4th of July

We went over to Cornel & Bekki's on the 4th of July this year - I know it's been over a month, but I just need to catch up. So here are some pictures of the fireworks and fun we had.

Kage wasn't very happy that Uncle J was riding his bike. But J was having fun!

Afterward the kids came over to our house and had a sleep over. Conquer (the dog) was visiting that night and he and Jaida fell asleep together. Aren't they so cute?

Happy Blog Birthday - 2 Years!

Wow! Has it really been two years? It's been so fun posting on this blog. I love looking back at the things Jonathan and I have done and places we've been. Time goes by SO fast.

Speaking of time flying... I have A LOT of photos to post. So I'll start with these pictures from when Jonathan and I were sealed. We're standing with family outside the Mount Timpanogos Temple.

These are pictures from the party we had after we were sealed. The kids were having fun playing outside while most of the adults were inside eating. I was so happy that Barb and the kids were able to be there.

Happy Blogiversary to Me!

It's been a year since I started this blog! I think it's going well. What do you think?

I've been wondering lately about my two blogs. I have my family one where I didn't feel totally comfortable about posting a lot of "me" things because it was for my family, right? So I started this little blog all about ME. I know Jonathan is never going to post anything on our family site, he just doesn't care enough to spend the time to do it. So should I just transfer my posts from this blog to the family one and just have one blog for me and my family to share? I'm sure the 5 people who read this blog sporadically will have a lot of insight for me so I'll just wait for an answer.

But until then, it's been a year and I think things have gone well. Thanks to the handful of readers, I really appreciate you - whoever you are!

Cheers.

Baseball

A month or so ago I went with Savannah & Linda to watch Kaisa's baseball game. I'm pretty sure they won, but it was just fun to see him play and to spend time with the other kids.

Shopping Spree

Jonathan & I went to Las Vegas last weekend and I went on a little bit of a shopping spree. I bought some shirts, a pair of work pants, capris, a super cute skirt and jacket and shoes. I couldn't find pictures of anything online except for these shoes.

I don't care what anyone says, I love them. And they're super comfortable. Happiness!

* Update*

These shoes are NOT comfortable after being worn for 13 hours straight - including an hour long trip to Wal-Mart. But they're still cute!

I'm Endowed

I went to the Provo temple on June 28, 2008, and got my endowment. What a wonderful gift. The whole day was awesome. It was so peaceful, I knew I was making the right choice and I could really feel the love of my Heavenly Father while I was in the temple. I was so happy that some of my family was able to share this day with me. It was lovely.

Finally!

On July 3, 2008, Jonathan & Karen Saluone were sealed for time and eternity in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. It was such a nice day, well, before and during the ceremony at least. After the ceremony was a little hectic and frustrating. But it all ended wonderfully and now we are bound to each other for eternity. What a wonderful thing to know that my husband and I and our children can be together forever with all of our other family members. Glorious!

At the Drive-In

We love going to the drive-in movies. It's so fun to be able to snuggle and be as comfortable as you want and you don't have to worry about smelly people sitting in front or behind you. This time we took some of our nieces and nephews. We would never have thought about taking a group like that to a regular movie, it's just too expensive. But they loved the drive-in. It wasn't the most ideal situation though and I don't think we'll do this again unless we can get more adults to come along.

We saw two movies, Kung Fu Panda (really funny) and Prince Caspian (pretty good). These are two movies we will definitely have to watch again. After dealing with noisy kids, fighting over blankets/candy/chairs/feet/etc. and bathroom breaks we didn't really get to see all of either movie. But it was fun to spend time with our family like this.

Awesome Pictures

I made Jonathan come on a photo shoot with me so we could get some decent pictures before we get sealed. These came out so well, of course there are some "fat" ones of me (not shown below) but Jonathan always takes good pictures! These are some of my faves:





If you'd like some pictures like these, visit Kelly's (the photographer) blog, she's amazing and very reasonably priced.

I Love This Guy!

