Okay folks, it’s confession time. Today’s sin?  Squalor. Are you squeamish?

You can settle down a little bit, the squalor in my home isn’t too bad. Truth be told, I’m sort of OCD about the kitchen and the bathrooms. The squalor is in my car, and at the risk of being a foregone conclusion, yes, it’s a mini van (What did you expect? I have three busy kids and am an active participant in half a dozen carpools). I really don’t know where to begin…the outside of my ride is D-I-R-T-Y, and I’m semi-shocked no one has yet written “Wash Me” on the trunk. But the inside of my mommy bus is just plain filthy. If there were such a thing as a “Messy Car Checklist,” I would hit each point without any margin for error. Smelly sports equipment? Check. Yesterday’s coffee cup? Check. Assorted water bottles? Check. Empty juice boxes, zip-lock snack bags and tupperware? Check, check, check!

Some how, some way, a clean car falls into the “unattainable goal” category for me. I’ll wake up and think, “Car wash today!” And boom, it rains. I’ll drag the troops into the garage, equip them with trash bags and inform them we are not coming within ten miles of a soccer field until we can effectively picnic on the floor of the car without ever having the word “botulism” pop into our heads. And yeah, that works…for about two days. Then we’re right back to where we started: vehicle slumdom.

But fear not for me and mine. Guess what I have in my neighborhood? Nothing less than the car wash of my dreams: NorthShore Auto Spa.  It’s the ultimate mani/pedi for the family truckster and my favorite way to spend a lunch hour.  I pick up a salad to go, head to “The Spa,” and enjoy my daily dose of veggies while the very friendly staff erase all traces of the Mini Me’s…And then I’m off, with a cappuccino in hand, no less! And did I mention this is all for $20 (not including the salad)?

So for those of you standing on Michigan Avenue this afternoon admiring the sleek Nissan Quest emanating Armor All as it passes by, wave hello to this gal pal!

Wax on wax off!