Why I'm mad at my car

Monday night was fun. I went to a mommy's group at church. It's the first time I've ever gone, and it was about time. I wanted to go last year, but I felt like I should stay home with Zachariah. He was so young, and he and Matt had problems getting along then. So I felt tied to the house all the time. When the group started back up this year, I only gave it slight consideration. At the last minute Sunday I decided #1 it would be fun, #2 I need to meet other moms, and #3 I need to get out by myself more often. What really drove me to this decision was Matt planning to go to several church activities in the next few weeks...alone. Which means I'll be home with Zachariah all evening. Not that I don't like spending an evening with my son, because I do, but I figured if he could get out then I could too. Anyway, I had a great time. I already knew about 1/2 of the moms there, and then I got to meet a few new really nice ladies. Everyone was great, and I didn't have problems talking to anyone there. Plus we made a really neat calendar that looks great on my fridge.

I drove home feeling relaxed. It was nice to have an evening child-free. And I knew he'd already be in bed when I got home. I was contemplating stopping to do a little grocery shopping on the way home. But I decided I'd like to spend a little time with my husband before he goes to bed, so I better just head home. About half way there, something seemed odd about my car. Then I looked down and noticed that the engine temperature was getting hotter than normal. Then check engine light never came on though. I prayed that I'd make it home without any problems. The needle continued to dance from hot to very hot. And when I stopped at a red light about two miles from home, it went to very very hot.

I made it home fortunately and noticed it was sounding a little funny before I shut it off. Of course I came right in and told Matt that it was acting up. He went outside with a flashlight and checked under the hood. He noticed that the coolant was low. After searching the garage for some, he realized we didn't have any and took off for the store....without telling me he was leaving. He was just upset about having car problems, and he went into "stewing" mode. He told me later that he realized half way to the store that he should have told me he left. After not hearing him for a few minutes I thought he may have left to get something. That was confirmed with a quick glance out the window and seeing that his truck was indeed gone. Anyway, he came back with anti-freeze for the car. He poured the whole gallon in, and half of it was gone immediately. (The rest leaked out overnight.) So we went to bed knowing it could just wait until morning, and we'd take it to the dealership for repair.

Matt did apologize before going to sleep that night for being upset about the whole matter. He wasn't mean, but he just got a little testy. I'm used to it...that's what he does when things go wrong. In the morning he was very sweet and apologized again a few times through the day. I was just happy for an "I'm sorry" once.

Anyway, I called the dealership and scheduled an appointment for Thursday. That's the soonest they could get it in. Then I arranged to have the car towed to the dealership. Thank goodness for AAA. Then in the afternoon Matt took off from work early, and we drove out to the dealership. I made sure they had my car, and I got a loaner car from them while mine is there. Usually I just get a newer version of my car (Ford Focus), but this time I got a new Ford Fusion. It's nice. Just a little bigger than my car, but it drives very nice like mine. So for the week I have a nicer car and everything is OK until I find out how much it will cost to fix mine. I think they can just keep it, and I'll keep their car. Ha.

So, all this car trouble has me thinking maybe it's time to start looking for a different car. Mine is already 5 years old. We've maintained it well. When I got it, I knew it wouldn't last forever. It's a small car, and I'll be in trouble if I have anything more than two car seats in it. I doubt we'll get anything new soon. But it might be fun to think about for a while. I'm hoping mine has a few more years, so I can save up for a new vehicle. But for right now (today anyway), I hate my car.