Isn't he adorable? I guess I should say hot or handsome, as he isn't an infant, but I think he's adorable. He's the best husband ever. He works so hard for our family and he's such a good uncle to all the nieces and nephews. I can't wait to be sealed to him in 9 days. I can't wait to start a family with him. He's my hero because he's so spiritually in-tune. He is always doing service for others, even when he may not want to. He takes care of our yard and house and dogs and cars. He's so talented and loves working with his hands. He's a great cook. He's a great driver. Basically, he takes care of me - and sometimes that's not easy. I love him!

Testimony

As I prepare to go to the temple I've been thinking a lot about my testimony lately. There's no doubt in my mind that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church. I've been thinking a lot about Joseph Smith lately and what a marvelous and scary thing he did. I can't imaging how lonely he felt through most of his life, being the only one on the earth with first-hand knowledge of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and their true gospel. I can't imagine how hard it must have been for him, just a boy, to endure the persecution he did, and it never ended. Even when the church was growing and there were other witnesses, he was still hounded, hunted. It's sad how he and other church members were treated, but if it wasn't for them and their strength and courage I wouldn't be able to freely worship today. I know I take it for granted. I've never had someone want to kill me for my religion, seriously try to take my life because of what I believed.

I have a testimony of the Book of Mormon as well. What a special companion it is to the Bible. The information contained in its pages is infinite, just like the gospel. There's no end to learning and progressing within this church. And it's sad but true that some of us (myself included) have to learn the same things time and time again. But that's the best part, that you can.

I love the church. I love my Heavenly Father. I love my savior, Jesus Christ. I love Joseph Smith. And I love the current prophet, Thomas S. Monson. I know this gospel is true. I know it.

Rock On!

We watched Kage & Jaida a couple weeks ago and all they wanted to do was play Guitar Hero. Kage kept playing "My Name is Jonas" over and over, he's very intense when he plays. And Jaida loves to rock out when she "plays". Here are some cute videos of the kids. Rock and Roll!

Some News

I'll start with the good news. Jonathan and I will be getting sealed on July 3, 2008, in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. Check your mailbox for announcements!

Also, Jonathan got a new job! Not really a new job, but a new position. He still works for Geneva Rock, but he's now a mechanic/oil technician. We like everything about his new position except for the hours. His shift is 3 PM to 12 AM. So we hardly get to see each other and that stinks, but everything fell into place perfectly which makes us think that it's what he needs to do. He will now be able to take a full schedule in the fall without it interfering with his work schedule, AND he works all year - no seasonal lay off! We get to see each other at lunch every day and Friday mornings and all day Saturday and Sunday. So far it's been okay, but it's only been about a week - and a busy one at that. We'll see how we feel about it in a month or two.

I wish I had other news - like a new addition to our family, but I don't - so don't ask :) Loves!

Some News

I'll start with the good news. Jonathan and I will be getting sealed on July 3, 2008, in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. Check your mailbox for announcements!

Also, Jonathan got a new job! Not really a new job, but a new position. He still works for Geneva Rock, but he's now a mechanic/oil technician. We like everything about his new position except for the hours. His shift is 3 PM to 12 AM. So we hardly get to see each other and that stinks, but everything fell into place perfectly which makes us think that it's what he needs to do. He will now be able to take a full schedule in the fall without it interfering with his work schedule, AND he works all year - no seasonal lay off! We get to see each other at lunch every day and Friday mornings and all day Saturday and Sunday. So far it's been okay, but it's only been about a week - and a busy one at that. We'll see how we feel about it in a month or two.

I wish I had other news - like a new addition to our family, but I don't - so don't ask :) Loves!

Memories

Jonathan and I are going to be sealed in July (most likely) and that's SO exciting. To know that I can live with my perfect husband for eternity is such a comfort. I can't wait! This has brought on so many thoughts lately. I was remembering our wedding and our honeymoon. We went to Swan Valley, Idaho - one of the more popular honeymoon locations. It was nice and secluded, we had our own little cabin with a kitchenette and we were an hour or so from Jackson Hole - what more could you want? It was great!



