John.

He is coming home tomorrow after being gone for a whole week! When I think about my friends who have husbands in the military I feel like such a wimp! But, I did NOT sign up for a husband that would be gone for long periods of time! (God knew, I just didn't at the time!) Anyways. I am totally excited. It's so funny/awesome. I feel such excitement in the depths of my being when he comes home! Like the feeling I had when I went to visit him 3 weeks after I met him and I sat in his driveway with my lights turned off for about 20 minutes because I was so excited/nervous/freaking out that I felt like my legs wouldn't work if I tried to walk on them! That's the feeling. I lost it for a while. Thank You JESUS it's back!

We are heading to Austin, TX for one of his best friends from high school's wedding. Guess who is going with us?! NO ONE! We are going, alone. With no children. For a long weekend. Can I get an AMEN?!?!?!!! John keeps calling it our "Second Honeymoon" because Eli was conceived a mere 6 months after we were married! So, we didn't have a very long "honeymoon" phase of our marriage! I'll stop before I divulge TMI!

We are still living with John's parents, Susan and Ramon (we call him Ramie) and his little brother, Daniel (16) and little sister, Jocelyn (almost 14). Yes, it is so hard that we only have 2 rooms that are "ours" that have our stuff in it. I have been going to our storage unit often lately because I have lost about 15 LBS in the last few months so I am retrieving old clothes (hallelujah!). I found all my dishes yesterday and I was a little choked up! How silly am I?!?!!! So ridiculous. I know. But there is just something about getting married and starting a family that makes a woman desire, need, want to have her own home to make it for her family. I wonder if God put that in us on purpose?!??!!! I miss washing my Fiestaware dishes! Oh I just love them! They are so fun and colorful and...you would LOVE them. Maybe one day when I have my own house again you can come to dinner! Yep, YOU! Whoever you are! I long for the days of having friends over for dinner and celebrating birthdays with them and...oh goodness!

I am thankful we have a roof over our head and we are fed and healthy! And Noah is walking. Yep, he is only 11 months old. He's been walking for about 2 weeks now. He definitely still crawls, but every day he crawls less and less! He gets so darn excited when he walks to! He is already trying to run. I am certain it is to keep up with Eli. Who is a grown up boy. Seriously. He looked at me the other night when I asked him to come to me so I could change his diaper and put his pj's on him. He looked at me, square in the face and said, "Oh whatever Mom. Oh just whatever." As clear as day! My jaw literally fell open and I said, "Excuse me? What did you just say?" And THEN, THEN he said it under his breath as he looked away from me rolling his eyes!!!!!!!!!! I about died! It is SO hard in those parenting moments not to just start cracking up so hard you shed a tear or two! Oh I just love him! He is totally giving me a run for the money though. He just wants to see if I am serious. Oh, and serious I am! I love my boys.

John is coming home tomorrow for a whole week and he leaves next Monday to go out for another 4 weeks :/ We won't talk about that right now! My mountain man is coming home! WOOHOO!

Joy is something that is a choice, every day!




Joy in spite of circumstances.



Joy deep, down, in the depths of your heart. I choose joy! Look at all I have to be joyful about!



It is definitely not something that I do all the time, in fact, I am in a season of really meditating on choosing to have joy in my heart. Joy from the Lord. Because He is always the same. And for that I am thankful.

What A Day!?!

So, today my awesomely fantastic husband let me sleep in! And the angels sing, "Allelujah..." So I get up around 8:40. Groggily pour my coffee, walk upstairs, sit down. 5 minutes later Eli goes face first off the couch onto the floor...split lip. Swollen. Thank goodness for frozen Go-Gurt!!! So, we sit him down, put a movie on for him. About an hour later...SMACK!?!!!!! I watched him slip on his little leather chair and goes eyebrow first into a built in entertainment center...the corner of it. Oh yes, instant black eye! I was immediately praising the Lord that the SMACK didn't split his eye open. Oh thank you Jesus!!! I will post a picture tomorrow! It is pretty gnarly looking! My sweet Noah bear...is SICK. I don't know if it's an ear infection or if he's cutting teeth, or...he's been sick for almost a month. I think a doctor's visit is in order for Monday! Wounded and sick they still wrestle and chase each other around the house. Makes a mama's heart melt!

Tonight as it was nearing Eli's bedtime, he said, "I go night night Da-da's bed." "Where will Dada sleep?" "OH, Da-da sleep in Eli's bed." "Hmm, I am not sure that is going to work." "Oh, otay. Mama sleep Eli's bed?" "No, I think Eli is going to sleep in Eli's bed." "No, Mama. I sleep with you in Dada's bed. Pleasssssse."

