You know what’s awesome? A new van. My new van is the most awesome thing in the world. We put the seats down in the back and watched fireworks on the Fourth of July. We’ve carried the dogs to the vet in it (not an easy thing to do in a sedan when you have THREE DOGS). This weekend we bought 120lbs of dirt and a new screen door. How did we get it all home? In the van. And let’s don’t forget that it allows my three children to be transported places out of reach of each other. This means no one rubs boogers on anyone else! (LilZ - I’m looking at you.) (Just kidding. But he is the target of the boogers, poor kid.) And last - but not least - we can go places and stay cool because it has air-conditioning. Man, I missed a/c. I do NOT miss the boobsweat.
My beautiful van:
Do you know what is NOT awesome? Having a toddler sneak a blue crayon into the new van. And then leave it on the ground of the new van. And then not tell anyone because she forgot about it. And then hearing your teenage son one day from the back of the van say, “What’s all that blue stuff?” Only to realize the crayon had melted in that one spot where it had dropped, and then LilZ had stepped in it with his size 10 shoes and tracked it ALL OVER THE NEW VAN. That - is NOT awesome.
Luckily mini-vans are designed with families in mind and all of the flooring is matted. So, I pulled all of the mats out to try to clean this weekend. I knew it would be a challenge to get out because, hey, it’s crayon wax. I looked up all sorts of methods online and I tried every non-toxic one I could find. Ironing on a brown paper bag seemed to work the best, but by “best” I mean - JUST BARELY. It still wasn’t really doing any good. I tried several different things and JUST as I was about to throw the mats away (because with the heat the crayon would keep re-melting and being tracked around again) I decided to just try basic carpet cleaner. 20 minutes later all of the mats were clean. BAH. I just sprayed the cleaner, scrubbed with a scouring pad, and then soaked with a paper towel. And then repeated that until the mats came clean. YAY!
So - the internet is good for some things - giving the average person solution to problems they would not have found elsewhere with as much ease. But sometimes it makes things more difficult because you don’t try the obvious solution first. Lesson learned. I can almost guarantee it won’t be the last time crayon gets tracked around my van. I’m not that lucky.
First off - I love the new site design. It’s almost like you’re getting ready to cheer on those Ravens!!
Second, that’s a very lovely van!! I can understand why you love it so much, especially for the AC factor. Fantastic job on getting the crayon out… When I saw how much of it had melted, my face went o.O
Man, I didn’t know that about vans and the mats. Good thing. I would have been crouched inside the van trying to get it all clean. Good job on getting it clean!
If that was the first inside the van disaster? I think you are doing a good job. hopefully the rest will be easier for you. There will be more!
I have the same beautiful van - even the same color! It’s my second (after swearing I would NEVER drive one) and there is no going back! Life is good with a van
We have a van here. The deciding factor was when our youngest sat in the middle and would through both hands back to hit his brother and sister. Now I will not by a vehicle without three rows of seats so they can be separated. Gotta love those vans!
an excellent lesson in car-mat cleaning!! right now we have 2 suvs - 1 for the girls to ride in, one for hunny…. we might downsize one when it’s time, but we will ALWAYS have some sort of larger vehicle for lugging the big stuff around. so helpful!
After swearing I would never be a “minivan mom” we broke down and bought one. I love it! Your van is very pretty
Crayons? I refuse to own them! ha! We let the girls use the color wonder markers (only marks on special paper) Of course my girls are only 2…I see them asking for crayons in the future.
Congratulations on choosing a color for a car in Alabama that is not black.
You know minivans get a lot of flak but everyone who owns one seems to love them-including my childless brother-in-law and sister. We all assumed they were accidentally knocked up when they got it but it’s been 6 months now and there’s no baby but they’re tooling around in the van. Actually my bil loves it so much that he tries to get my sister to drive their SPORTS CAR into the hospital so HE can drive the van.
I love your van. Seriously. I want me some of that van. Minus the bright blue crayon. K? Thanx.
We too would be lost without our van. We had four kids just so we could justify getting a van.
How strange is that . . . ?
We love our van too. I know some folks that refuse to get a van because of the stigma (?). I guess it’s the station wagon of the new millennium. Except you can’t sit backwards and try to get the truckers to honk at you.
So was the soy sauce helpful in getting the crayon out, too?
Didn’t I tell you when you got a mini van that you’d think it was the best thing in the world?! mini vans rock! We’ve hauled tons of stuff, from the dogs to a futon (flip down the back and take out the middle seats and you can haul a futon even in the rain!) I heart my mini van.
Love the new van! And a great job of getting it all out. It looks brand new… again.
I don’t know that I have commented before but due to completely useless knowledge that I gained while my now husband imparted to me during his college job detailing cars, I will comment.
They make spray paint for car carpets. Not that the wax would have been taken out with paint but it is a wonderful thing to know for future reference. And sad to know that the used cars out there that you buy are completely spray painted in order to look good.
Ooohhh! A Sienna in slate? I have the same van and I LOVE it! Yea for vans and basic carpet cleaner!
god bless the internet for cleaning solutions. I figured out how to get sharpie marker off of a dry erase board!
I haven’t crossed over to a van yet. If I had to, I’d get one like that. glad the carpet came clean. I swear there is nothing worse than a damaged car- you pay all that money , you want it to be nice awhile!