Mom number two (who is parked on the other side of the cart return) reaches into her purse and pushes her key fob buttons and both side doors and the back door of her minivan gently glide open while her two girls hop in.  She then climbs in, out of the rain and buckles them in.  Then she gets out and shuts both doors with her key fob and proceeds to unload her groceries into the back of the van all the while nice and dry under the cover of the door.  She then takes the cart to the cart return while the back door of the minivan glides shut with the push of the key fob button.  She then gets in her minivan, barely wet, and drives away in half the time it took mom number one.

And that’s when it hit me.  I was the wet and tired mom number one who had just been trumped by a mom with a minivan.  She had buckled in kids, unloaded groceries and was driving away while I still had my butt hanging out in the rain as I packed another grocery bag into the trunk of my car.  I had gone from one side of my car, to the other, then to the trunk, and then back to the other side and in the end I had opened and shut four doors and a trunk.  Really she had opened and shut only one door, her own.  The rest were opened for her by her key fob, like a little remote chauffer always ready with the door.

I swore I would never drive a minivan; it was just so un-cool to me.  But as I stood there in the rain watching her drive away I couldn’t help but think that ‘yeah the minivan was un-cool, but the key fob rocked!’

When it finally came time for us to get a, new-to-us, used vehicle I didn’t care about any other feature but the key fob.  It could have been the biggest, ugliest piece of crap but it had to have a key fob.  Sure enough I ended up with an “un-cool” minivan, but I got my key fob, and let me tell you, it hasn’t disappointed me yet.  I love my key fob.

So for all of you moms out there going through the big debate, weighing your options, car vs. minivan or SUV vs. minivan, cool vs. un-cool.  Let me tell you, nothing is cooler than having your own personal remote chauffer opening your doors for you as you make a mad dash for the van in the rain, with your arms full of a baby and groceries, with three little kids running behind you, hopping in the van and shutting the doors all with in seconds and then having your son turn to you and say “Mom, we have the coolest minivan ever!”