Edited to add: Pssssttttt…..here I am with the new wheels.
My eight-year-old Pathfinder quit running Wednesday because that is what happens when you are counting on a nice little tax refund and you might splurge and get your eyeballs “fixed.” Wheels trump eyeballs every time. Mama must have a reliable mama mobile.
Hubby had cleared his afternoon yesterday so we could drive about an hour north to scope out a prospective SUV I’d found after a couple of hours of research on every website known to man, from CarMax to Craigslist. Miss A was under the weather so I had kept her home from daycare and she went along for the car shopping expedition. I know. We like to live dangerously. Have you ever taken a small child car shopping?
Miss A was a real trooper during all the various stops we made to get the financial part squared away and I made sure one of those stops included the dollar store for some cold cash bribery items as, of course, I’d forgotten to bring anything to keep her entertained, not even a pack of crayons and a dog eared coloring book. Once it hit 5 p.m., though, we were all wilting and had reached that pivotal point of signing all the important paperwork upstairs at the dealership in the financial office. Miss A was unraveling before our very eyes and I couldn’t sign the paperwork fast enough. She was squirming, kicking her shoes off, throwing her socks, trying to put her bare sweaty feet up on the desk, refusing to sit still, and generally being a very tired 3-year-old. I couldn’t really blame her as I was ready to go home, too, but no one would accept that type of behavior from a 38-year-old woman.
She finally wriggled from the hubby’s arms, dashed out of the room, and I took off after her down the hallway.
I looked left and right and did not see her. It was eerily quiet.
I heard a door at the end of the hall to the right slam.
I walked down and turned the door knob which led to a very large windowed corner office overlooking the car dealer showroom.
It was locked. A car salesman heading down to the showroom looked back up at me over his shoulder and smiled… “Oh, she locked herself in the big boss’s office!”
Miss A had locked herself in the private office of the car dealership owner. The man whose very name was emblazoned on hundreds of shiny cars out on the lot.
OH MY GOD!
Visions of my child locked in an office for hours, starving and ransacking a car dealership owner’s private office as she foraged for a juice box and a pack of crackers rushed through my brain. This could make the 6 o’clock news in small town America!
Then I heard her on the other side and snapped back to reality. She was looking up at me through the glass, looking like a real stinker, obviously finding the situation very humorous. A man who looked amazingly like the businessman depicted in the stately portrait hanging on the office wall ambled up behind her and opened the door. He was very congenial and smiling. I was profusely apologetic and sweating. He offered Miss A jelly beans. I politely declined and grabbed my wayward child.
And then Miss A took wriggled away once again and ran down the hall in the opposite direction, ready for another adventure.
p.s. I am now the proud owner of a sharp black Ford Explorer with a sunroof. I haven’t had a sunroof since I was in college! The girls love it and so do I.
Let’s see a picture of your new baby!
EG’s last blog post..A Day of Remembrance
Oh congrats on the new ride!! Miss A is pretty funny.
Amy’s last blog post..Shark Bites
“This could make the 6 o’clock news in small town America!” That would have been
coolvery bad . . .Congrats on the new car
LaskiGal’s last blog post..I quit.
That made me laugh, just reading it. And congrats on your new ride!
Renee’s last blog post..I wish . . .
Congratulations
(on the car, not on Miss A’s adventure – although I must admit, that’s a pretty cute story. Not funny at that time for you, but funny now when we read it. Miss A’s is such a cutie you should have let her have one jelly bean. Afterall, she gave you a blog material 
These little cute adventures will pass – enjoy them (it’s easy for me to say that now because I’m over the “pre-school” days with my kids
Liza’s Eyeview’s last blog post..Missing My Schwabbie Friends
Yeah for the new Explorer! I won’t jinx myself by saying how old my car is and how many miles over 100,000 it is. I hope the ‘ole gal just keeps on running….
Jill’s last blog post..Date Night
Hot new ride for the girls trip!! WOO HOO
What a funny story! I love how you describe it! It reminds me of the times I went through those horrific experiences with my own three
Jade’s last blog post..Father & son
Yay! for new cars! Boo! for having to put of lasik (I want it SOOOO much).
Still, wheels must be had and if you have a moment to laugh about (AFTER it is over, admittedly) all the better.
Loralee’s last blog post..Sideblog: BlogHer ?08
I love the “new” (to me as it’s a 2003) wheels so much. Seriously, who knew how fun it would be to have a sunroof?
My Pathfinder had 115,000 miles and we were hoping we’d get one more summer out of it but it was time to move on. We think it’s the fuel pump, but we need to get it looked at and then try to sell it.
Don’t you wish all those times the kiddos make you sweat counted as excersize???
Congrats on the new ride!
Lisa’s last blog post..Lulu, the professional eater…..
congrats sista lou!!
i hate car notes though…they suck!
Greta Adams’s last blog post..Swallow your drink before going any further
Congrats on your new ride (*as Amy pushes the jealousy way down deep and scowls at her dirty beat-up Subaru*) I am really happy for ya
Congrats on the new car! Now you should drive it directly to the beach. That’s an order.
Congrats on the new car! Can’t wait to see a picture.
What on earth did we do for entertainment before kids?! LOL
Hugs,
Holly
Hubby’s van didn’t wait for the tax return to die. So by the time we did get our refund, it had already been spent on a new-to-us van. How do our cars know these things?
heather’s last blog post..Fight the Frump – Mood Boosters
Looks like she held out as long as she could. LOL!
Congrats on the new car. I have a SUV and will never buy anything else again. You’re going to love it!
kailani’s last blog post..Aloha Friday #28
Congratulations on the new car! It’s so exciting for the kids, too. You are making me dread going through the 3s again. I never thought I’d make it out alive the first time, and now I’ve got to do it again TWICE (I really dread having one 3 while having one 2…shoot me now!)
Southern Mom’s last blog post..Time and Motivation
Lol. That sounds exactly like something the B-Man would do. What a cute little stinker. Glad the owner had a sense of humor.
Congrats on the car. Love, Love, Love having a sun roof.
Shannanb aka Mommy Bits’s last blog post..So, you had a bad day….
Oh her and my R. would get along SO well!
Mrs. Schmitty’s last blog post..My Hard Work Paid Off
Umm…where’s the pic. of the super new car?!
nap warden’s last blog post..More Practice…and Nuts?
LOL. I remember taking Abby and Hannah car shopping when Abby was about 2 years old and Hannah was a tiny baby. Talk about stressful… But I don’t think I can top your locking herself in the big wig’s office story!
Deb – Mom of 3 Girls’s last blog post..Monday Morning Meme #12
I took my oldest when he was 18 months old. I fully blame him for ending up with that car. It was a stinker!
Car shopping with children is just plain awful!
Nice car, by the way!
Jennifer’s last blog post..Tip Anxiety
Based on my experiences with car dealers, perhaps he may have deserved a few minutes in a locked room with a cranky 3-year-old.
Congrats on the new ride!
[...] of Miss C as a teenager and barely survived taking the girls to church by myself. My car died and Miss A locked herself in a car dealership owner’s office. Miss C’s fish, Blue Red, swam to that great fish bowl in the sky. I wrote about excessive [...]
It’s been quite sometime since I last visited this blog. Look like you have another great post entry again. lol. When are you going to stop posting good stuffs?
[...] p.s. We did end up driving home a new (to us) shiny red Ford Explorer Wednesday night. This shopping trip was actually much smoother than our 2008 episode when Miss A locked herself in the car dealer owner’s office. Oh heck yes SHE DID. [...]
Wow. Every child should have a good adventure every now and then, I guess.