Our Quest

All photos featured in this post are random stock photos and not of our actual vehicle.

It's official: our quest to find and purchase a family-sized vehicle has ended. We are now the proud new owners of a Nissan Quest....MINIVAN!

Isn't it funny the perceptions/stigmas people have about minivans? I admit it, before I had kids I didn't think much of them. But here's the key word in that previous sentence: KIDS. And after two months of researching, shopping, and test driving a variety of multiple passenger vehicles, I can now say with full conviction that I think minivans could quite possibly be the smartest, most practical, and versatile vehicles I've ever encountered for families. Notice I didn't large families? Yes, I'll admit it. I used to think that minivans = families of 6 or more. But now I can honestly say that I would even consider this car even if we only had 2 kids! Yep, it's just that smart AND fun to drive. I know what some of you are still thinking....practical or not, it's still a minivan. Yes, that may be the case but I'm telling ya, times are changing and this thing has functionality for things that I never even knew could exist.... 

See Exhibit A:

A large trunk that comes with built-in organizers and bag clips. 
Perfect for my multiple grocery trips necessary to feed my ever-growing teenagers toddlers.

See Exhibit B:

Cavernous trunk space (btw- I seriously wonder who came up with the term MINI-van? There is nothing MINI about this thing!) perfect for hauling finds from IKEA, antique stores, outlet malls....you know, all the important stuff. 

In addition to.....

• Automatic doors (Yes, there is now way for kids to get in and out SO MUCH EASIER!!)
• Seating for 6 (Carpool anyone?)
• Outlets (Husband convinced me that this is key while he uses his laptop....what? How did I now become the family driver?)
• USB ports (I like this for cell phone charging and my iPod)
• Built-in window visors (Goodbye to those annoying sticky cups!)
• Air Bags (This thing has so many I joke it could take flight if all were activated)
• Back-up camera (I'm so one of those who used to repeatedly get out of my car to make sure no kiddos were in my path) 

Oh, and the leg room! The incredibly cushiony seats! Car shopping while pregnant totally reminded me of  furniture shopping while pregnant.....my top 3 concerns suddenly become: COMFORT. COMFORT. COMFORT.

Our model also came with double moon roofs (our kids are still in awe of a roof that opens), and a DVD player. Call me crazy but since we monitor their tv intake and I like talking and taking the scenery while driving, I actually was NOT very excited about the DVD player (turns out it made it more to insure too). So, we decided just to not mention it to our kids and only bust it out when we really need to with the explanation that there's no movies playing if they ever ask about it otherwise. Our secret is safe with you, right? ;)

If all of the above reasons aren't enough to get you on Team Minivan, then allow me to quote Nissan's motto for the Quest...."The Quest Gets Parenting."

And ultimately, that's what we're in need of right now. A car that "gets us" as well as my Scion got me. I know some people could find it silly or superficial to establish such a relationship with their car, but when you figure how much time you spend in it, the valuable people you entrust inside of it, and the amount of moula it costs, to me, everyone should have that feel-good feeling about their car. Happy driving!