Psst...Wanna Rent a Mini Van?

Yeah, over here!

Huh, why rent a mini van? OK I'll back up. For six and a half years, and over 163K miles, I owned an eight passenger mini van. Hubby was very high on getting a mini van when my Pontiac Grand Am had to be replaced. We had three growing children at that point plus all of their stuff to tote around. An eight passenger vehicle, with three rows of seats, at the time cost $25K (basic options) and we just about were able to afford the 66 month loan because they were running a zero percent APR financing deal.

One of the first things we did when we got the van home was to remove the middle seat in the second row, so the kids could climb in and out freely. Y'know when we put it back in? When we were getting ready to donate the van to charity. The kids did have a lot of room to clamber around back there, but they still managed to fight and kick one another. There was ample room in the back for chairs, boogie boards, soccer balls, hockey equipment, etc. but it was mostly vertical space and we had problems with items falling out when we opened the hatch. Filling the tank was always expensive and of course was not fun during the $4 per gallon stretch. It was downright convenient, however, to go places all together with my mom as a family or to grab a couple of the kids' friends to go here and there.

I'm sure hubby would have loved to see me get another van, but no. The five passenger SUV drives like a car, which is comfortable for me and safer in my opinion. I've had it for three months and am still thrilled 5K miles later! $25 fills up the tank...what a difference. Payments are comparable to the van, with 5% financing, and it's "only" a 48 month loan. The rear storage space is more convenient to use, as it's deep instead of vertical.

And now we get to Christmas. We can either drive two cars to New Jersey to visit my aunt and uncle, or we can rent a mini van tomorrow and return it the day after Christmas. Since we don't do that more than a few times a year, and since it's a $200 expense, I'm more than happy to do it when I think about the chronicles of our own mini van.

Just call me rental girl. :-)