I need a new car...

Because a tiny little chevy aveo hatchback does not suit a family of 4:



Our other car is a hatchback too, but a little bit bigger (A Suzuki Aerio, which we intend to hold on to).:



The chevy is on lease until January (9 more payments). So I'm going to see about getting out of the lease early.

We're looking for something a little big bigger, but keeping the cost low (and good mileage). Will likely lease again, since we don't know what our family needs will be in another 4-5 years.

Right now, the leaders are the Mazda5:



the Kia Rondo:



and the Dodge Caravan (*ugh - I can't believe I'm considering a minivan* In fact, it doesn't even warrant a picture)

So we're going car shopping this weekend. Based on my internet research, the Rondo offers the most bang for the buck. But I won't know until I check it out for real. Any other suggestions?

Addendum: I popped the hood on the Chevy the other day, only to find that some little vermin had made a nest in my engine. I think it to be mice - as there is a nice chunk of material chewed into part of the liner.

GRRRRRRR! I can only guess how much the dealership is going to charge me when I turn the car in. Anybody have advice on how to keep critters from nesting under the hood of your car?

Answers to the kwiz

Well, you guys are just a bunch of lame-o's, aren't you?

Arkie (and Glow) take the lead by scoring a whopping 50%. And HD? I can't even express properly the level of my disappointment.

But I want to move on, and thus present here, the answers to my quiz:

1. DW and I were married for seven years when we found out we were having Meemette. We are celebrating our 10 year anniversary this year (and yes, I was a child-groom).

2. According to Wikipedia, I was born in the same year as Leonardo DiCaprio. That makes me one year older than Eva Longoria, two years older than Colin Farrell, and three years younger than Shaq.

3. I have recently adopted a new hairstyle (let it grow out a bit). This is the first time I've switched things up in about the last 8 years.

4. My undergraduate degree was in Communications and Political Science. I have a half-completed degree in Theology, and am currently working on my MEd.

5. I play guitar, sax and the penny-whistle. I can also hold my own on the drums, but don't consider myself a drummer.

6. I proposed to my wife in Switzerland. Nobody got this one right - as some of the other answers seemed much more plausible than the factual one.

So there you have it. Thanks for playing!

I'm back, with a test

Thanks for all the well-wishes over the past while.

Everybody is doing well. Sam will be one month old tomorrow (already), and his big sister still loves him. DW and I are sleepy, but happy.

Sorry I haven't been around much. I was off work for 3 weeks with the baby (and subsequently hardly ever online). I've been back to work this week, but have been swamped with lots of stuff going on.

Since I missed the test fad, I felt I would be remiss if I didn't include one here. So enjoy, and I'm gonna try and get around to a few blogs today.


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