The Big Purchase

It's time to blog about the big car purchase.

As you all know, Carl doesn't like to spend money. Ever. Before we started shopping for a new car we agreed on a limit. We knew this limit would not get us anything too much better than what we had but we were hoping for any upgrade. We found a couple of things within our budget. We decided to see what kind of deal we could get on the 2005 minivan (with the highway miles). Carl stood his ground. They sent the big whigs in to tell us why they couldn't go down any further and we would be silly not to get the van at this price (it was $2600 under our previously agreed upon limit). We decided to wait until Saturday and go out and look one last time before making any decisions.

On Saturday morning I found a Buick Rendezvous. It's a 2002 w/ 81K miles. It had all the creature comforts I like but aren't really necessary. For example, I could change the radio station or the cd from the steering wheel (ooooh aaaaah). It's a super cute car and I love it. Carl drove it and we decided to see what kind of deal they would make. The came down to $3500 under our limit. Honestly, I had kind of resigned myself to getting the van (with nothing great about it except stow & go). But, once I realized I could get this for less money with all the extras I really like--I wanted it. Badly. We decided to go to a neutral setting and discuss our options. We went out for hot chocolate and I started to cry. A lot. Sobbing. I knew Carl wasn't going to get me the Rendezvous no matter how cheap it was. I even brought up the fact that it has a French name and he should like that. I was pulling out all the stops. I couldn't stop crying. I tried to tell him that I drive this thing every day and I would like some comfort. We only take it on trips once or twice a year (when we would need the stow & go most) and the Rendezvous would be just fine for that. I pleaded with him about the mileage even though I realized myself that the van's 100K was probably "better" than the older car's 81K. I tried to appeal to his cheapness. No go. We were getting the van.

I cried all the way to the dealership. It's not that I didn't want the van or wouldn't eventually like it. It's just that once I realized that I could get something that I really liked in the price range---I was denied. This blog post would have been very different had we just went ahead and purchased the van on Friday night and I had never seen that Rendezvous.

The van was ready for us when we got to the dealership. I didn't cry at all once we were there. It was out of my system. Plus, I realized something on the way there. With every car purchase that weekend, you got a $250 gift certificate to a local jeweler.
Mama's happy now.

*The van color is called "Magnesium".
*My pendant is an amythest and the earrings are peridot. I was very tempted to go over my $250 limit but w/ tax and everything I had to pay the jeweler only $3.56.

The Big Purchase

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2007/01/big-purchase.html