Can you believe it’s already November?  Where did 2010 go?  Oh yeah.  I blinked.

I never did get my fall decorations up – what with all the extracurricular activities and the demise of my father-in-law, time just got away from me.  I did stop by the farm I usually get my cornstalks and pumpkins from a couple of weeks ago, but I was a couple of weeks too late.  The only corn stalks they had left were terrible.  They were so scraggly and sparse they just looked like bunches of giant weeds.  So I decided the tired hay bales that have been on my front porch since last year (apparently missed on my hubby’s ‘Honey Do’ list) will have to suffice for this year – after all, it’s only a few more weeks before I’ll be changing out the decor to Christmas anyway, and that’s more important to me Princess Nagger.

Besides, when I drove down the long driveway of the farm, a strange car pulled in behind me.  Two suspicious looking guys (who looked just as scraggly as the cornstalks) got out and were perusing the coffee can where you leave the money for what you purchase – gave me the heeby jeebies so I didn’t even get out of my mom-van, I simply left (after I scrutinized the scraggly cornstalks from the safety of my mom-van and had to wait for them to saunter out of the driveway to let me pass).  Better luck next year.

Speaking of my mom-van, it is no more.  I traded it in on this instead:

I finally got the Hyundai Santa Fe I wanted.  The hubby must have heard ‘mom-van’ instead of ‘Santa Fe’ three years ago when we decided I needed something bigger than my Grand Am.  I can see where it might sound the same.  Not. It’s not the pretty red deluxe version I test drove the night before I bought this one (the color on this one is called ‘Platinum Sage’ – so it’s a lightish green, though it does look grayish-silver in some light), but the dealer I went to at that time apparently really didn’t want to sell that one to me.   The air was thick with their condescending attitude from the get-go (probably because I wasn’t looking at a 2011 – seems when you buy a brand new vehicle and plan to finance it so they make even more money, they roll out the red carpet and offer you caviar and champagne).

When you tell them up front you’re paying cash for the balance after trade-in on a barely used vehicle, they stick you in a corner, point out the vending machine when your 7 year old says she’s thirsty, and ignore you for 45 minutes.  When you finally have a chance to test drive the car you are interested in, they realize the gas tank is empty and part of your test drive is to drive to the nearest gas station to fill it up (after they make you sit and wait in the vehicle for 20 minutes while they scrounge up a gas card).   After the test drive (and think they have you on the hook for sure), they insult you by low-balling on the trade-in price for the mom-van, and refuse to consider any wiggle-room on the sale price of the deluxe Santa Fe.  Since they obviously had no interest whatsoever of selling a vehicle (to me), I walked out and didn’t look back.

The next day I drove 67 miles to Maryland to a different dealership and successfully talked them into the deal I wanted (this time armed with extra info, such as the Kelley Blue Book value sheets on the mom-van and the Santa Fe they had advertised online).  Since it’s a 2009 vs. the 2008 deluxe version, it has all the same bells and whistles the deluxe one had (except for the heated leather seats and night vision rear view mirror which I won’t miss – well, maybe just a smidge) but the other dealer agreed to $2000 more trade-in value for the van and after some negotiations on their asking price on this Santa Fe, it ended up $6000 cheaper than the deluxe one.  An overall savings/difference of $8000?  I’ll take it.  I hate car shopping, especially when dealing with a dealership that tends to prove why they end up being stereotyped.


Princess Nagger was a hit with her Soren (Legend of the Guardians) costume on Halloween.  Here’s a picture of her in it:

Wondering about the background?  Here’s the picture in its entirety:

Details of the Halloween fun and more pictures tomorrow.

Speaking of pictures, after diligently saving my pennies, I was finally able to get the new camera I’ve been wanting to get since about this time last year – the Nikon D5000:

I’m excited to figure out all the cool things this camera can do (and try not to put the cap on upside down again.  My OCD is going nuts looking at that picture).  I took these pictures with it right out of the box (literally):

Definitely going to be having some fun with this new toy.  That’s it for this edition of RTT –  sorry for the excessive wordiness, guess that’ll teach me to spend time away from my computer for long periods of time.  Time to wake up and head on over to see Keely, the coolest ‘Un-Mom‘ I know, and who is probably wondering where the hell I’ve been.  I’ve got some catching up to do!

randomtuesdayGo forth and be Random!

