Van for Three Kiddos

We have a Dodge Grand Caravan. It is awesome. The stow and go seating is very handy, and it has automatic sliding doors on both sides. and the back seat can be half stowed, so if you need someone to sit back there, but have something big you need laid down, it's great. We have one kid, but generally haul ourselves and 4 other grown men to ren fest on the other side of Kansas City and it's very comfortable. We also use the stow and go for hiding christmas presents when we go out of town to visit family for christmas.

Hey J... I have the Chyrsler Town & Country (same idea as Sara, except diff brand) either one I'm sure you would luve.. I luve the stow n' go.. u can take the middle chairs out if need be.. we do this when we drive to SC so there is more room to manuver around if need be.. My oldest (5) sits in a booster in the back.. all the seat recline so if someone falls asleep they don't look like they're half choking to death in the car.. My 3 year old is in a booster as well w/ the shoulder strap seatbelt. & Diego (16 mnths) is in a booster behind us.. I luve that everyone has a vent above & below for extra coolness or warmth. We also used the backseat backwards to go see a drive in movie.. because they can be just tipped down u basically sit on what would be the headrest to watch a movie.. it was awesome.. & also like sara said the seats can be removed, pushed down for bigger objects.. Mine can twist around also so when the kids get older they can play w/ the table that came in our car as well or use it to eat when we're on the road.. i absolutely love it.. Best of Luck :)

I have a Toyoto Sienna. The sliding doors in all minivans these days are a blessing. My other favorite feature is the Bluetooth enabled device. How did I ever do without it?

We LOVE our Toyota Sienna! I have two kids, age 5 and 3. At one point I had both our Bob Revolution Duallie and our single Bob Revolution stroller in the cargo space of the van. It was a tight squeeze for both strollers, but they did fit. We have the 7 seater, but you can get the 8 seater that has a removable middle seat.

I love everything about the van. Easy in and out for both my kids,5 seats with tether and latch systems for the carseats, of course the top safety ratings on consumerreports.org for the braking system is a must. On many occasions I have had 5 carseats/booster seats, two adults, and all our beach gear in it comfortably. The grandparents enjoy the ride from the third row seat. My Dad gets motion sickness and riding in the third row doesn't bother him at all. We just have the basic LE model with one automatic sliding door (the other is a manual sliding door). We also pack up the kids and all our stuff for a 2 week drive trip from San Diego to S. Dakota every year. Plenty of room for us all to be comfy on the long drive and since we have several food allergies we have to pack a lot of food to go with us on top of the normal luggage and gear. It all fits perfectly with room to spare.

Just be sure to get one with the roof rack and trailer hitch already installed. I didn't realize that we didn't have a trailer hitch on ours and so I will have to get one installed (about $200) so we can bring our kids bikes on our trip to S. Dakota in Aug.

On a side note: My family comes from Hawaii. The kids and I just got back from a week in Hawaii for a funeral. While there we borrowed my uncles Honday Odyssey. No complaints about that van either, except his van didn't have the latch system for the carseats (an older version).

Also what we did before we bought our Toyota was to take all the carseats, strollers, and other stuff that would normally be in the car down to the dealership and we loaded everything into a Siena to see how easy or difficult it would be and to see if everything fit. I had the two carseats installed, and everything in the van in 15 minutes. Then we put both kids in the car and did the test drive. Kids loved the van (we had a Toyota Camry before so they really liked the higher view that they get in the van and more foot space).

I love my Honda Odyssey. The automatic sliding doors are a must, and in fact, I wish we had sprung for a model with an automatic trunk as well (I don't know how much more that would have cost, though!) I have the Odyssey EX, which is an 8-seater. I love it. The best feature for me is that the jump-seat in the center row can be removed and stored, and then the captain's chair on the right can be moved into the center position. Then it's very easy to get to the back seat through the space on the right that is left. Any van you get, make sure that you can either move seats or have easy access to the rear row somehow.

Happy shopping.