The most memorable part of the trip, I think, is when Jonathan got his very first traffic ticket. Ever. It was funny because we were on our way to Jackson Hole and driving through some beautiful forests. We saw a man and his son walking along the side of the road. Jonathan is so observant that he knew right away that they were having car troubles - don't ask me how, maybe he saw their broken-down vehicle before we actually came upon them, or maybe they were carrying a gas can, I can't remember. Anyway, we decided to give them a ride to a gas station so they could get some help. They hopped in the back seat and told us how they had been hunting for morel mushrooms, apparently they grow at the base of these trees in rainy weather and that day was the perfect time to go pick them. Anyway, we were just chatting and not paying serious attention to the speed limit because it was a highway in a forest, how often could the speed limit change? Then it happened, there were flashing lights and a short siren. Jonathan was so upset, I could tell, but we had these strangers in our car so he couldn't swear or anything - not that he would have. The strangers just added to the embarrasment, but they were strangers, what did they care? So the officer explained that the speed limit dropped 10 miles about 3 miles back because of an upcoming town - we were still in the woods, how did we know there was an upcoming town? Nevertheless, we were caught speeding. He gave Jonathan his first ever traffic citation, explaining that he could probably go to traffic school, and we were back on the road. We dropped the strangers off at the gas station which wasn't far away and continued on toward Jackson Hole, paying attention to every speed limit sign on the way. After we got home I "helped" Jonathan with the online traffic school class, so the ticket didn't go on his driving record, but I think he's still upset about it. I guess that's what you get for picking up stranded strangers while on your honeymoon. Actually, I can't think of a single trip we've taken where we haven't helped someone stranded on the side of the road, what a great husband I have!

LASIK

I got LASIK! About a week ago I went and had my eyes fixed with "lasers" (voice of Dr. Evil) and they worked! It's amazing to be able to see without any glasses or contacts. The doctors say I'm reading better than 20/20 which is incredible to me. I just don't know how technology ever got to this point. Who did they get to volunteer to be the first to try it? Did it work for them the first time? Did they mess up thousands of eyes to perfect this? Interesting.

At any rate, I can see - and that's good enough for me (that rhymed).

Baseball at the Park

We took the dogs and Cornel & Bekki's youngest three kids to the park to play baseball last weekend. They're getting pretty good. Jaida enjoyed playing in "the sand" and I tried to corral the dogs. Eventually I took the dogs home since it was hot and they were restless. A fun time was had by all.

A Saluone Family Mother's Day

J and I spent Mother's Day with his family. All of the local families were there. After a nice dinner and playing the Wii we ventured outside for some baseball "with the kids". Baseball quickly turned into this:




And this:




And after that, Lua and J tried this:




While the men were doing this the kids were hunting snakes and playing in the front yard. Here are some pictures of their fun.

My Brother Randy

One of my older brothers, Randy, has got to be one of the funniest, funnest people I know. He's pretty crazy too. We've had some family get togethers lately where we reminisce about Randy's youthful antics. Okay, so he may still do some of these things...

He used to lick his plate to save his seat at the dinner table. Or he'd come and stick his finger in a piece of dessert to make sure no one else would take it. Or he'd stick his finger in the dessert you were eating to try to get you to give the rest of it to him. Or when you'd ask him a question he'd sometimes answer "poop." Or, and this is classic, when he would give you something - especially money - he'd stick it in his bum (pants on) to give it to you. Yeah, pretty gross. But that's how teenagers are sometimes, sad but true.

Now that he's "grown-up" Randy is just the most fun-loving dad and uncle around. He's always playing games with the kids, dancing and doing skits or watching some obscure horror film from the 60's.

And we all love him.

The Hair

A couple weeks ago Jonathan decided (I don't know why) to straighten his thick, curly hair. The result has been interesting as he doesn't really know how to style straight-er hair. The best thing about it is that he can now do his hair like this:

Wii-kend Fun

We had a barbecue with some of Jonathan's family a couple weekends ago. It was the first time we've had people over to our house to eat, usually we go to Jonathan's parents house because it's so much bigger. But we decided to try it and it worked. It was a little cramped, but that adds to the fun, I think. The main attraction at this party was the Wii. We had a big bowling tournament, I have no idea who won, but it was fun having the kids play with the adults - and beat them sometimes.

