Over the weekend I said goodbye to one of my closest confidants, a nearly constant companion through thick and thin: My 2002 Toyota Highlander.

Mark and I have owned 14 cars over the past 18 years, buying something different with each military move and often times in between.

Some I remember better than others. In Hawaii, there was the 1973 Pontiac LeMans convertible with the rusted floor boards and the Jeep CJ-5 with no doors.

In Okinawa, where it was against the law to test drive a car from a dealer's lot, we bought a Nissan van called a Homey and a four-door Toyota sedan called a Corona.

We had an old-style, two-door Toyota 4Runner in North Carolina and an almost-new shiny black Toyota Tundra pick-up truck in Florida.

In Korea we bought a used Hyundai Sonata in mint condition. A year later, it was covered with the battle scars of daily driving on the streets of downtown Seoul.

We decided we were ready for a real car about the time our son Jace started to crawl. Like most first-time parents, we felt the need for something safe and practical. We ended up with the Highlander, the epitome of a suburban mom's SUV.

It was the first brand new car we ever bought. It was a base model yet it seemed so fancy with its V-6 engine, four-wheel drive suspension, indigo blue pearl paint and extra-dark tinted windows.

I loved that car for 107,458 miles, from Florida to Germany, back to Florida and then to Kansas.

The Highlander took us on a ferry across Lake Zurich in Switzerland and through the Alps in Germany and Austria. It carried us into a blizzard in Italy and under the Arc de' Triomphe in Paris. It criss-crossed the state of Florida more than once and sailed across the Atlantic in a container ship. Twice.

It took the kids and I camping for the first time. It carted Jace to his first baseball game and his first day of school. It brought Rian home from the hospital and took her on her first trip to Grandma's.

It made countless late-night trips to the emergency room and more beer runs than I care to tell.

It was there when I dropped Mark off at the airport for his deployment to Iraq and there when I picked him up a year later.

We did a lot of living, that car and me.

On a bad day I'd crank up the stereo and sing along as loud as I could. On a good day, I'd do the same.

The Highlander was indelibly mine, the dirt usually an inch thick on the outside and the interior not much better. It smelled like old shoes, had crayon scribbles on the back windows and a cigarette burn on the driver's seat.

I once found a four-year-old lottery ticket wedged near the rear door.

Times change, and with me and two kids driving the back roads of Kansas on a regular basis we decided it was time for an upgrade. We needed the latest air bags and skid control and safety features.

The new car is a 2008 Highlander, slightly used with about 6800 miles on it. It's dark gray, a V-6 with four-wheel drive and dark tinted windows. But this model is slightly classier, with power seats and a sunroof and rear air conditioning.

It's sleek and shiny and clean pretty.

Rian cried when we dropped off our old Highlander at the dealer Saturday. I almost did, too.

Get ready, new car. You've got some big tires to fill.

Oh Jan, the memories. I totally understand. I rather liked that Highlander and now you have another to make your own. Be safe and keep warm.

That's right, Bon - You got to witness her in all her glory at the Freedom Walk - I had forgotten! and for the record, it is 13 degrees outside right now. BRRRRR doesn't begin to describe it!!!

I got a little emotional reading this, and it's not even my car! I do get attached as well.... Did you get seat heaters? That's the best option I've ever paid for.

I know exactly how you feel - I'm way attached to my car too. That beast has seen me through good times and bad, and never once left me stranded. 13 years old and 150,000+ miles and still going (what's a little smoke...)

Bette - I did not get seat heaters, although I was tempted. They only come with the leather seats, and I got cloth. I did get the de-froster on the mirrors, though! ....... Carolmac - My Highlander actually did leave me stranded one day in the car line at Jace's school right before we moved. It was horrible - 100 parents in line behind me and I had nowhere to go! Overall, though, it served me very well and that was the only time it ever let me down.

We have this weird thing in our family that my nieces (husbands side) started . They all name their cars. Our daughters first car was Fred the Firebird! I said I was going to drive Bonnie (my Bonneville) until the wheels fell off. At 130,000 miles, some moron rear-ended me and forced Bonnie to be laid to rest. The most memorable trip I remember with her was when we took our daughter to college. I cried all the way home. For the next 4 years, Bonnie took me on many trips back and forth to see Jen at Purdue. She never failed me not to mention the fact that she could haul *ss. Now, we have Jerry the Jeep WITH heated seats. Love the seats!!

Missy - that's funny because as I was writing this post I was thinking it would have been better had I named the blue Highlander!