Happy Hello's and Sad Goodbye's

Looking back at this week my emotions resemble a roller-coaster at Disneyland. On Wednesday I brought home a car! That certainly was a lot of excitement for this girl. It's definitely something I've wanted to do for a while, but never thought I was "grown up" enough to do it, or that I'd be able to find the right one without dad's approval (that's most important, you know). As I mentioned in my last post I'm attempting to play more of the part of a wife, mother and simply a grown-up, so this was definitely a step in that direction. The Taurus has certainly given me a great ride and many wonderful memories but I think she's finally coming to the end of her legacy and it's time to move on. Hunting around for quotes on car insurance was time consuming, but I'm so glad I had the opportunity to learn from it. Also, I certainly did not expect walking off the lot with literally my dream car. I've drooled over the Nissan Altimas ever since the 10th grade when Cory Meyer pulled up in the high school parking lot in a nice, shiny black one. "Man," I thought, "What a car! Maybe someday I'll have a car like that, but probably not." After test driving a few others and doing some research, the Altima was definitely the best investment I could've made and I have no doubt she'll be with me for a long time! I think her name is going to be Lady, but I'm open to other suggestions, if you have any.

The 7 things I love most about having a new car:

1. Such a smooth ride! You can hardly tell there are train tracks everywhere, bumps, etc. And it's quiet.
2. No rust....dad.
3. Leg room!! I'm often concerned about the others in my vehicle when I'm driving, and since I'm toting around adults most of the time I want to make sure they're comfortable. (And it will probably be great for kids too, let's be real.)
4. No more consulting mom and dad if I can drive their car somewhere. Kelsey Marie Kaufman is the only name on this title and loan, baby.
5. Aside from school loans, this is my first big investment! I'm slowly but surely entering what some may call "the real world." 
6. She'll have NORTH DAKOTA license plates! That was one of the first things I noticed when I got here and every chance I get I tell someone how much I love those darn tootin' plates. I guess now I've got a car licensed and titled in ND. 

 On a much sadder note, and in fact, I would've liked to dedicate separate posts to each of these events, my dog, Rosco, was put down yesterday after suffering with a liver problem for quite a while now. Boy he sure was a trooper right up until the end and I wish I could've been there with mom, dad and Kevin.

If you'd entreat me, let me tell you just a little bit about how Rosco became a part of the Kaufman family. I had always been obsessed with dogs, as most young girls are I imagine. My aunt Colleen gave me a beautiful informational book filled with professional pictures of all sorts of dogs when I was in middle school. Before she gave it to me I used to always steal it and just page through it, looking at all the different puppies, especially keeping a close eye on the basset hounds because for some reason I thought they were just the cutest. I begged and whined and hoped to have a puppy someday but mom was adamant about not letting a dog mess up the house and dad didn't like the idea of house dogs because he always had dogs running around on the farm growing up.

One summer day mom goes with a friend, Terri, because Terri wanted a puppy for her family and she saw an ad for the sweetest little Yorkie-poos you could ever imagine. I remember being in the basement with Janae (Terri's daughter and a friend of mine) when I hear the screen door open, mom call for us and before you know it we're upstairs and what do we see--not one but two Yorkie-poos scampering around the garage. My heart sinks as I'm thinking that Janae now has two brand new, fluffy, loveable, adorable new puppies, and we still have none. And I will probably never have one. And I'm sad. And then mom tells me one's for me. And the next 10 years are a blur.

I've loved having a puppy, even though he got older he's always been a puppy to me. "My little baby!" I usually exclaim when he comes around nipping at my fingers, begging for attention. That little stinker sure did have it good living in our household. He got oodles of (unsalted and pre-buttered) popcorn from mom whenever she'd make it on the stove. He'd run to the scene whenever someone rustled a bag of chips, knowing that he'd probably get a couple of crunchy treats out of it. And the personal favorite, he shared ice cream cones with dad. Oh boy, if that wasn't quite the sight. Now if I'm my father's daughter I know dad genuinely enjoys ice cream, but I'm pretty convinced he only ate ice cream cones because he knew he'd have Rosco's undivided attention for at least 20 minutes, and then he could usually smother him and keep him for 5-10 more until Rosco finally wiggled his way out of dad's grasp and trotted back over to mom's chair. What a little stinker.

I must admit, although not the brightest dog on the block, he could hold his own for tricks. He sat, rolled over like a pro, could shake, give me a high-five and a high-ten and of course he had a way to always cheer one of us up when we were sad. Dogs can sense that stuff, man, and Rosco could sense me just right. My favorite is when I'd already have left to go back to school or come back to Fargo and Rosco would wander into my room and wait outside my door in the morning, even though I wasn't there to snuggle with. In case you don't know how adorable this dog is, here are a few pictures that I could find of Rosco and I through the years:

He's the only one who gives me sloppy kisses..

He usually helped with my homework...or just distracted me.

Rosco and Emily in 2008.

Family Christmas 2009. Rosco is famous for always sneaking in the pictures. Every year, and uninvited. What a ham.

Rosco could probably win the title as "most photographed dog" and these are only a few. It will be weird going home next time and not hearing the bark and waiting for "my little baby" to run to the door and greet me. Something he did that always broke my heart, time and time again, was start to get upset when he saw suitcases come out. He always knew that those meant someone is leaving and as soon as Kelsey starts packing up her room, she'll be gone, too. He'd shun me a little bit, act kind of funny, but then the day before I'd leave he was always a big (as in 9 pound...) teddy bear and he wouldn't leave my side. The day before I left for Fargo I got to spend all day, uninterrupted with him, and I am so glad. It was hard knowing I'd never see him again, but that little pup has brought many blessings to our family and certainly taught all of us how to love in a whole different way.