B.A.D.D

I like the sign on the back of my 'new' car:

Bicyclists Against Dumb Drivers

I could not agree more. Unfortunately, there are plenty of 'dumb drivers' on the roads these days. And they are usually driving large SUVs or trucks...

Moab 2008

Of course we did not get a new car. In case you have not heard, we've had some major car troubles in this family lately. Since September our beloved Subaru Outback has spent a good amount of time in the car shop. It started having issues minutes after Karl and I declared that we are so happy our car has been running well and not given us any trouble since we replaced the head gasket 2 years ago. We were hoping it would hold up for the rest of grad school. Well, it did not. Not at all.

We had the radiator and some other stuff replaced at the end of September - $450. Then the brakes were having issues right before driving up here in November. We did make it to Provo where Karl's father was very kind and took care of it, including the bill - another $250.

We should be set now, right? We take a deep breath and think that our kids might actually find some presents under the tree this year. But - not so much!

We barely make it to the edge of town on our way back home to Flagstaff, when the car is overheating (again) and smoke is coming out the hood (again). Excellent! We are rather devastated to find out that the head gasket is compromised (again) and needs to be replaced (again)! How can we possibly make it through grad school without taking out a loan if our car keeps swallowing up all our money and then some? Very discouraging!

And how am I supposed to drive back up to Utah for Christmas? Karl is flying into SLC on his way back and I don't think I would survive Christmas with the kids in Flagstaff.

The Spinti Family to the Rescue!

Once Again!

I can't adequately express how much it means to us that we are able to borrow the Spinti's Subaru for a couple of weeks. They happen to have just bought a new car and now have 3 cars in their family. Because they are very generous and completely selfless, they volunteered their car for our family trip! Talk about a miracle!

Looks pretty much like ours, does not it? Well, it drives much better and I felt very confident in undertaking this trip without Karl. Thank you very much, Jennifer and family! We owe you big time...

As soon as Karl gets back, we are going to have to decide whether to put more money into our Subaru or or whether to look for a 'new' used car. Neither option sounds good. Ugh! How I hate money! How I hate cars! Wish I did not have to deal with either... But - rest assured - between the presents from my family in Germany and Karl's parents, there will be something under the tree for the kids next Sunday!