subaru should pay me for this post

I know, I'm about to write an entire post about our new car. The thing is, before Kevin and I bought our Outback, I was a little skeptical of the cult-like devotion that Subaru - pardon me, Subi - owners tend to exhibit. Subaru's are not as commonplace in Southern California (where I was raised) as they are in places with hard winters. It wasn't until we moved to Upstate New York, and then to Minnesota, that we began to consider a Subaru as a potential future vehicle for our household. At the end of last winter, after having survived a combined seven East Coast and Midwest winters driving around in Fifi (my sweet little Ford Focus), Kevin and I decided that it was time to purchase an all-wheel-drive vehicle. Enter the Outback, and cue the hallelujah chorus.

Driving our Outback after years of Fifi was a revelation. The luxury! I loved Fif, but I spent a good part of one stormy Minnesota summer driving around with the driver's side window rolled down because the door was stuck and I didn't want to get trapped in my car if I got into an acident. A stuck door also meant I spent that summer crawling into my car from the passenger side, which was a little cumbersome. Also, there was the whole no air-conditioning thing, which made it feel like I was driving around in warm cellophane when I kept the windows closed on humid and rainy summer days. The heat, though it worked, was weak, and  there were winter days when I drove peering through the holes that appeared in the giant ice crystal patch that formed on the INSIDE of my windshield. There were also the times I slipped around on icy mornings, including an impressive, and truly terrifying, incident where I did an 180 while approaching an intersection. Obviously, I was excited when it was time to get a new car.

We survived an ambitious 5,000 mile road trip to Portland, OR, San Francisco, and back to Minnesota in the Subi this past summer - to live up to our image as the typical adventurous Subaru owners - and our love for this car now runs deep. It's the perfect car for Lola (no more having dog fur and muddy, or snowy, paw prints all over the passenger seats), and I can't wait to test out that AWD and the heated seats this winter. HEATED SEATS. These are the things that matter during a Minnesota winter (for some reason, if you know your butt is about to feel very warm, you don't feel as apprehensive about getting into your frigid car on a 5-below day).

Lola in the back of the packed car, on our 5,000 mile road trip in August. 

Breakfast in Montana, during our road trip.

Lola, and her BFF, Koa, muddy and tired in the back of the Subi after a long hike in Portland, OR. 

Somewhere in Nevada, on our drive back to Minnesota from California. 

We've owned this car since March, and I confess that I am in a deeply committed relationship with our vehicle. I plan on spending the next ten years (at least) in this car.