what really counts!!!)

Now, Dad....I know you're never gong to forgive me for buying a foreign car, but really, it was the best deal, with the lowest mileage and the best options. Making a smart investment has to count for something, right!??! (On a side note, I did buy it from a local, hard-working, small-time dealer...thus supporting the American Dream :)

Let the minivan FUN begin..........

(And, yes....I realize I used the word "minivan" TEN times in this post, but isn't that the point?!? It's MINIVAN TIME!! Now, make that TWELVE TIMES!)