Rent a minivan for a weekend and see if it doesn't fit the bill.

I never ever wanted a minivan..hated even the thought. Then, we were in a situation where we needed to get a vehicle with an automatic. My wife had foot surgery on her left foot, and both of our cars at the time were standards. Since we still owed money on her car, we sold my truck and bought a cheap minivan simply because a friend needed to get rid of it and the price was right. It didn't take long before we were very happy about the purchase, especially after taking a road trip in it. The versatility of the thing cannot be beat, it drives very well, and gets decent mileage.

We're on our second one now, and the wife can't wait until my truck's paid off so she can get another (she's dying for stow and go seating!).