Mini Cooper Culbman - front view. The color is called White Pepper.

A number of years and pounds ago, when BMW bought the Mini Cooper brand and made it available on this side of the pond, my friend Jeanine ordered a beautiful and sporty green one. She watched it being made on the assembly line, via internet, and when it arrived I could hardly wait to see it too.

In the first week it hit American soil, Alan and I drove to Dallas to see her sparkly new Mini and take a ride. It was beautiful indeed, but when we got in the car, I felt like an elephant in an elevator. Let’s just say that at that time I had more of an SUV body.

I’ve been driving Ford Escapes for the last seven years, but since we moved into a town home we realized that we were going to have to get smaller cars in order to fit them into the garage. After all, it is much nicer to lock up your valuables at night and not just your junk, as my cousin Sharon once said.

So, last weekend we cleaned out the garage and then attended the auto show in Fort Worth to see what we liked. I fell in love with the Mini Cooper Clubman (it’s just a bit longer than the Mini Cooper and has 3 doors). Alan wanted a jeep. We traded our cars for both over the weekend, they fit in the garage together nicely, AND our monthly payments went down!

Alan's green 2-door hardtop Jeep Wrangler and my Mini in the garage with room to spare!

Thanks to Medi Weight Loss Clinic and Flux Pilates, I’ve managed to loose and maintain (within 15 pounds) my weight loss for more than a year now. Though I don’t have a “mini-body” (yet), it does fit comfortably in a Mini car! Cheers to realizing your dreams!

I love the swing out wagon doors on the Clubman!

P.S. We bought the Mini at Moritz Mini in North Arlington. They are offering 0% financing right now. If you go, ask for Samantha and tell her I sent you. She is very knowledgeable and a fun, no pressure sales woman. It was by far the best car buying experience we’ve ever had!