Car hunting

For some time now I've been dreaming about getting a bigger Audi as, although I love my little A1 to bits, it's becoming more impractical with just the two doors and small boot. I've been eyeing up A4 estates on the internet so this morning we took my car to get washed and then called into Vindis in Northampton who are our local Audi dealer and where I bought my car almost two years ago.

It was a miserable morning with grey skies and drizzle but I was determined to get my car washed to show it at its best. We had a quick look at the used cars on offer (no way can we get a brand new one!) and we were approached by one of the salesmen who asked us what we were looking for. He took us into the showroom, gave us some fantastic coffee and asked lots of details before going to have a look at my car and taking it for a short test drive. Craig, who sold me my Audi, was still working there and recognised us which was nice!

They had an estate with an 08 plate so we went to have a look but I wasn't impressed as it was a bit rough around the edges and had 70,000 miles on the clock. Tim, the salesman, then said there was a newer car at the Cambridge showroom but we could take out a demonstrator so I could see how the car drove and whether I liked it or not.

We took out a lovely A4 estate and Tim drove it to a quiet industrial estate as the area around the showroom was very busy - both Northampton Saints were playing and the Cobblers had a game on as well! I took control of the car and, as predicted, loved it to bits. The one I was driving was over £17,000 so a bit out of my price range, but the Cambridge car sounded ideal and only had 30,000 miles on the clock.

We arranged to come back next weekend and then left to go home in the pouring rain. Horrible! The afternoon was spent in Market Harborough as Sophie wanted to do some shopping in New Look and we had lunch in Caffe Nero like old times!

It didn't take Sophie long to spend her money so by 4pm we were home and I gave the downstairs of the house a quick hoover before Mum and Dad came around for a drink, as they'd bought Mikey some new clothes in Next. We had a couple of drinks and a great chat and outside it grew increasingly stormy. The southern half of the UK is set to be hit by a storm on Sunday night/Monday morning, so we'll see if it's as bad as the one that happened in 1987 when a lot of damage was done to the south of the country.

We had a delicious dinner after Mum and Dad left and Keith broke his no-drinking rule and had a few beers! I'm sure it doesn't hurt at the weekend!