Out of the Mouth of Babes

I babysat my sisters youngest two kids last Tuesday night. I wish I had taken pictures of them because they were so cute. Braden was fascinated with our dogs and they entertained him 90% of the time. Megan had fun exploring the house and coloring. They are the cutest kids.

When I sat down on our couch Braden came over and sat by me and looked around him for a minute, then he said to me "Oh, where's Jesus?" Then pointing to a picture on the wall, "there He is!" That meant so much to me. First, I was so impressed that Braden, a two-year-old, recognized Jesus and knows his name, what a tribute to my sister and her great parenting. Second, I was so grateful that we have a picture of Christ in our home for people to see and recognize. How important it is for us to allow our Saviour to have a presence in our home. I hope that when I have children someday they will always be able to recognize Jesus Christ.

My Dogs

I never grew up with dogs, we always had cats. My dad hated cats so when we would bring home kittens we would let him name them in an attempt to make him feel better about having the cats around the house. The cats were never supposed to be in the house since dad is "allergic", but we would always sneak them inside and sleep with them. When I was about 15 my brother decided to get a puppy, then somehow he became homeless and couldn't have a dog living in a car/trailer with him so my dad started taking care of the dog. This dog was named Tigger and all I really remember about him was that he could jump so high, I swear he could have jumped over the 6 foot fence if he wanted. I think the dog never got all the attention he needed and one day he ran away and was picked up by Animal Control. I don't know why I never connected with this dog, probably because he wasn't a puppy by the time he came to live with us and I think part of me was afraid of him.

Jonathan always had dogs growing up. He knows a lot about dogs and has had many different breeds. A few months after we got married he started talking about getting a dog. I wasn't sure about the idea, I didn't know how that would affect our relationship or our house. I didn't know what to expect and I was fighting the idea. I lost the fight when our sister-in-law's aunt decided to gift Jonathan with a puppy because he had been so helpful to her sister (our sister-in-law's mother) when she moved into her fixer upper house. So one night we went over to Spencer & Savannah's house and picked up our puppy. It was August but at night it was starting to get a little chilly. I remember Savannah had the puppy in the front pocket of her sweatshirt, that's how tiny Kookie was. And when Savannah handed her to me and she was SO tiny, I just melted. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with the little pup, just 3 pounds when we got her, and realize that I am totally a dog person. Kookie, being a dachshund and all, is not a large dog and I knew she couldn't really "attack" me and that helped me get over my fears. After a few months of having one dog Jonathan wasn't satisfied. He was longing for a dog he could really play with, wrestle with, and fight with. So he did some searching on the internet and found some reasonably priced Boxer puppies. He called me up at work one afternoon and asked me if I wanted to go to Eagle Mountain after work. I asked why and he said because he wanted to look at some puppies. I was kind of surprised but decided we could go and "just look" at the pups. The second Jonathan set eyes on the puppies he wanted one. So we left that night with a boxer pup. Our other dog came to us about a year later when we decided to breed Kookie with Jonathan's parent's dachshund. We had always wanted a black dachshund because we loved the look of them. In Kookie's first litter her very first pup was a black dachshund. We knew immediately that we were going to keep him.

That's the story of our three dogs, Kookie, Tito and Kimo. I really am a dog person, I prefer dogs to cats now any day. They are just so much more personable than cats, they are always excited to see you. You never feel lonely with a dog around and no matter what they always forgive you.

I love our dogs, aren't they sweet?

More Adventures in Babysitting

We watched Cornel & Bekki's kids a few weekends ago. They are always fun and crazy. Here are some pictures of them playing in our laundry basket and sleeping.

See This?

I have one of these. Jonathan and I bought it last weekend, we weren't really planning on it but it was the last one they had and we couldn't pass it up. But I'm pretty sure it's a product of Satan. Since we've had it it's been sitting on our kitchen counter laughing at me. It knows how many bowls of rich, creamy ice cream I'll be eating this summer. And it knows that I will never be able to work off all the calories. I'm doomed. Isn't it pretty?