A few weeks ago, Chrysler gave me the chance to test drive a Town & Country minivan. These are my stories...

As I emerged from my favorite coffee joint with my required morning jolt of caffeine, snowy flakes had scarcely begun their descent from the cold, gray sky above. I paused just long enough to enjoy the feeling of the large, wet flakes on my warm skin. Too often, we rush off to our next activity and miss these moments. For once, I had remembered to savor the feeling of our first snow.

Back in the van, I mentally ticked through my "To Do" list: Work, errands, dinner, many kidtivities, and we had really hoped we could pick up our Christmas tree tonight.... It would be a long day. So much for my Zen moment.

Work went smoothly enough. But while running errands on the way home, my Big Strong Man (a.k.a. my husband) called, asking when the party was. I had to do a double-take: OMG! The party! Teen in Line and I had completely forgotten about the gingerbread house decorating party up at school. Feeling like the proverbial one-armed paper hanger, I started to regroup.

Back home, after combing through far more e-mails than any sane person should have on her computer at any given time, I finally found the one about the party:

"Save your leftover Halloween candy!" Blah, blah, blah.
"Only pay for the kids!" Blah, blah, blah.
"Eat dinner before you come!" Blah, blah, blah.
"6 p.m."

Are you kidding me? 6 p.m.? Who starts an event at 6 p.m. on a Friday night but doesn't serve dinner? So, now I've got to go grab Teen in Line -- at 6 o'clock -- wait for her to change her clothes, feed her dinner, and have her back up at school -- at 6 o'clock.

Impossible, you say?

You must not know me very well. Because, you know, you can change your clothes in a van. The windows are tinted. "It's pretty cozy in the back. No one will see you," I tell my daughter in my most convincing voice.

And the gingerbread house decorating party? Great fun. So glad we made it. And dinner? It was the Chex mix that was served as a snack at the party, of course. Peanuts are an excellent source of protein.

Will I be nominated for Mother of the Year? Probably not, but we sure had a good time -- just look at the kids' faces!

This is my life. We practically live in the van. I make no apologies.