My Honda Love Story | Blogger Contest 2nd Runner Up

My Honda Love Story begins in 1995. I was only 8 at the time but I remember as my parents were visiting different car dealerships, I had fallen in love with this beautiful new green Honda Civic. It was so much better than our 10-year old other car (not a Honda) and it smelled like heaven. My father worked with the car salesman until he got a great price for the car and we took it home.

Not the original car, but my neighbor happens to own one just like by old one except in blue! 

I remember going out to the garage and just admiring it. I've never been a lover of cars, but this thing was beautiful! And my mother even mentioned that I may get to drive it when I turned 16 which, to an 8-year old, was one of the most amazing things she could have ever told me!

As silly as it may sound, I grew up with this car. It took me to piano lessons, swim lessons, softball practices, and tennis practices. The Civic took me to school and picked me up from school. It took me to museums and the zoo. I even spent many hours sprawled out on its back seat on long car rides for vacations (back in the day, apparently it wasn't as big of a deal to have an 8-year old child laying down on the backseat ... or maybe it was and I was totally breaking the law). The comfortable backseat and door kept me propped up for rides to Grandma's house and gave me a nice seat to immerse myself in books or a nap.

Finally, I turned 15 and a half and my parents decided that I should learn to drive on the Honda Civic. I was so excited to drive this car that I had grown so close to for the past 7 years. And over the next few months, I cried a lot in that car. It was a stick shift so not only did I need to know how to drive, watch everything around me, and not hit anything, I also had to remember when to shift gears. There really had been nothing tougher in my life than learning how to not stall the car every time I started moving and how to not roll back a few yards after being stopped on hills.

This little Honda Civic gave me my freedom (after I learned to drive it, of course). I passed my driver's test with flying colors and there was no looking back from there. My friends and I had some fun adventures in that car and it even took me on one of my first dates as a teenager. When I think of my childhood, I think of this car because it was there for all of my big moments up until I was 18. It heard me laugh, cry, yell, and even sing at the top of my lungs. There really was not a better car than my beautiful, enduring, and reliable Honda Civic.

Again, not the original Civic I fell in love with, but exactly like it except in blue! 

Kim Corrigan grew up in Sandy, moved to Utah Valley for college, and has remained there ever since. She enjoys spending time with her husband and two children. She and her family love to do anything but stay home. Picnics, bike rides, special events, and vacations are at the top of their "Most Favorite Things to Do" list. Kim started Utah Valley Moms and socializes on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google +, and Instagram.