Connections

Before I get to posting anything else, I have to say that my daughter is just absolutely beautiful...I know I'm biased, but look at her!

Mondays are usually a bit hard - adjusting to Jeffrey being gone, and getting back into the swing of the week...but today was awesome!  Jeffrey was in town still, and despite a really, really, really rough night with Ellie Graye, I woke with that feeling of closeness to and appreciation for him that is what makes marriage so beautiful and rewarding.  He is so incredibly supportive of me even when I'm exhausted and not-so-nice.  It truly makes me want to be a better mother, a better wife, a better friend...that sounds so cliche, but it really is true.  Having him love me while I'm melting down from exhaustion gives me strength to keep on going! But enough of the mushy stuff...

A letter from the CHP that arrived last week has certainly caused a bit of a change here in the Papen household!  You see, through a series of moves between California and Oregon, our cars have been swapped back and forth.  Currently, I am driving the Prius (that is registered in California), and in California, my husband drives the Mercedes (that is registered in Oregon).  Apparently, California is so damn broke, they're investigating anything and everything to impose any kind of fine they might be able to get away with...including nailing residents with out-of-state license plates.  The letter basically stated that they think we're California residents, trying to  avoid the expensive California Registration fees, and that we face heavy fines if we don't fix the issue.

After discussing all our options, it makes the most sense to swap the cars again so that the one that is registered in Oregon (the Mercedes) stays in Oregon, and the one registered in California there...right?  Here comes the problem: having a convertible, 2-door Mercedes on a working farm in Oregon with a 14 month old, and more than 2 people to drive around isn't exactly practical. Which is why originally we started looking seriously into a new car...

So yesterday after posting about the Yukon/Suburban dilemma, I got an email from my dad telling me to talk to my Grandpa Tom about GM Employee Discounts.  You see, my grandfather was once the Vice President of Hughes Aircraft Satellite division which was bought by GM in the early '90s (or was it '89?), which means he gets an employee discount that, quite frankly, kicks ass!

Before finding out the details about the "hook up," however, Jeffrey and I had gone down to the dealership (a different one than we did yesterday), and looked at every single damn suburban on the lot.  We went in with a list of things we wanted, and while we found one that would work, neither of us were "psyched" about it.  Jeffrey asked his usual million questions - and gleaned as much information as he could (I love watching him work: he's a great negotiator).  But, since I'm not the kind of person to impulse buy on large items (a very strong Carvey trait), we ended up walking away...but as we were doing so, a suburban in the back corner caught my eye...it had all the things I wanted - problem was, it also had more than what we wanted, and neither of us wanted to pay for the extra features we wouldn't use.  Once home,  I checked my email, to find that Grandpa Tom had already acquired a GM Employee Authorization number for me.  Out of morbid curiosity, we called the dealership for the pricing.  We both were shocked to find out that the discount was so deep that it was UNDER invoice by a long shot That -- coupled with 0% APR for 72 months -- made our decision a no-brainer.  Oh - and another huge money saver?  No sales tax in Oregon: simply buying it here and not in California saves 10%.  Registration? Only $300 for four years!  Aaah, I love Oregon!  Suffice it to say, back to the dealership we went, and are now the proud owners of a HUGE ASS SUBURBAN.

it barely fits in our garage!

Oddly enough, it makes me feel like I'm back in my nannying days -- driving a pimped out black SUV with tinted windows!  Ok, so Madonna's was a Lincoln Navigator (which I once dented BIG time, but that's another story for another time), but we always seemed to have a Black Suburban pick us up whenever we flew anywhere! Hmmmmm......maybe I should start a car service for celebrities here in PDX....

So that was my Monday: I got a total steal on a new car that fits all my needs and is still totally cool and hip (Thank you, Grandpa Tom)!!!  On top of that, my husband was able to stay another night.  That, my friends, is a good day!