New Van!

By the great providence of our great God, we have a new van! I was having fun with this, as you can see. LOL. I'm being my super silly self here, as Laney would say. Us Carsons got a new-to-us van in December, and it has been a dream come true for us. I don't know why we didn't make the swap sooner. It's a Chrysler Town and Country 2005 Touring model. My favorite features are the storage compartments in the floor, the foldable seats that fold into the floor, automatic doors, and the heated seats. Oh, I love those heated seats. There's nothing more burracious than a cold, leather seat to welcome you on your way to church.

The only way we can afford to even have a van like this is because we traded in our truck. Oh, I miss our truck. It was a bit sad to see her go, but at the same time, the need for something bigger was so much greater than the desire to keep our truck. But this isn't the REAL story as to how we now have a van. Let me share with you the REAL story...

Back in 2003, when I was dating Hugh, I was a High School Spanish Teacher in Dahlonega, GA. One day, while heading into J & J's Grocery, I entered a drawing that was being held in front of the store. I joked with the people at the table about winning and asked what my chances were. The contest had been going on for months, people entering so many times, and I was just now hearing about it. The drawing for the winner was the next day, so I filled out a tiny slip and slid it into the box. I don't know to explain it, but deep down I really felt like I was going to win. Have you ever had that feeling about winning anything? I never was the one to win anything but maybe a cd off of a radio station where I called Star 94 a million times in High School. I shrugged it off in laughter at the odds of that happening to me. The next day, as I was hanging out at the house, the phone rang. Long story short, I WON. GULP. I WON! What did I win? I won a 1971 Electric Blue Stingray Convertible Corvette!! No, I will not shut my mouth. I DARE NOT LIE. Never in my life have I ever been so jolted with adrenaline in a matter of seconds, well...except for when I used to race as a sprinter in Track & Field. That was a huge adrenaline rush for sure, but it truly didn't compare to my blubbering words, shaky hands and racing heart upon hearing that I had just won a car. A CAR. I could hardly breathe. I was jumping up and down, screaming and pretty much freaking out by myself in my little 550 sq foot apartment. I couldn't even think straight when I got off the phone with the owner of Universal Chevrolet, who had just told me to come on down and pick up my car. My head was spinning. I needed shower desperately after being sweaty from being outside and having greasy, unwashed hair, but I slapped a pony tail on, slipped on some sandals & the quickest thing I could put on and was out the door.



Who wins a car?? I drove a beat up, 5-speed manual, black 1995 Ford Escort with a dent in the back(nicknamed the Dirt Dobber, Dr. Dobson, Dobbs-a-lot, DD, you get the point for it's beautiful coat of dirt that became part of the car, because I hardly ever washed her.) I loved that car and was thankful for it, but I desperately needed a car. She was on her last "rim," if you will. A covertible corvette? WHAT IN THE WORLD?! This was what I read about in books and hear about on tv. Heck yeah. I was going down to pick up that car! Hugh and my parents didn't believe me when I told them on the phone. They thought it was prank. But alas, it was not. Here's a picture of the day I picked her up. (Sorry the pic is sideways. I have no idea why Blogger is uploading it sideways.)Of all people for this to happen to, I can't believe it happened to me. How ironic. I didn't and still don't know a lick about cars, nostalgic or not. I don't know names, years, models or makes without Hugh having to tell me. If anyone was excited, it was Hugh Earle Carson. We picked her up and I was scared to drive her home. I truly can't remember if Hugh drove her home or I did. He had so much fun driving it around. I felt strange driving it in the small, country town of Dahlonega, where everyone knew what you ate for breakfast that morning. Especially being a High School teacher, I felt really out of place driving Electric Blue around the square. LOL.



After about two months, with the threat of hail storms in the Spring, I was on pins and needles as she sat outside. I didn't have a garage. The paint started to bubble up in one spot, and I knew I just had to trade her in. The owner of Universal Chevrolet told me that if I ever wanted to trade her in, he'd give me so much $ for her. So, that's what I did. I traded her in for our red Silverado, cutting the cost of the truck payment in half. I was so thankful to the Lord for such a blessing. I couldn't believe it and still don't. My Dad was the one who REALLY bought the truck, being that he did all the wheel'n and deal'n. I hardly said a word in the buying process. It was like a foreign language to me. It's only fitting that my Dad and I posed TOGETHER in front of the truck.





But, you can't really see our truck here...so here's a picture my Dad took at the Dealership before we even drove away with the keys.

Why a truck? I was a single gal and could have put that money towards anything on that lot, and I chose a truck? Ya see, Hugh's ultimate dream vehicle (practically speaking) was a Chevrolet Silverado. He talked and talked about wanting that truck so badly. I knew that we'd be engaged and married soon, so I bought the truck, for him really. We could use a truck. And I used to drive a 1987 brown and cream striped Suburban in High School (LOL), so I was used to driving big vehicles and actually missed sitting up high. Hugh was ecstatic to say the least.

Caravaning to a rival football game

So, we then traded in our beloved Silverado for our Town and Country Van. Some would say we slowly have been going down hill from a Corvette to a Mini-van, but I say we have stepped up and couldn't be driving a more perfect vehicle for us. Thank you Lord for so wonderfully blessing us and for such a fun story to tell.