Lots of kids, lots of stuff, now lots of room for them all!

After much thought, and many test drives, my wife and I opted for a 2005 Chevrolet Suburban LS 4wd.

We decided on getting the nine passenger version, and that was a good idea. We've got 4 kids already and a fifth on the way. A minivan simply does not cut it for us. Allow me to explain.

The vast majority of minivans come in a 2-2-3 seating configuration (please don't confuse that itty bitty jumpseat in the Odyssey for a real seat). That is, two captains chairs up front, two in the middle, and a 3 person bench in the rear. Well, in our family scenario, with four kids already and a baby on the way, we'd need to use one of the middle row captains chairs for the carseat, which would leave one other chair and 3 kids crammed in the 3rd row.

We often travel from MD to NY, and the idea of 3 kids moaning and groaning the whole way because they were crammed 3 across the back seat was not appealing to me.

So, with minivans ruled out for sanity reasons, our focus switched to full size SUV's. We were looking at the Sequoia, Armada, Expedition, Excursion and Suburban. They all seemed to have the basics we were looking for and were basically in our price range.

We quickly ruled out the Sequoia, Armada and Expedition because in those 3 vehicles, if you use all of the seating positions (which we need to), you have NO cargo space left. Remember, baby on the way, so we'll have stroller and diaper bag (and maybe even Pack 'N Play) everywhere we go!

So it was now down to Suburban vs. Excursion. For me the choice was simple. Excursion is too big, too expensive and I just couldn't see living with that beast on a daily basis.

The Suburban is just the right size. We'll put the carseat in the center of the middle row. Two kids will sit on either side of it, with the two other kids in the third row. Nobody's touching anyone, nobody's getting on anyone's nerves, just a nice comfortable place for us all to travel in. There's plenty of room in the back for the stroller and diaper bag, plus our luggage.

The engine is great. Very powerful, very responsive. It has a beautiful grumble from outside the vehicle, but is amazing quiet from the inside.

The ride is top-notch. Very smooth and quiet. All of the controls are easy to reach and the sound system is quite acceptable. My kids certainly appreciate the rear heat/AC which has vents in the second and third rows.

Our overall mileage has been 17 so far, but it's still new and hasn't really even broken in yet. I don't expect too much higher than that, but I can live with it.

Overall, I highly recommend the Suburban for any family that has lots of people and lots of "stuff". Minivans and smaller SUV's just can't do all the things the Suburban can, and at this price no less.... we paid $34k for 4wd brand spanking new. Can't beat that.