The Yeti's maiden voyage

What BETTER way to break in the Yeti (btw- that's another name for the Abominable Snowman) then to pile a bunch of sistas in it for a

TEMPLE TRIP?!?!!?

The temple trip was so neat. Spiritual. Uplifting. Peaceful and greatly needed.

Just to WALK on the temple grounds and feel like how we did...............

WAIT

WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT?!?!

That's not what happened......

THIS is what happened.

9 awesome ladies.

Stranded.

On the side of the road.

Missing. that. temple. session.

Okay, so here's what REALLY happened:

-we got off late

-The Yeti's A/C was awesome

-We got about 20 minutes away from home and it started shaking.

(let me note, I didn't think too much of it because our old van shook when you hit 65 mph. So I thought this van might have a little shake zone as well, right?)

-I thought it was the rear-end massage feature I added when I bought the car, but it wasn't.

-We pulled over and I called Brooks

-Cami checked the tires, for what.....we're still not sure.

-The tires were intact, and full so we started off again.

-Once again we did the shaky achy heart dance at about 30 mph.

-This time I got out and looked at the tires.....once again they looked fine, I guess.

About 1/2 mile after starting up we heard a nice pop sound and I knew a tire blew. After pulling over, it didn't just blow, it popped a hole in the thing and SHREDDED part of the tire!!!!

So, what option did I have but to change that darn tire, right?

I mean, could this changing be any different from the 2 door Sentra's tire changing lesson I had in Young Women's over 10 years ago that I never got to touch a thing?!?!

Now remember, you're dealing with a girl that has gone 7.5 years STRAIGHT of daily changes......they were diapers, but hey, I could do it, right?

I will have to admit I was relieved to see the spare tire had a nice gash in it as well (meaning, I didn't have to TRY to change a tire). On the OTHER hand, we. were. stuck.

I love having friends with phones (since I don't have a cell phone) and immediately we had a few husbands lined up to pick up parts of the lady herd.

We were there all together for maybe 45 minutes. We laughed, enjoyed the nice breeze and graded the irritated cop that stopped to tell us the van couldn't be on the side of the highway (he got a C- if you were wondering). To tell you the truth, it was fun hanging with those ladies, I just hate we missed the temple session over it.

EPILOGUE:

So what exactly HAPPENED to the Yeti, you ask?

Well, that starts back when we bought the van a long time ago (8 days to be exact) when the man told us we should probably get new tires. Okay, Brooks and I thought. But as you walked around the van and looked at the tires they looked brand, spankin' new with the tread even looking new.

Brooks called Brother Joe in ward who owns/works in a tire shop. He met Brooks at the van last night and asked what we were still doing w/ those tires on the van. He said it doesn't matter how it LOOKS, but the fact that they are 15 years OLD is the issue here!!!! Hmmmm.

Moral of THAT story:

No matter how good or intact a tire might look, it doesn't mean it won't blow out at anytime, especially if it's 15 years old. (Just try that out yourself. Go up to any girl that is 15+ old and even though she LOOKS okay and intact, it doesn't mean she won't break down right then and there when asked how she is!)

Advice:

Don't drive tires that are older then how long you've have your license.

YES, we never made it to the temple.

YES, plans were changed.

and YES, tires for a van that size are more expensive then all my youthly allowances put together.

But really, I feel truly blessed. To say we were all watched over is a complete understatement. The tires were going to blow....it was a matter a time.

I thank my merciful Heavenly Father it didn't happen when I was alone w/ the kids, on a hot day, w/ empty bellies. That the tire didn't blow while going 70 mph and could've caused.....who KNOWS what. That the nice men that helped Brooks put on a new tire with the RIGHT tool happened to live 2 houses down from the exit. That the ladies I were there with were so enjoyable to be with. That the weather was perfect, and that IT WAS JUST A TIRE!!!! There are a WHOLE lot of other things that could've gone wrong with the van that would've been a lot trickier to handle.

I can't deny I have a Father that watches out for me and for that, I'm ever grateful.