The Rental Car

Two weeks ago, our green Ford Escort was hit by another motorist while Michael was in Chattanooga on business. Seeing as how the Escort is only worth about $500 we were surprised to learn that the insurance was going to write us a check for far more than the car was worth in order to fix the bumper. I felt a little sad when I saw the hole above the bumper. I had grown pretty attached to that little car over the past seven years.

Today Michael and John went to take the Escort to have it fixed and pick up a rental. I knew that upon riding in the rental I would get the itch to buy a new car. So before Michael got home I spent some time praying about my attitude and thanking God that we had vehicles to drive. When Michael got home, Finn and I went outside to see the rental. As I had feared, I loved it instantly. It was a 2009 Silver Nissan Altima; the exact car I wanted. Michael thought it would be a good idea for me to check out the features so that we would have a starting point for when we finally did start to look for a new car. He mentioned that the trunk was really big and we went to look at it. When he popped the trunk three (3) big balloons came out. I didn't think anything of it and went on admiring the trunk. Michael made the comment that it was really weird that there were balloons in the trunk, because usually there aren't balloons in rental cars. I agreed. It was at that point that he told me to check the glove compartment. Inside there was an big envelope with his name on it. Only then did it kick in that Michael had bought us a new family car. I was so happy and so thankful. We have been needing a new car for a long time now, and God provided the perfect opportunity. The Escort didn't die in vane.






We loaded Finn in the car and took him for ride down to the Kroger's where we showed Uncle James the new ride. Later that night Gran came by to see it too. While his expression is one of apathy, Finn should be very excited. First, his car seat is now secure (we didn't have anchors in the other two (2) cars) and second, it is straight (he car seat leaned to the left in the Explorer).

As for Finn, he had a pretty lousy day. For some unknown reason he cried about 75% of the day and he didn't want to nap. When I was finally able to get him down, this is how he ended up . . .


I made the risky decision to move him to a more comfortable position and it bit me in the rear; he woke up and cried for an hour.

After I realized that a nap was out of the question, I took let Finn hang out in the kitchen while I cleaned. While in the kitchen he played with the broom. . .


He attempted to get into the fridge . . .
And he opened all the cabinets.