Entries tagged with “mommy” from Car & Caboodle

Name: Shani Gilchrist

Our Family Car: 2003 Mercedes ML320

Number of Kids: 1 *Ages: 18 months

Geographic Region: Southeast

Thing I love most about my car:  It’s a toss up between the unprecedented number of cup holders for a German car and the super-tight turn radius.

Thing I hate most about my car: No automatic lift gate

What we call the car: “The Truck” (boring, I know)

I don't leave home without: My iPod, BlackBerry, and my son’s “ball ball” (I think he’s destined to be a jock!)

Longest road trip with kids: 9 hours

Favorite driving music when alone: Wyclef, Regina Spektor, Jaymay

Favorite driving music with kids in the car: Jack Johnson, Lisa Loeb, Will Smith

Worst car moment: Driving 45 minutes to my parent’s house with a sore throat and a screaming baby who was using his hand, cheek and forehead as Kleenex... just to find that they weren’t there and I had to do it for 45 more minutes all the way back.

Car snack of choice: My son- Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies. Me- Tall 4-pump caramel latte.

Most embarrassing thing you have ever done in a car: Pumped breast milk with my Medela Pump-In-Style... while driving.

Weirdest item in the family car right now: A stick of deodorant in the center cup console

My next car will really be a: Realistically- A Honda Odyssey. Hopefully- Mercedes GL320 CDI.

Welcome to Shani, our newest Car and Caboodle writer. Shani will be bringing us the latest family friendly car gizmos, gadgets and decor with her "Pimp my Ride" posts

I knew when I got pregnant with Luke that the two-row car was out. It was time for the lovely family car. We all cringe when we hear "family car" because it usually means minivan with crumbs and kid paraphernalia all over. I had to find a better solution. I was excited to hear of several new, smaller SUVs that had a third row, so I decided to check them out. Unfortunately, I found that the third row usually means there is trunk that converts into a space where very small children can squeeze into as long as they have very short legs. Another big issue is that the kids would need to move or fold down a seat in order to climb in. I know my girls didn't have the strength required to move the seat and I would be stuck with the task every time we got in the car, in addition to getting baby Luke in his car seat.

Audi Option
I really fell in love with the Audi Q7 because it is beautiful and it offers captain chairs, creating a path for getting to the third row without moving anything. I tried so hard to make it work, but once we fit the family and gear in we couldn't even go grocery shopping.

Please NOT a Minivan!
So, it looked like I could have a huge gas guzzler or a minivan. I checked into the large SUVs to see how much gas they really guzzle...I wasn't about to drive a van! If only VW would remake the bus, vans could be cool again.