In need/want

We would really like a van. When we bought our car, it was perfect for our family... even if we were going to have another child, 3 kids would fit perfectly in our backseat. HOWEVER, as you all know, we were blessed with twins on our 3rd pregnancy, instead of a single...thus posing a transportation problem! In order for us to all do something together as a family, we have to take 2 cars. Our primary car is great- we bought it new 4 years ago! Our secondary car is not so great! 3 out of 4 windows don't go down and the a/c doesn't work! The horn and radio aren't working either! So, while it gets us (mainly Tim) from points A-B, it is NOT a good car to have! So, since having the twinkies, we've talked about getting a van! BUT, it's not made any financial sense because we're upside down on our "new" car and the old car won't get us too much for a trade in! We don't want 2 car payments.

Today.... a friend at work has been fixing up a van. It was his mom's van that she bought new in 2000 (he is 55 years old, his mom is 80...so they didn't drive crazy in it). It is a 1 owner van, but she doesn't drive much anymore, so he's getting it cleaned up and wants to sell it. He said he'll take $1200 for it! It has 140k miles & is 11 years old...so not horrible on mileage since she lives 30 miles from Tulsa. He has recently replaced the battery, recharged the a/c, changed the oil... said all it might need is brakes because he hasn't checked them.

SO...my dilemma ... I need $1200 for a van. BUT before I need the money, I need to borrow it and have it checked by a mechanic. I am getting really excited by the possibility of getting a van, but don't wanna put all my hopes in this if it turns out to be a dud... trying to not get excited.. so I decided to blog my thoughts....

Anyways...thanks for listening!