THE NEW ARRIVAL

Yes, we have a new addition to our family. And this time, it is not black and white and furry with a long tongue and a four legs.

This time it is red, with a long cargo area and four tires. And instead of being of English heritidge as are border collies, it is Japanese ...

No, we did not adopt an Asian child or give life to a character from anime. We bought a new car

Collete and I are the proud parents of a spanking new Subaru Outback. There is some irony in our purchase of this particular car. Eleven years ago, when we were looking to purchase our first new car, we liked the Outback; it was more a station wagon then and it suited us nicely but out our price range, so we ended up buying our Saturn which served us well for a decade. But we always looked fondly on the Outback.
Recently we've decided we needed a new car (Yes, two car purchases in over ten years, we're wild and crazy people) The Saturn has become too small to accomodate Collette, myself, Hayley and Terra .. seeing as how Terra seems to have the ability to give herself the exterior dimensions of a small pony at will. And although the Saturn was a swell little car, it's not something you can use to bring home a 7 ft long picnic table, unless you put it on the roof and used it as a sail
So when we began searching for prospective new adoption, we knew we wanted something roomier, something with a hatch, and something with all wheel drive. The Outback of course satisfies all these criteria but it has been a while since I've seen one and I still had this image of a little station wagon in my mind and wasn't sure if that was what we wanted
We were at the Ex this past summer and got to check out the Chevie Equinox. We liked the size, it had a back seat that could slide forward, giving more cargo space while we still had the girls in it, etc. But when I test drove one, I found it well appointed but essentially gutless. And by the time I loaded in all the features I have in the Outback, the Equinox was about the same price.

Also, we had made the decision to go for all wheel drive. I drive all year long and we go up north enough, I thought that would be beneficial. Of the vehicles I looked at, like the Escape and the Equinox and the RAV 4, the Outback was the only one with full time all wheel drive. I drove the Subaru Forrester but it felt small to me, and sort of cheap ...

So I ended up returning, as it were, to our first love

So we've come full circle, but it has indeed been a long slow circle. So far I am very happy with the new addition. And let's be honest: How cute will all three of my girls look in it as we go whizzing along?