My Graduation From Soccer-momdom

The day has finally arrived.  I’m about to graduate from owning a mini-van to buying some other kind of vehicle – that’s smaller.

Honestly, the thought of driving around in something besides a mini-van is, well, unsettling.  After all, I’ve owned a mini-van since 1998.  But as I was standing in the Honda dealership listening to the service consultant inform me that I needed repairs and maintenance services of over $3,000 for my mini-van to possibly transport me another 100k miles, well, my husband said, “I think it’s time to trade it in.”

My husband has been ready for me to “graduate” for about a year now, but I’ve held onto my Odyssey for one obvious reason – SPACE!  I’ve used it to cart around lots of people, purchases from Home Depot, and let’s face it, it’s invaluable when moving our daughter to and from college. 

But my husband pointed out the following:

• We’re only going to move our daughter twice more and then she’ll graduate
• Her girlfriend owns a truck and so do about three other “guy friends” if we really need one
• We don’t cart around lots of people anymore
• If I can’t get our luggage in a regular size vehicle for a trip, I’ve over-packed
• If we buy something large at Home Depot, they do let you use one of their delivery trucks for free if the purchase is over $25, which obviously it would be
• He would soon be buying a new SUV or cross-over so it’s not like we wouldn’t have one car that was fairly large

Gosh, I hate when he’s right.

So, out to the lot I went looking at new vehicles.  I have to admit that the next two hours I spent investigating a Honda Accord and Fit were quite fun.  New cars have lots of fun options, and there’s a lot of choices besides mini-vans!  ;)

I was drawn to the tiny “Fit” because it had a LOT of room for such a tiny car and it averages 27 mpg in the city and 33 mpg on the highway, but everyone I've talked to says 40 mpg is pretty typical.  WOO HOO!  Now, that caught my attention!  Plus, one of the service agents said she actually has owned a Fit for four years and she told me that she absolutely LOVES it.  

Now that I’ve accepted  that I’ll be buying something besides a mini-van, I’m now overwhelmed with all the possibilities. If I look at the Honda Fit's competition, there’s the Mazda2 that’s running a close second.

Or should I go a little larger like the Honda Accord or the Toyota Camry?  I had Nissans before the Honda van so I’ve considered a Maxima or an Altima. 

Come to think about it.... I’ve always wanted a red convertible so since I’m leaving behind my “soccer mom” status, why shouldn’t I enter the “hot mama” world?  Ok, probably not.  UGH!  There’s just too many choices. 

No wonder I fought graduation for so long…soccer momdom was just plain easier.

If you have some suggestion on what you think is a great car on the market these days, I’d love to hear your thoughts!