Saving the Environment, One Mommy at a Time

I'm giving up. I no longer wish to be a member of the car driving elite. I'm not meant to be. Don't get me wrong. I love it. It's just that it doesn't love me. Or at least the cars I drive don't love me. Maybe I'm too aggressive, but I believe assertive is the correct term. Maybe I don't give them enough maintenance, but that can't be the case as they keep asking (demanding) that I take them to the shop. Maybe they don't like the perpetual coat of dirt that is on them, but I like to think of it as a reinforced safety cage, further protecting me and my family. Whatever the reason, I have come to the realization that I am not meant to use a combustible engine for my personal means of transportation.
We got the Volvo last April. It has, so far, won the Lemon Award for the Bair family. We have had to put nearly as much as we paid for it into it in the past year. It's never anything major, just a little oil leak, which happens to be located in the exact center of the engine, and of course everything needs to be removed to get to it. So frustrating. We got all new tires for the car, and the ceiling fabric fell down. It's just been that kind of relationship. You give and give and give, and it just keeps taking.
So we decided to move on to greener and bigger pastures. I'm not a fan of getting a new (to us) car at least once a year, but that seems to be the path we are on right now. With Duece on the way, we went the route of the minivan, much to the dismay of some of our single friends. Whatever! I love it! The doors are automatic. With the push of a button, I can begin cooling the car off before we even walk out the door. Reeves can climb in all by himself - all the way into his seat. And he actually enjoys this. There is no bending over to latch him in. It is truly a life saver for me. Let's just say this pregnancy is not as comfortable as the first one was.
I love my minivan. I hope it is learning to love me. But I don't think so. Not long into our relationship, the MAINT REQD light came on. It's a lovely shade of orange, but I'm not inherently a Clemson fan, so it doesn't warm my heart every time I see it. (For the record, I still need to take it to the shop, just trying to find the time.) Then two weeks ago, as I approached the car from the passenger side, which I apparently rarely do, I noticed that the rear passenger tire had about 3 PSI in it. Great! So I limped to a gas station to put air in it. No probs. Took it to Hay (which is where the tires had previously been serviced). It had a screw in it. They plugged it - for $17 dollars! (Gerald's generally does this for free. Not going back to Hay.) But it was fixed, and all was well - for a few days.
Sunday, I headed out to find Gerbera Daisies. None at HD, none at Lowe's, none at that place in the parking lot on Wappoo, none at Kmart. I figured I'd stop by the Super Wally. Of course, they had them. Frustrated that they were at my last stop and at the place that happened to be closest to my house, but nonetheless excited that I had actually found them, I loaded up and headed home. Here I was, no baby, feeling so good I could have easily forgotten I was pregnant, beautiful day, windows down, radio on. Suddenly, a noise that did not come from the radio. And then, the tell-tale sound of a totally deflated tire thumping down the road. Pulled over. The tire, for which I had just paid $17 to plug, had just been sliced by something in the road, less than a mile from my house. Typical. Bryant and Reeves came to rescue me. Benjamin, who was selling veggies out of the back of his truck lent me his tire iron. (He also sold the best boiled peanuts I have had in a long time. We will definitely be visiting him again.) The outcome was fine, but it was just one more thing. And it totally threw off the productivity we had going in the yard at home. Off to Gerald's first thing Monday morning. $96 later, my minivan, which I have had for about a month, now has a brand new tire.
I'm seriously thinking about just getting a couple of horses and a carriage. I think it's a win/win situation. No need to buy two more carseats as I'm pretty certain they are not a requirement on a buggy. No more yard mowing. We'll just let the horses take care of that, along with the fertilizing. Toys for the kids? Saddles! Crops! Gas prices? Who cares, as long as hay doesn't go up, I'm fine! And I can sleep well at night, knowing my own personal carbon footprint is much smaller than it would have been. I think Al Gore would be proud of me.