Which compact extended cab truck do you recommend?

As a new home buyer, it's now time to get a truck. After all, my Volkswagen Golf GTI is getting trashed hauling the lumber I'm using to renovate the house. So my reasoning tells me to sell my wife's car, give her the VW, and to pick up the best value in a small pickup.

Here are my specific wants and needs: I won't be going off road much, but I will be using the truck for daily 15 minute commutes to work along with usual household hauling and an occasional camping trip. My buddy has an extended cab, and that thing seems to come in handy for stashing stuff you don't want rolling around, exposed to the elements in the bed. Oh yeah, and my wife is expecting our first child. That little bugger shouldn't be rolling around back there, either. I don't want a six-cylinder because I won't need the power nor the gas consumption. I'm a public school teacher, so you'd better believe that I don't have spare cash to spend on mechanical stuff; this truck had better be reliable! If I can get all of this for a selling price of about $15k, give or take a bit, I'd be happy.

Here's the word on the street concerning the models I've narrowed things down to:

Ford Ranger: best combination of features, performance, price. Has ABS standard. Good financing/rebate offers.

Mazda -series: No four-banger in the extended cab?

Toyota Tacoma: said to be very reliable, higher prices/higher resale/higher parts prices if needed (uh, but doesn't that cancel out?)

Nissan Frontier: the sleeper, more inexpensive pick, though an ugly duckling look that may grow on you. Seems to offer standard lots of little extras for the same money.

So what do you think? Any advice, feedback, recommendations, or wisdom would be appreciated.

Thanks,

bigbayou