{my story} mother. wife. photographer. friend.

Meet my new baby Bob! It has been quite a crazy week here as you know, and the exciting news I mentioned before but didn't want to talk about was me in process adopting Bob, my new 2005 Honda Odyssey!! Well...I know. It isn't new, but it is very NEW to me and all of my friends know really...this is my DREAM car!!! When I tell you this car has EVERYTHING (other then the DVD, which really, we just couldn't afford.) it does!! The back doors open with a push of the button. Push another button on the remote and you can open ALL of the windows to let air in in the summer as you are walking up to the car. The back windows OPEN!! The boys are thrilled. What the boys liked best is that the car will beep at you until you put your seatbelt on...Daddy needs that reminder. Can you can cup holders??? 6 CD CD player??? Oh my...I am so excited.

Anyway, my 2003 Dodge Caravan had 105,000 miles on it and really wasn't reacting too well to the Rochester winter. When I tell you it needed a lot of work, it is an understatement. It needed brakes, new belts, the transmission was starting to sluggishly change gears, when you looked at the van from the back it was lower on the right side than it was on the left. The CD player has not worked in years. When you turn on a blinker - it doesn't turn off. The power steering tubes where filled with black crap, so every time you went around a corner it made this horrible sound (ask my brother about this!). I had them flushed a few times, it didn't help. They told me they needed a whole new power steering system. Really, it was bad.

I was trying to make it till spring, but I just didn't think I would make it and I wasn't interested in throwing $1000.00's of dollars into it. So, I started looking a couple of weeks ago for something else. I was really thinking I was going to get a new Dodge Caravan, but really, I didn't want a $27,000 car payment only to drive off the lot and already you car isn't worth $22,000. My van wouldn't be paid off until August, and honestly, it sucks having a car that you own more then it is worth on and I didn't want to go down that path again.

So I found this van on the Ontario Honda web site. My father bought is first Honda there in the 1980's. I think it finally died around 250,000 miles after my brother called it the "Honda Hilton" during college and the years after. I really think he might have lived in it for sometime....anyway....this van came off a lease and has about 35,000 miles on it. That would have scared me for an American car - not for a Honda. That is only the beginning. The thought of actually being able to trade in a car at the end of your payments and actually get something for it is just awesome. You won't do that these days with an American car - sorry.

Anyway, I got $1500.00 off the price of the van, and taking our friend Steve's advice and looking up on Edmonds what my van was worth got us another $500.00 for my van!! At first they wanted to give us $3500.00 for my van, and when I pulled out the paper I printed off of Edmonds showing the van was worth $4000.00 and they gave it to me. The sales manager came out and said my van was not in good condition and needed a lot of work. :) Really? I can't tell you how thrilled I am with $4000.00 for that piece of crap. I owed less then that, so actually made some money in my trade in! Thanks Steve for all of your advice this week...I took all of it other than waiting until spring. :) Sorry!

And the best news...the promotion was 4.9% financing. ESL offered 7.5% and Summit FCU offered 8.0%. We qualified for the 4.9% and saved us a TON of money in the long run financing right through Honda. The difference in rates is just amazing. :) It amazes me what I traded in what I did, got a Honda and my monthy payment went up only like $25.00!! Oh, and we have a 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty with a $0 deductible. Did I also tell you free oil changes for life as long as we keep up with the maintenance?

Okay...so really the best news.....

We pick it up on Monday.

I am so excited. I probably won't sleep for the next two nights and will spend Monday night sleeping in it. :)

Really....if you need a Honda go see Bob at Ontario Honda. It was seriously the best car buying experience I have had so far. All of the people there where so nice. We where there for 3 hours, and the boys even had a blast!!

Other than the roof we had such a great week...web site...van...and BOTH boys scored goals today in their games! Connor scored his first EVER in a game! We are so proud!!