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I’m also participating in Follow Me Back Tuesday – if you are a new Follower, please be sure to leave a link so I can follow you back!

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I also just discovered this new friendly train – I’m hopping aboard!

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31 Comments

  1. CONGRATS on all your new toys! Car is totally awesome! You have a MomVan & Mine is a NaNee Van. Hubby calls it the Hauling Van for his equipment when there’s a gig. Love PN costume (I can’t wait to see that film). Your new toy (camera) is wonderfully awesome. No fair!!! We both got new cars – where’s MY new camera??? ~hehe~ just kiddin. That’s great! I expect to see many, many pictures now. Does it take videos too?

  2. I HATE new car shopping too. Congratulations on unloading the mom-van – your new Santa Fe is fabulous!

  3. Happy Tuesday! That car looks very cool. ANd definitely not Mom van like. I know we are going to have to upgrade eventually but we are going to have to get something that will pull a camper or trailer so that means bigger than the Saturn Vue we have now. I keep looking and wishing.
    VandyJ would like you to read ..Random Tuesday ThoughtsMy Profile

  4. but doesn’t it feel good to know you got a great deal? If you hadn’t had the bad experience first you would know what a great deal you got. I had the same problem recently. As i was reading this I was thinking “walk out, walk out”, glad you did
    Rachel M would like you to read ..Random Tuesday ThoughtsMy Profile

  5. I like the new wheels. I got a 2005 Chevy Trailblazer in April and went through almost the same fiasco that you did. My walls of distrust immediately go up when I step foot inside car dealerships, and for good reason. Princess Nagger looks cute in her costume. I didn’t make it to any pumpkin patches this year. Guess there’s no need to now. That new camera is niiiiice.

  6. Lovin the new car – I also hate car shopping and must do so by the end of the year as my poor Kia Sportage is dying rapidly. I’m a pretty good negotiator but it just annoys me to no end the patronizing tactics some of the salesmen pull on you. I just want to slap them silly. Love the pics! I bought a Nikon D3000 (no video) and I absolutely adore it. Takes great pictures but I’m still learning all the ins and outs. Enjoyed RTT – cheers!
    Croneandbearit would like you to read ..It’s Random Tuesday!My Profile

  7. I LOVE the new ride. I’ve heard great things about Santa Fe’s…

    I am insanely jealous of that camera!!!

    Happy Tuesday!

  8. Congrats on the car and the camera. I have the Santa Fe, a little older than yours, but still great! We had the same run around at a Ford Dealership because my hubby’s uncle works for Ford and we would get a huge discount and no financing. We sent a complaint to Ford.
    PN looks great in her costume! Pumpkinland sounds more fun than what we did.
    Laufa would like you to read ..RTT- Sick- Driving- &amp Action FigureMy Profile

  9. I can’t stand dealerships like that either. We got the same kind of issues when we got our Dodge, opting for the 07 instead of the 08 which was revamped, taking so much off the price. They tried to lowball us on the trade in until my husband mentioned he knew the owner of the dealership. All of a sudden, the truck John wanted to “wash” the payments on, became a great idea and we got what we wanted.
    Sprite’s Keeper would like you to read ..Spin Cycle- Halloween Show and TellMy Profile

  10. New cars are awesome! We just got one earlier this year and it is awesome. Not a deluxe edition but still new to us! And yes, car dealers are d-bags!

  11. Congratulations on the car. Dealers are the worse. My husband always goes in with plenty of information and has walked out the door many times. They even chased him down the road once! Also congrats on the camera. Enjoy!

  12. Congrats on the new vehicle and the camera. Good for you for standing up for yourself. Car dealers love to take adbvantage of woman. Your daughter is a cutie.

    Fellow Blog Hopper:)

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