2 Mommies and a Baby
:
Friday, August 18, 2006
making it work
I’ve given a quick overview of our car situation on livejournal.
The long and short of it is that I’ve had a few things swirling around in my head during this "gotta get a new car" thing.
Based on the fact that Lois will not be working for a period of time when Chubby comes, spending $$ on anything is scary.
I have been of the "get the least expensive car with our needs" thought for a while, but have made a shift.
We have a child on the way now.
We need a car that’s 4 door, AWD, automatic, reliable and safe, safe, safe. Probably an SUV. It’s gotta last, it’s gotta be comfortable.
Making a decision about a car now is not about what we as a couple want or need or want to spend right now decision. It’s a decision that involves a baby.
I’m usually the fiscally irresponsible one, Lois is the smart money one. Now, I am balking at the idea of spending more than $250/month on a car. (The last 3 cars I owned cost less than $250 a month. You can’t get that anymore.)
I’m a little scared, but I remember friends in law school, full-time students with spouses, only one income, pregnant/having children, buying homes, needing new cars, etc. They just made it work.
Whatever the decision comes down to (we’ll probably know tonight if we are in love with this car that we both want), we will make it work.
The long and short of it is that I’ve had a few things swirling around in my head during this "gotta get a new car" thing.
Based on the fact that Lois will not be working for a period of time when Chubby comes, spending $$ on anything is scary.
I have been of the "get the least expensive car with our needs" thought for a while, but have made a shift.
We have a child on the way now.
We need a car that’s 4 door, AWD, automatic, reliable and safe, safe, safe. Probably an SUV. It’s gotta last, it’s gotta be comfortable.
Making a decision about a car now is not about what we as a couple want or need or want to spend right now decision. It’s a decision that involves a baby.
I’m usually the fiscally irresponsible one, Lois is the smart money one. Now, I am balking at the idea of spending more than $250/month on a car. (The last 3 cars I owned cost less than $250 a month. You can’t get that anymore.)
I’m a little scared, but I remember friends in law school, full-time students with spouses, only one income, pregnant/having children, buying homes, needing new cars, etc. They just made it work.
Whatever the decision comes down to (we’ll probably know tonight if we are in love with this car that we both want), we will make it work.
3 Comments:
Good luck with your decision! We will need a new car at some point. We thought of getting one before the baby but now we'll probably wait. We have my car (5 year old Echo) and Angele's car (big ass something or other). We plan on getting rid of her car and buying an SUV/van. We'd love something hybrid but they are insanely expensive and we need something big because we plan on having more kids and we have 2 dogs!!! Ugh. I wish money rained down on us or something. ;)
Don't get an SUV. Take it from a CPST ;)
Okay, there are a FEW SUVs that are safe. But really, more often than not, SUVs end up being more dangerous than anything else on the road.
Buy a van. Just do it. You won't regret it.
In the midst of Charlie's medical nightmares and hospital bills and three mortgages and near bankruptcy from doctor bills, we have had to buy TWO new vehicles (unfortuantely this city is not made for one car families) and yeah, it's scary!
You want side air bags for front and rear passengers and preferably stability control. Stay away from GM vans and GM SUVs. If you really want the safest thing on the road, buy a Subaru. If you really want an SUV, a Forester, Outback, CRV, or Rav-4 are your safest options. But I'm telling you... it's an illusion of safety. Well, except for those four, which are truly very safe.
informedforlife.org has a good risk breakdown sheet. And of course check out iihs.org and safercar.gov for crash tests. If you need help deciphering them, let me know ;)
And don't fall for the "5 stars" bs. NHTSA (safercar, the star system) only tells you how the frame of the vehicle held. It does NOT indicate passenger safety. Sometimes they go hand in hand, and sometimes they don't. IIHS (good, marginal, poor) is the one that tells you if the dummy lived. And pay very close attention to side impact scores, as side imapacts, though not as common, are by far the most fatal.
And, again, before you buy it, make sure your car seat fits well! Test drive it to Babies R Us and install a car seat in it (preferably a Britax Boulevard or Graco SafeSeat1 of course) and make sure you can get it in securely (but of course it will be installed by a CPST when baby comes, RIGHT?) and still have room in front, because that kid is going to be rear facing for several years, and you don't want to be eating the dashboard that whole time.
Look. I wrote a book. Think it will get published?
Okay, just remember that car does NOT have SAB for the rear passengers. This might not be a huge deal. I recently bought a car without SAB for the rear. I knew teh car was stellar in side impact without the bags, and I als knew how to get around needing them. Charlie will be rear facing for at least 2 more years (god willing) and after that he hopefully will be in the middle (if I can get a good install). Either way he is in a seat with side impact protection (the seat has it's own airbags) and by the time he is out of a harnessed seat (about 8 years) I will not own this car anymore. Soooo... :)
Your baby isn't even born. RF for 3-5 years (depending on size of child and if you are willing) and then in a harness for several more years. So, SAB might not be that big a deal. Rollover is pretty high for that vehicle, but life isn't perfect ;)
I examined the HIC and TTI for side impact for that year (like I said, I am weird. And, well, it's a compulsion. I also examine japanese, australian, and euro crash test when available) and they're actually quite good.
Buy your lexus. Get a good seat, and baby will be wonderful.
And feel free to tell me to shut up now ;)
Post a Comment
<< Home