Smart tip for parents when buying a new car...

I'm not sure if you've noticed, but automobiles have come an awful long way since the decade we all picture when we think of stay-at-home Moms.  Our station wagons have ipod docks, epic sound systems, are (literally) half the size of the boat that Granny used to drive around, get like a million mpg, and actually have car seats strapped in.  Those car seats also now take up most of the back seat and have more cup holders than a redneck's riding lawnmower.

A few months ago we were in search of a replacement to my husband's old car, and we learned something during the process that I'll share it with you.  This is now my number one tip for parents when buying a new car; Test-drive car seats while you're test-driving the car.

                                                            Photo Source: edmunds.com                           

Our future plans include having more kids, but we're not out riding around with a monstrous rear-facing car seat, waiting for a baby to fall into it for us.  So while we were out test-driving small, fuel-efficient cars, we tootled over to a store that sold cars seats.  We tried out a variety of front and rear-facing seats to see how they fit in the car.  Any store worth a darn will let you try car seats in your car for proper fit before you buy, and any dealership worth a darn won't care if you go car seat shopping during your test-drive.

It turned out that all the seat's fit surprisingly well, and we're the proud new owners of "The Sex-Mobile 5000" (now that we've had it for a few months, my husband has had time to come up with that classy name  for it).  But if he's going to peel his ass out of bed and drive to work at 4am to support us, he can name his car whatever the hell he wants...  

Thanks for stopping by,
-Lindsey