Life With Frenchie

Over the past 6 months, we have turned in our old cars and both purchased and leased a new vehicle. My old car was over 7 years old and I had standard insurance coverage on it. With it being an older car, my rates were relatively low, I guess, and I hadn’t really changed my coverage except to meet state minimums whenever I moved. Once we traded it in for the new SUV, there were other things to consider that I never really thought about 7 years ago when I had made my last car purchase.

For one, I hadn’t really given much thought to what would happen if there were a total loss of the car. Now, since I am more fiscally responsible, I gave that serious thought. What would I be left paying, after insurance, if my car were totaled? I found out that one option was to purchase Gap Coverage, which would cover the difference in the purchase price and the depreciated value of my car. Still, I am cautious about buying any “extras” from the dealer and much preferred the option of purchasing my coverage elsewhere. You know my penchant for being “lazy” and doing as much business online as possible, so of course I searched for insurance quotes online to help make my quote shopping easier to fit into my schedule.

When it came time to insure the second car purchased this year, the problem was that we weren’t happy with the rates we were currently paying. My boyfriend had been with his insurance company for a few years and was certain that he wouldn’t be able to get better rates. I asked if he had checked around before he purchased that policy, but you know guys — they’ll never admit they’re wrong. I tried to convince him that he probably could do much better if he just got some quotes. He didn’t believe me, so finally I showed him that he could get better car insurance rates just by filling out a quick online form and getting quotes from multiple carriers. At least he believed the Internet, even if he didn’t believe me! One of these days, he’ll learn.

Sponsored by www.advantageautoquotes.com.

Stumble it!

I was about to say that it’s been ages since I’d been anywhere, but I forgot that I went to Trinidad this summer for my cousin’s wedding and then went to St. Augustine in August for my one year anniversary with El Presidente. These definitely count as trips, but on the scale of the vacations that I’ve been known to take, these are not in the same category. The trip to Trinidad was definitely a big trip because I had not been there in about 20 years and I got to spend 10 days, but it was family. For those of you who like to travel, you know that a trip to see family just isn’t the same as a vacation. As for St. Augustine, don’t get me wrong, it was definitely a great vacation! El Presidente and I got to spend a weekend together, sans MM! The problem with that trip was that it was way too short! Oh, I almost forgot - I went to Universal Studios Orlando in September with my Girl Scout troop. That definitely does not count as a vacation! I spent 2 hectic days with 7 pre-teen girls in Orlando. Puh-lease! That was as far from a vacation as possible.

What I would love to do is to get back to traveling. We were supposed to go to the DC/Virginia/Maryland area this past May. Even though it was going to include visiting family, there were visits with friends and sightseeing included — enough to constitute a vacation. That got cancelled when I found out that I had to have surgery at the beginning of May and would not be able to travel for at least a month. Hopefully next year we can make that trip. For now, I will have to make do with what we have.

This month, being Thanksgiving and all, we are going to visit family. This year, it is El Presidente’s family. His maternal grandparents live here in Florida, on the “other” coast. At this point, I believe a few of his Aunts and Uncles will be there, too. We’ll hit the road early on Turkey Day (yes, we are crazy!) and cook dinner for the family. I have been assigned to make my Red Velvet Cake, sweet potato souffle (the kind with the brown sugar and pecan topping, not the yucky one with marshmallows and coconut!), and yeast rolls. Those are the only dishes on which I have proven my worth! More than likely, I will make the cake and souffle the night before. I really do not want to drive across the state and start cooking! Although I am looking forward to the trip, I’m sure it will be a hard one. We’re staying the night in a hotel and turning around and coming home that Friday!

It’s this kind of hectic holiday travel that made me swear that we are not going anywhere this Christmas! If I even hint at changing that vow, promptly smack me upside the head!

Stumble it!

I recently blogged about my ongoing search for life insurance. I will admit, I have fallen victim to the Internet and become “lazy” when it comes to comparison shopping. I don’t even like to pick up a phone and call around to get quotes. I love being able to just go directly to the insurer’s web site and input a few answers and get a quote in minutes. What’s even better is being able to find one site to go to and retrieve quotes from multiple carriers.

It’s not always about being lazy, though. Sometimes it’s about convenience. I know that when I was making my various moves between states, it was so much easier to shop for insurance online prior to my move. I’m also at an age in my life where I may soon have to start thinking about taking care of my parents who currently live in two different states.

More and more, relocations and moves cross more than just state lines. I have family that live both in the states and in Canada. I, for one, would have no idea where to begin searching for insurance products in Canada. Luckily, I could visit Life Insurance Canada and get quotes on life insurance products available in Canada. You could even shop for quotes for life insurance for smokers on the site. I can also calculate how much life insurance I would need to purchase to replace my current income for a given number of years. That tool was very useful, even in my search for insurance in the U.S.

Some people still are very cautious about shopping for financial products online, but it has really improved over the years. But, even if you don’t want to go through with your actual purchase online, getting an online quote definitely makes shopping for insurance, of any kind, virtually painless.

Stumble it!

I’m not really sure how “legit” this is, but you gotta give the guy an “A” for effort! 

Stumble it!