A Surprise
Back a year ago, we were living in another place. I was seven months pregnant, we were shopping around for a minivan, and my husband had hit the degree ceiling at work. That is, he wasn't gonna get promoted because he didn't have a bachelor's degree. So, he'd applied to a couple different schools, and we were waiting to see what was going to happen.
Well, he got accepted, and got a financial aid package we figured we could survive on, so we shelved the minivan shopping, packed everything up, and moved. But we were still relying on the '93 Buick Century to get around. Now, it's a good reliable little car, but the key word there is little. It's all you can do to fit two car seats in it, and once they're in, there's only room for one passenger unless the second is really skinny and can fit between the car seats. We figured it'd last another three years or so until he got the degree, and then we'd get a minivan, and we'd just have to hope we didn't have another baby in the mean time.
Now we're living about fifteen minutes from my folks here, they're out in the country and we're down in town. They both teach at the university, and Mom works with international students. Two weeks ago she gave us a call. One of her students had graduated and was leaving for Taiwan in a couple weeks, and needed to sell her '95 Ford Windstar NOW. Mom and Dad would be happy to help us pay for it, and we could pay them back when we had the money . . . part when we sell the Buick, and the rest whenever. Well, great! It needed a pile of work--front brake discs, tie rods, etc.--but that was okay because the girl selling was willing to drop the price accordingly.
We can fit the kids in, without them being able to torment each other, and no one can kick the back of the driver's seat. We can even take passengers. Or haul stuff. My dad's a child of the Great Depression: my parents' place is as good as a junk store for finding useful things. I mean, Dad's probably got at least three of everything. All you have to do is dig. And the price is great--"Just don't bring it back here. Ever."
Sometimes, things just work out when you least expect it.
Well, he got accepted, and got a financial aid package we figured we could survive on, so we shelved the minivan shopping, packed everything up, and moved. But we were still relying on the '93 Buick Century to get around. Now, it's a good reliable little car, but the key word there is little. It's all you can do to fit two car seats in it, and once they're in, there's only room for one passenger unless the second is really skinny and can fit between the car seats. We figured it'd last another three years or so until he got the degree, and then we'd get a minivan, and we'd just have to hope we didn't have another baby in the mean time.
Now we're living about fifteen minutes from my folks here, they're out in the country and we're down in town. They both teach at the university, and Mom works with international students. Two weeks ago she gave us a call. One of her students had graduated and was leaving for Taiwan in a couple weeks, and needed to sell her '95 Ford Windstar NOW. Mom and Dad would be happy to help us pay for it, and we could pay them back when we had the money . . . part when we sell the Buick, and the rest whenever. Well, great! It needed a pile of work--front brake discs, tie rods, etc.--but that was okay because the girl selling was willing to drop the price accordingly.
We can fit the kids in, without them being able to torment each other, and no one can kick the back of the driver's seat. We can even take passengers. Or haul stuff. My dad's a child of the Great Depression: my parents' place is as good as a junk store for finding useful things. I mean, Dad's probably got at least three of everything. All you have to do is dig. And the price is great--"Just don't bring it back here. Ever."
Sometimes, things just work out when you least expect it.
posted by BoysMom @ 3:19 PM
1 Comments:
At 10:03 PM, February 17, 2005,
Anonymous said…
Boys Mom,
I dropped by to say hi, and thanks for the help and advice.
You’ve got a great blog, I hope you enjoy this little hobby.
Res Ipsa
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