Baby countdown

We’ve got just nine weeks to go now on the baby countdown front. All of a sudden Christmas and New Year have passed us by and we’re rushing towards our baby’s due date. He or she will be here before we know it (well, not literally, but you know what I mean) and we’ve got to get ourselves sorted out and prepared before the big day.

To be honest, we’re not doing too badly – we’ve decorated the baby’s room, bought most of the furniture, have got quite a few sets of clothes and we’re booked into NCT antenatal classes next month – but it’s difficult to shake the feeling that we’ve forgotten to do something.

One of the big remaining tasks on the list is to buy a car with more than two (or three) doors. Our current one is going to become a pain for getting the car seat in and out; it also has such a small boot that there won’t be enough room for all of the baby bits as well as mum and dad’s luggage if we ever decide to scoot off anywhere. The trouble is, I’m pretty clueless about cars. I’ve bought a Parker’s guide and although it’s reasonably helpful it’s still daunting. Even if we could decide on a hatchback, estate or saloon (which is the best for a small family with luggage?), it’s so difficult to narrow it down from there. What’s going to be roomy, comfortable, cheap, reliable and economical? Even if we looked at just one model there are still a zillion sub-models to chose from (engine size, bodywork, strange things like ‘Ghia’ etc.) and even more target prices to aim for (according to Parker’s) depending on whether you buy it from a dealer (of which there are two types, apparently), an auction, a car supermarket or a private sale. We’re limited by the fact that we also have a small budget – a new car is out of the question. Where do you even begin?