So, I let him pretend...I leave the room and hear him talking into the baby monitor going, "Hello? Honey? Are you dere? Hello Honeey?" HA!!!!! I do not know where he discovered that...John DOES NOT call me Honey, EVER! He is SO fun! I think he has an imaginary friend too. He keeps asking for "Jimmy" to eat with is every time we eat a meal? It could be the kid from the McGee and Me videos too. Anyways. That is all here in Idahizzle. I am missing my girlfriends pretty bad lately. What I wouldn't do for a little girl time, vino and deep conversations with the ladies. Oh, another time, for sure!

Peace from beautifully cold Idaho!!!!

Fall is upon us...

The weather is a bit cooler. The leaves are falling and changing. Life is still pretty slow. Slow but in a good way. We have found a church that we are attending and it's good! God is good. Learning more every day, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men," (Colossians 3:23). The boys are awesome! Noah is my little groovin' happy man! Eli is talking up a storm! Singing "Jesus loves me" "Holy, Holy, Holy" and a myriad of others. I spend my days laughing, playing and loving on them! The boys are already wrestling with each other. They are already best friends! The other morning we woke to the boys just talking to each other! Eli makes funny noises and Noah giggles! I love baby monitors!
John is spending his days going into the woods to cut down trees for firewood for the nearing winter weather! Thankfully the "first snow" won't come until the end of October! Snow suits, snow boots, gloves and hats are being shopped for and found! We are getting excited! I am getting more involved with the church. Teaching a Sunday School class and I will also help with the meals for new Mom's, sick families and other things. I am participating in a contest at a local gym to try to get the last bit of pregnancy weight off of me! I am excited about it! I will leave you with some pictures :)
Morning snuggles with my "bear"



Happy Man!!



The smile that will steal your heart!

Sorry for the neglect!!

Life has been a little crazy around here lately! John is out in the "field"...again, he had a 2 week break and we are SO thankful for that! He has been coined, our Brave Bearded Leader because let me just tell you that he has an awesome beard and he is so brave to be sleeping in a sleeping bag on a mat, under a plastic tarp with mosquitoes biting his face!!! What an amazing husband I have?!! (I know that is what you are thinking) This is a pretty hard season of life we are in as we didn't think that he would be going out for a full 6 weeks. But it just goes to show that God (almost always in my experience) has different plans than we do. We are totally being refined, that is for sure! Dang I love my man! Okay...so...the boys. Eli and Noah.

Eli: He is 2. Through and through. I love him! He is full of attitude and testing boundaries. ALL DAY LONG! Well, except for when he wakes up-he is a snuggle bunny! His favorite thing to do every night as I put him in his crib (yep, crib...still) is say as he sweetly lays his head on my shoulder, "Go sleep in Dada's bed?" I say, "Sorry, but you get to sleep in your bed in the room with Noahbear!" This goes on for about 5 minutes! Seriously. And then, I rock him while I pray over him before I put him in bed. His newest thing is to say, "Pay for dis room. Pay for Dada. Pay for Eli." And he quickly says, "Amen. Night night Mommy. Lub ewwww." Oh darn that boy steals my heart!

Noah: He is almost 8 months old! Holy smokes, I KNOW! Where did the last 8 months go?! He is pulling up on EVERYTHING. Walking around his crib railings! Smiling and giggling all day long! And watching his big brother like a hawk! He is a joy!

We are getting ready to head to Texas for 8 days to visit my family! I am really thankful we are getting to go. I will get to see ALL 7 of my siblings at once...with no agenda! Last time we were altogether was for my little brother's wedding and it was a crazy time-I was VERY pregnant with Noah. We're also going to get to visit John's brother, James, and his wife in Austin while we are there too! We are looking forward to spending 10 days together as a family!!! Gosh, he has been gone for 2 weeks and it feels like 10 years. God is good. We are just living in a state of BELIEVING God. :) Here are a couple of pictures of the men in my life :)

Our Brave Bearded Leader on top of the highest peak in Northern Idaho...this is what he wears, the same exact clothes for 6 weeks straight...seriously...he is outstanding. I am proud of him.

Eli...full of energy and life and 2 year old-ness!

Noah(bear) :) he really as sweet as the picture depicts!

Oh Boy.

So, John has been "out in the field" for 3 weeks now and boy do I miss him! I mean, miss him like I never thought possible! I saw him tonight for 2 minutes (maybe) and when he stepped out the truck in his Army fatigues (they wear Army fatigues because they are insanely durable and they wear them for 6 weeks) I thought I was going to faint! Seriously! It felt like the feeling I had when I went to visit him the first time before I moved to Atlanta or the feeling I had in the pit of my stomach when we went and ran errands for his sister's wedding (the one we met at and fell in love). Nervous excitement! I don't even know! I just wanted to tackle him! TMI! Sorry! Gosh. I miss him. Eli misses him SO much. He was SO excited to see him when we were leaving he said, "Da-Da go bye bye in woods with dinosaurs, again?" Eli believes that dinosaurs live in the mountains in the woods (thank you Land Before Time) and I have told him that Daddy is in the mountains right now sleeping and playing in the woods. He, on his own, decided that Da-Da was sleeping where the dinosaurs live...he put the 2 together! He is SO smart. Okay.



