More Than Money

Daphne took a "thank you" picture of Charlotte holding some presents that she received from our friends Rob and Nichole who live in Sioux Falls, SD. We had to leave town before they got off work that day, so we couldn't open our presents in person. Our car broke down on the highway about 30 minutes later, and this is the last picture I will have of Char in our RAV4.

We had the car towed to a Toyota dealership in Sioux City for an inspection. Apparently a rod broke in the engine and that did enough damage to ruin the motor. We could replace the engine with a used one, but the price of that repair is well above the car's value. It's time to let the RAV go.

This car did give us our money's worth. The RAV is a 2008, and we bought it used in 2009. Back then the model was so popular that you couldn't throw a stick into a parking lot without hitting a red RAV4. I drove it for years without a major repair or a car payment. 

Still, it makes me sad. I've got more than money invested in this car.

Charlotte was born in August of 2010, and the RAV brought her home safely from the hospital. 

I vividly remember putting Char's baby-seat in the back seat for the first time. Daphne and I were so nervous that she wouldn't be secure. I drove five miles under the speed limit and did my best to avoid every bump in the road. My speed slowed even more when we passed the Drake University campus. There were people everywhere as parents helped their kids carry stuff from their cars to the dorms.  I said to Daph, "Look, they're dropping off their babies while we're bringing ours home."

Five years later, the RAV helped mark Char's growth with her first booster seat.

She climbed into the RAV's backseat without a boost three years after that.

Char graduated to the RAV's front seat last year.

This is some rough math, but if you figure there's 180 days in a school year, then I have driven Char to daycare or school over 2000 times. That's a lot of daddy-daughter stories, singing, songs, and laughing in one space. 

I had the dad-idea that the RAV would also be Char's first car to drive, but that opportunity is going to someone else. One of the mechanics at the dealership is interested in fixing the RAV for his son. We made a deal over the phone, and he's going to mail me a check, the plates, and the odds and ends left in the car. I'll mail him the title in return. 

Daphne noticed that the check for the RAV will match the costs of the taxi ride and the rental car that we needed to get back to Des Moines. 

In a way, the RAV brought Charlotte home safely one last time.