We get pretty excited about the small things around here.  Davey has been really looking forward to getting our new car tags.  “Mommy, they have mountains on them!”  So yesterday, we took on the purchase and changing of the tags.

Since we are back in an urban area, we first had to go have an emissions test done on the car.  We found the emissions place.  There was a line of cars.  I didn’t bother reading the big information board when we drove in, because I’d looked into the process online before we’d left.  As we were waiting though, I had a nagging feeling that they might not accept my credit card.  Sure enough as we approached the front of the line, there was the sign “Sorry no credit/debit cards”.  I wiggled ourselves out of the line and off we went in search of money.  (I’d neglected to put my checkbook in my purse, and I barely know what cash looks like anymore.  I am very debit card dependent.)

We were not in the greatest part of town.  I knew we’d be getting back in line so we went into the Dollar General for a snack.  I also hoped I could get some cash back there.  No such luck.  We did stock up on animal crackers though.  The person in Dollar General told me that there was an atm in the liquor store next door.  So Davey had his first trip into the liquor store.  It wasn’t the fact that I took him into a liquor store that bothered me much, it was more the gauntlet of cigarette smoke that we had to run through to get into the liquor store.

So we got our money, drove back and got in line.  It moved pretty quickly and soon we were standing in a booth waiting for them to finish the car.  I started talking to a couple in there.  I was curious as to how often I had to have the emissions testing done.  They told me every other year.  Then they asked me if I had any idea how much tags were in Colorado.  “You are in for a shock!” the man told me.  Then I think he took my slightly southern accent as a sign of naivete and maybe dumbness because he started to warn me how I probably was not going to get out of the tag office without having paid oh $500-700!  Even on my 7 year old car! I really had my doubts about that, but I made all the exclamations of “oh no!  You are kidding!”, and he was happy.

Next I learned that not only did we need the $25.00 emissions test, but since we were registering for the first time in Colorado, we had to have a $15.00 VIN Verification.  Seriously.  She walked around the car, wrote down VIN numbers, verified.  However, there was no computer database verification check involved that I know of.   Anyway, a first for me, but no biggie.

Next we were off to the tag office.  Another very long line.  Davey and I were getting hungry by then, but he hung in there great.  We played “find objects in Mommy’s purse that can entertain us.”  We talked to a man next to us who had moved from Washington D.C.  Finally, it was our turn.  Davey was thrilled to see our mountain tags, and I was thrilled that our tags, while higher than in our previous states of residence, were “only” $158.

Davey is ready now to install them onto the car with Daddy.  More cause for great excitement!

Happy Saturday!  We are off on a Saturday exploration.