Car Dilemma

Minivan? Hybrid Car? Commuter car?

It is no secret that gas prices are ridiculous. Chris drives quite far to and from work every day, so he needs a fuel efficient car. The Camry is fuel effiicient, but not as efficient as some other cars on the market. The kids do all fit in the Camry now (although we would need to upgrade in the next 3 years probably). So, we could keep the Camry for now and get Chris a nice fuel efficient commuter car, using the Camry as a trade perhaps in a few years. Options we have looked at our the Prius, Honda Civic, Honda Civic Hybrid, Ford Focus, and the Toyota Yaris. Humm. Then there is the shoveling the kids in the Camry issue. Can I tell you how many times I became annoyed with this the couple times my back has gone out the last couple months? Or, how annoying it is when the girls pick on Asher so he can not sleep or the mess with him to wake him up (he is currently in the middle of the 2 girls in the back seat). Oh, or when we go on a longer drives and there is no way to access them from the front seat (you unhook your seat belt and the entire car alarms! UGH!).

Then there is that thing called money. It would be easier on us to buy a commuter car (although not by much) than a van. We are writing a fat check for this car, and we like the money better in the bank at the moment. It is our emergency fund, and we are not so sure a big van is an emergency. We are getting by with the Camry after all.

I know what you are thinking because I have seen the stares (You should see the people standing in parking lots staring at me as I load the kids. Haven't they ever seen 3 kids in a car before? They are probably also pitting us I suppose. We are just not sure a van fits into the "necessary" category right now. Afterall, Chris and I don't even know if we want one yet! And, the Camry is working for now). Are we crazy? We have 3 kids and we are squeezing them into a car. To answer your question, yes, I am crazy (but I refuse to speak for Chris. :) ). If we had all the money in the world, I would want to buy a Prius and maybe a Hybrid SUV.

So, what will we do? It all depends on the day you ask us. In the next month or 2 we will decide. Until then, Chris will take his motorcyle to work unless it rains and we will continue to make the Camry work for this family of 5! 

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