I’m sure much discussion and analysis will be all over the morning newspapers and broadcast headlines Tuesday. But here’s the bottom line: The average gas price in the U.S. has now beaten the inflation-adjusted gas price record previously set in 1981.

USA Today story.

Now in 1981, my parents had seven children at home and two cars. They did not, and never did, have two family-sized cars. For many years, we had one minivan to haul the family around and one no-frills commuter car that was intended for when one driver or a small load of passengers was involved.

To this day, they still have two vehicles. One is a sport-utility vehicle intended for hauling the camper and a larger load of people or cargo when needed, the other is a no-frills commuter car that toots around town or to a meeting.

(My husband and I never owned a big vehicle; in fact, for a time we both drove hatchback coupes. Then again, there’s only one child in our family!)

These days, child car seat safety requirements make big vehicles a real necessity once families have three children. It wasn’t all that long ago when you could sit one older child in the middle of a back bench of a sedan, secured with a regular seat belt, between two baby seats or two adults. That’s not going to happen for too many families under Michigan’s current child car seat rules.

But how many families really need two big vehicles all the time?

My parents didn’t need to do that.