We bought a car! I’m more excited than usual over a new car, because this was mine and Matt’s first big purchase as a married couple.

Funny side note: Matt has learned a very valuable lesson. At first, he didn’t understand that our first of everything was vitally important…our first Christmas, first vacation, first house…I’m obsessed with it all. In the beginning he wouldn’t get very excited about all of the little firsts here and there. After about 6 months in, he realized that I want to make a big deal of all of those things. Now, as soon as I say, “Aww…it’s our first {insert random item/holiday/experience}” – he immediately follows with, “You’re right, it’s our first {repeat random item/holiday/experience} and it’s important because all of our firsts are important.” He figured it out! On a serious note, I’m very happy that my husband will play along with my silly notions.

That being said, I made quite a big deal of our car-buying process. (If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you already know this because I posted 3 pics of the process…more than I usually allow.) However, it felt like a huge deal to me. We had just made our first big decisions as a couple and worked amazingly together…I felt like celebrating!

Our car-buying strategy was a tad more elaborate than most. We spent 2+ weeks analyzing different options…Accords, Altimas, Camrys. New, used, certified. Future trade in values, mpg, insurance, down payments…you name it. If it could be considered, then I guarantee we talked it through. We even had a spreadsheet…a color-coded spreadsheet at that! After analyzing the numbers to death, we finally decided to write which car we really wanted down on a note card and show each other at the same time. (That’s how all big decisions are made right??) Luckily, it was the same car!

Why were we buying a new car? Matt is driving 60 miles round trip to Ruston everyday. Our original plan was for him to drive my car to school instead of his big Dodge with a whopping 16mpg. However, my 6′ tall husband didn’t fit so well into my little g6. So, we decided to buy me a slightly bigger car that he can drive on school days.

I think we knocked this one out of the park. We got a great car with awesome features (You can thumbs up/thumbs down your Pandora from the screen – my fav! Plus, it has back up & lane watch cameras.), and Matt driving it to school is going to save us a ton of money each month.

When I married my husband, one of the biggest draws was that I felt like we could work together through anything. This car-buying experience has shown me that yet again, we make an amazing team. Ladies, when you’re picking a husband, be sure it’s someone you can work through both little and big things with. And someone that you can enjoy the process of making these sorts of decisions with. It will make a huge difference in your overall happiness.

So here it is…the newest addition to the Petrus family – our 2013 Honda Accord EX! We love it’s long list of fun features, the crazy good gas mileage, and the fact that there’s only 3 of this color in the state of Louisiana. Plus, apparently a carseat will fit easily in the back. 🙂