10 Reasons Everyone Loves the Toyota 2017 4Runner. This post is sponsored by Toyota. All opinions are my own.

Over the years my mother and I haven’t always seen eye to eye. When I had my first child I made a very conscious decision to be sure that she would be a part of his life. Having a relationship with your mother is very different after you become a mother, too. There are always the things that you swear you’ll never do with your your own children. Of course there are also the things that your mother did with you that you inevitably find yourself doing and saying. Mother-daughter relationships can be complicated. Luckily, ours was built for rough terrain.

It had been a couple of years since my mother came to visit. Sadly, it had been many more years since I visited her. In fact, it had been so long that I hadn’t even met all of my sister’s children. My sisters have never met the triplets. Traveling with a big family isn’t always easy. It’s not even always feasible. So, time lapses and sometimes it’s been longer than it should, since seeing your loved ones. The triplets are eight now. Despite having Autism, it’s much easier to go places with them than it used to be. I hope we’ll be able to make the trip to see my mom and sisters, soon.

My sister Sarah had a baby this year. When I found out she was pregnant, I cried. It wasn’t just happy tears, though. There was pain. It hurt me to acknowledge how long it had been since we’d seen each other. We live one state apart. I couldn’t let another nephew be born and not meet him. Nothing was going to get in my way. I planned a surprise family reunion! It was epic!

2018 has been all about the people in my real-life. I made it a point to reunite with the people I love the most and reconnect with my community. So  just a week after my surprise family reunion in Oregon, My mom came to California to visit us. A few weeks later and my best friend came from Florida. My mom’s trip was both beautiful and mortifying. My mom has suffered some things over the years and credits her will to live to her companion dog. While my mom was here, we had a family crisis. It was a very stressful time and she spent her last two days here, in a hotel. Right before that happened, my mom had a crisis of her own. She got a call from the friend who was caring for her dog. Something was terribly wrong. Her dog was sick and things didn’t look good. My mom panicked and kept saying how she knew this would happen. “The timing was all wrong.” She was breaking right in front of me and I was dealing with my own crisis, too.

Within a few days of returning home, my mom’s dog died. She said she wished it had been her. My mom didn’t want to live without her dog. I was heartbroken. I wished I could take it all back; the whole trip. I cried for weeks after that. Randomly, I would start to weep. I thought about her not being in my children’s lives. How could I not wonder if things would have been different if she’d never came on this trip? I pushed and pushed because I was originally secretly planning to return to Oregon with her to deliver my surprise. I didn’t know how to be there for her. She blamed the timing of her visit. She was hurting and there was even more crisis she had waiting for her when she returned home. How could I let her stay in a hotel?

It took me a while to write this post because at the time, everyone’s wounds were still so raw. Since then, my mom has agreed to visit again. I don’t know when that will be. Truthfully, I’m worried that when she does, there will be some heartache and bad memories. I’m sure there will be tears. You know what though, our relationship was built for rough terrain and we’ll make it through!

While my mom was here, Toyota let me spend the week in a 2017 4Runner. How ironic and iconic, right?

I could definitely give you more than 10 reasons why everyone loves the Toyota 2017 4 Runner, but I’ll give you this list of 10. I bet you already know number one!

1. The Toyota 2017 4Runner was built for rough terrain! It has 270HP, Active TRAC, 5-speed auto transmission and Pwr-assisted rack-and-pinion steering.
2. Like all the quality Toyota vehicles, the 2017 4Runner puts your safety first! It has vehicle stability control, advanced airbag system, side & knee roll airbags, and so much more.
3. Competitive Fuel Economy: While a 4Runner obviously uses more gas than an average car, it still gets 18MPG.
4. It’s a workhorse! This was  perfect for carrying my work equipment, handling rainy conditions, and owning the open road!
5. It’s gorgeous! While my mom and I were taking some pictures, a group of retail employees were just dying to check it out. So, we let them!
6. Top Tech: From safety to convenience, it’s loaded with top technology.
7. Clear Road View: I love being up high in a vehicle because you can see everything. It doesn’t feel awkward and it’s built-in side handles make it easy to get inside for everyone from kids to seniors.
8. Luxury Interior: It has all the bells and whistles, quality leather interior, and red accent threading throughout.
9. Family Sized: It fits a family of five. If you’re going solo or using it as a work vehicle, the seats fold down in seconds. I can fit my whole travel photography equipment in the back without having to break it down.
10. It’s a Toyota: Enough said!

Spending the week in the Toyota 2017 4Runner will always be symbolic to me. Our relationship was built for rough terrain and built to last! I love my mom and I’m lucky to have her in my life and in my children’s.

Be sure to follow Toyota on Facebook and Twitter, too! How is your mother-daughter relationship built? I’d love to know in the comments!