orange car

Over the summer we assessed our driving habits, our ridiculous need to swap cars if Elliot had to drop off Ada and I had to pick her up and decided it was time to swap the BMW for a car that could actually fit a car seat comfortably in the backseat. After much analysis and business case justification Elliot convinced me that a Mini Clubman was the answer for us. I have to say the final straw that sold me was the heated seats, but I also thought Ada might like looking out the windows or through the sunroof.

I was wrong.

Well at first Ada loved the new car. She liked that she could see planes through the sunroof, and the trucks, and buses, and bikes - those were all cool too. But then she realized that the new car didn't block out the sun the same as the old boxy Element did. The sun is Ada's latest nemesis. After all, the sun does not listen to Ada's scolding. It does not find a cloud to hide behind whenever she asks for it to. Nope, it defiantly shines right into her eyes EVERY SINGLE MORNING.

Well Ada finally figured out a way to beat the sun for good. She has decided to avoid their awkward daily interactions by self selecting the car that hides her from the sun the best. It started out so cute. Her first chorus of "Orange car, orange car, ORANGE CAR" brought on an "Oh look, she knows what color the Element is". But as her demands became more and more adamant it has turned into something so much greater. My prize for getting out the door on time and bringing Ada into daycare (even on my early meeting days) was to drive the new car, the one that zips around, the one with key less entry, the one with HEATED SEATS! But now, Ada's battle with the sun is traipsing its way into my prize and squashing all of those mileage savings that Elliot used to sell me on the new car in the first place.

Well this morning we put our foot down. As Ada wailed away as we drove away from the house in the horrible new car we made a deal. This weekend, when we should be napping and recovering from a cold brought on by daycare, we will hunt down some shades for the windows so that Ada can triumph once again over the mighty sun.