I also second the Dodge Grand Caravan. I LOVE ours (and so did not want to have a van)! We have automatic sliding doors and I swear I would never buy another van without them. They weren't on our "must haves" when we bought, but I am SO glad my hubby talked me into them. It is so nice to push a button and have my doors open for me when my hands are full (which is 99% of the time). We also have the automatic trunk door and that is helpful too. There is tons of space in the trunk, all of the seats fold down into the floor, and when your front two seats aren't in the floor, the compartments underneath them can be used for storage. We put so much stuff down there it is ridiculous! (We can actually fit all of our stuff to change a tire, plus a small shovel in there.) Anyways...the only thing that I don't love is the cupholder situation. I feel like there aren't quite enough in easy to reach places since my son is still in a car seat, but as he gets older, I know it will be fine. (There are 8 total, they are just kind of awkward in the middle seats.) Other than that, there is nothing I would change about my van. I absolutely love it! Good luck and congratulations on your new little one!

We have a Kia Sedona. We've had it for 4 years now, chose the Kia because it seemed like the best price (my hubby compared a bunch). We love it! We also got the automatic sliding doors and trunk (both open with a push of the button from our key ring) - so, so convenient when you have kids!! There is a lot of room to store stuff - the 3rd row seats fold down, so you can have a flat surface to haul stuff, and they can be folded down on only one side if you need someone to sit on one side. The middle row seats can be taken out all the way if you need room there.

There are 2 captains seats in the middle row. Which is nice when you have 2 kids, but no 3rd seat option there like the Odyssey. We are planning our 3rd baby now, so will have to send my 4 year old to the 3rd row when the baby comes.

Test drive a few and check out the features to see what you like. Good luck!

I have had a Sienna for three years now and it came with far more bells and whistles than I thought I needed, but that car is designed for moms and every features has been helpful.
Yes, to automatic sliding doors on both sides with the buttons on the key chain. SO helpful with full hands.
I also like that the back row is split in two and one or both parts can fold down. I have used it in all of the various configurations for one reason of another. It's also nice that the second row captains chairs can be positioned side-by-side or with the pass-through in the middle. Especially if you have a third child and will need to access the third row a lot.
I really appreciate the sonar. Though I force myself not to rely on it exclusively, it makes parallel parking a breeze. And, in my mommy fog, it has occassionally warned me about something I didn't see behind me.
It's also nice, because the sonar works with the cruise control and you can maintain a fixed following distance even while on cruise.
Also, it has run-flat tires. This makes things more expensive if you do get a flat, but you will never be stuck on the side of the road waiting for AAA. You get a warning and you can still go 50 miles.
Also didn't think we needed the DVD player, and we rarely use it, but it is really nice to have when we do make 1 hour + trips.
I have not yet any maintenance issues with it.
The downside? I have the AWD model and get 18-20mpg.

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I have a Kia Sedona minivan and LOVE it. According to the National Highway Insurance Institute, it's the safest minivan ever built...when my kids are in the car, that's foremost. It has sliding doors on both sides that are tied to a button on my keyfob...which I love. I have both a single and double stroller in the back cargo area along with other things. It has entertainment (which we only use on longer trips), lots of cup holders...pretty much has it all and it's way less cost than the Toyota or Honda. Definitely check it out!

-M

I have a Honda Odyssey with automatic doors on both sides. SO awesome with three kids! Just make sure your doors are locked when you go inside so they don't open when your keys bump in your pocket. It has a nice big 'tub' in the back (you can tuck the seats in but I never do) so it's great for shopping trips, going on trips, baby gear, etc. I love being able to unlock my doors as I'm walking up or going into the house (esp. when it's raining) and open the doors without having to unlock at the van itself. I used to have regular sliding door but I wouldn't go back to it after this. We even had all three kids in the back seat (that was when we had TWO in carseats and one in a regular booster). Lots of leg room, too. I never use the tray that's between the driver seat and the passenger seat (too many CD's lol).