The decision to buy a van was difficult, I'm not even 30 yet (one month from today actually). Yet, I knew it was the right decision to make with our growing family and our constant trips to visit family. Plus our old van has been very helpful for hauling everything from Christmas presents to bags of mulch.
So I did my research on Cars.com and read Consumer Reports and found the van in the Peoria area I wanted and that we could afford.
So we bought this 2011 Kia Sedona.
And guess what. I love it. I am a mini van mom. I never thought I would be a mini van mom, let alone love it.
I am not a bells and whistles girl. All my previous cars have been manual transmissions. I have never had power windows or locks. For the past seven years I have been without cruise control. I would much rather prefer a vehicle with low mileage that is less expensive and will last a long time.
Our new van doesn't have a lot of extra features, but it does have power locks and windows, plus cruise control. It has Bluetooth capabilities. It has a V6 engine and I have never driven a vehicle with so much power. I have to watch the speedometer closely because it is so easy to go fast. It is great in the rain which has been nice for this very rainy April. And D really, really loves it. She has staked out the back seat as her domain. She gets herself in and buckles-up all by herself. I really love that.
I guess I can even surprise myself.
Yay! I love vans. I drove a mini-van from the year they came out (I think 1983) until 2006.
ReplyDeleteMy mom has driven mini vans since the mid-80s as well. She loves them. She just bought another even through she has no kids living at home. Now I am starting to see why she loves them.
DeleteWe are not in the market for a new car right now, but we have talked about what we should get when Stephen's 2003 Taurus dies. It needs to be big enough for a child, a dog, and a cat, which means that one way or another, it's going to have to have two back seats. I have been very resistant to the idea of a mini-van, but maybe you can teach me otherwise. I've never really cared about what my car looked like as long as it got me where I needed to go, but I think I've always had that "omg, I am really old now," reaction to a mini-van.
ReplyDeleteI've had the "really old" reaction too but I have really enjoyed the space and comfort of the mini van for the past week. We will have two kids and two dogs to haul. If you want to try out my van let me know.
DeleteI will have to try it out sometime. We are always really cramped in the Legacy when we go home, and it's always stressful at Christmas to figure out if we can fit our presents plus the other stuff my parents are always trying to send with us to get it out of their house. Lina and Twitchit are very cramped in the backseat, too, and do a lot of smacking each other.
DeleteWe have been able to haul so much stuff when traveling. Christmas gifts are always a issue and having the van makes it so much easier.
Delete