My Own Personal "Field of Dreams"

I started this long weekend by doing something completely illogical and possibly slightly insane.I traded my mini VAN for a mini COOPER.

I'm not joking. It could be a sign of an early midlife crisis...

It is the coolest thing ever. I LOVE it. I am pretty sure it will be worth every cent of the (relatively low) car payment that I now have to make (with the relatively high raise I am getting when I change jobs in August).

No, all three kids cannot fit in it (well.... at least not if Brian is with us).
No, it doesn't have all wheel drive.
No, it won't be easy to drive in the winter- or particularly warm (although it does have heated seats!)

Yes, my father thinks I have lost my mind- or at least he does now that he knows I actually did it. When he was here the idea was only that: AN IDEA.
Yes, the kids all love it. When I picked up Faith from daycare she jumped up and down and said, "Ooh! That looks like FUN!!!")
Yes, it makes me feel a little like a teenager again (as long as I don't turn around and see the carseats in the back).

There is no logic involved, really, but here's what I tell myself so I don't feel like I have gone off the deep end:

• It gets great gas mileage
• We don't really need two large cars since we never have all the kids in two places at once
• Brian works from home, so when it is winter we only need one 4 wheel drive anyway (and the van wasn't all wheel drive either) and because I work so close if there is ever a reason he needs the big car he can drive me to work and pick me up.
• It has low miles (at least we bought USED, right?) so by the time it is paid off we will trade in the Suburban and have alternating car payments. (OK... so it's a stretch)
• Two of our closest friends told me to "go for it". Seriously. They bought an even less useful car (a two seater Miata) when their kids were still little and they promised me they never regretted it. (I called them for advice since I was pretty sure they wouldn't try to talk me out of it.)

In Field of Dreams there is a scene where Kevin Costner and his wife are standing out on their front porch arm in arm looking at the baseball field they just built and he turns to his wife and says with a smile, "I have just created something completely illogical... Am I completely nuts?"

Quite probably.