Life right now is pretty crazy since John is gone. We do get to see him for the weekend! Praise the Lord! I seriously feel like I am getting to the end of my sanity! Eli is nearly 2 and acts like it! Phew! I keep telling myself that the hard work of being consistent with his discipline is going to be worth it when he's 4 or 5 or 10 or 15 (weird to think of myself having children that old). I mean, seriously. He does the same things over and over and over again! However, he is quite the sweet heart. He LOVES his Mama (and that would be me!)! And he loves his baby brother too! He has decided that while John has been gone he wants to sleep in "Da-Da's bed with Mama." While I don't allow him to, it sure is hard not to! He is such a snuggle bunny, I love it!!!! Alright. I could write forever! But I will not! Just wanted to let everyone know we are still here! I'll post some new pictures of the boys next week! Noah is 6 months old and weighs 18 LBS!!!! He is awesomely sweet. Gosh! Okay. G'night blog friends!

The Land of Potatoes and Nuts...North Idaho

Barista-"Pretty crazy weather, huh?"
Me-"Yes, it is."
Barista-"You know, every year it stays colder longer here."
Me-"Oh no! Don't tell me that! I just moved here for Georgia!"
Barista-"Oh, it gets hot there, right?"
Me-"Well, yes, it IS the South. People are wearing shorts and playing at the park!"
Barista-"You know, I have lived here my whole life and every year it gets colder."
Me-"Hmm." (You already told me that man, just give me darn coffee!)
Barista-"You know how when a person has a fever you need to cool them down?"
Me-"Sure." (Umm, really.)
Barista-"Well, that is what the weather is doing for the Earth. Cooling it down. The earth has a fever."
Me-"Really?" (insert-nervous, frightened laugh-this guy is nuts, please don't jump through the window at me!)
Barista-"Yeah man, you know, there is a 2nd ice age coming. The scientists just don't want to tell us because they are afraid it'll cause too much mayhem among the people."
Me-"Well, I certainly hope not! That would stink!" (Hmm, a second ice age...what the heck, where am I?)
Barista-"Okay, well you can just live your life like this (puts his hand over his eyes like he's looking through binoculars) if you want."
Me-puzzled look
Barista-"You know the Columbia River in Washington, you know, the Gorge, used to ice over in the 1800s. There are actual pictures of people ice skating on it."
Me-"Wow! That's interesting! It would be so fun if it still froze! A HUGE ice skating rink!!" (Trying to see if he's seriously serious)
Barista-"Well, here you go." (FINALLY HANDING ME MY COFFEE-CRAZY)
Me-"Thank you! Have a wonderful day!"
Barista-puzzled look, like I have a 3rd eye as I drive off.

Welcome to North Idaho. Land of secret militias-people that live "off the grid" in the woods with their friends. Land of conspiracy theorists and CRAAAAZZZZYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!! I just drove away thinking, "Hmm, the earth has a fever. Wow! Was he on drugs?"

I had my monthly starbucks visit (45 minutes away) before going to Wal-Mart, ALONE! I was so excited! And this is the employee I was given! AWESOME! God KNEW I needed a good giggle!!

It's been a while...

Hello Bleaders! I've been absent for a while. Writers block, I guess. Life has been pretty full lately. This past weekend my little brother, Luke (Unc Woo), came to visit us from Portland, OR! Eli had a BLAST playing with him and Noah loved blowing spit bubbles and smiling (what else is new?!)! It was wonderful to see him because I haven't seen him since his wedding last October in Texas!!
Eli is talking A LOT! He is saying three-word sentences like, "More milk please." "Mommy hold spoon." "Eeellliii outside play? Peasssee." He's pretty awesome! AND today I sat him on my lap and told him that he was going to not wear diapers anymore one of these days and that would mean that he had to go "pee pee" and "poo poo" on the big boy potty. Then I laid him down to take his diaper off of him and as soon as I did he RAN into the bathroom and pointed to the toilet and said "Pee pee." So I sat him on the toilet (our toilet is too tall for him to do it standing up...any suggestions?) and he immediately went! I nearly fainted! His face lit up and he kept saying, "Bee pee, Bee pee!" Susan (my mother-in-law) and I just started praising him and telling him that was so awesome and how proud we were and we clapped! So I took him off the toilet and stood up and followed him out of the bathroom to tell John and he ran back into the bathroom and wanted to get back on the toilet, so I put him on it and he went #2!!!!!!! I was amazed! So he was given 2 orange tic tacs (they are his favorite)! Every time I put him on the "potty" today he used it! I'm not going to push it though, I'll just ask him a couple of times an hour and if he wants to then awesome, if not I'm not going to make a big deal of it. I have a feeling by the time he turns 2 he'll be potty trained! Woohoo!! We'll see...I'm praying he catches on quickly because diapers are expensive. RIDICULOUSLY expensive! So that's Eli right now! Growing more and more every day!
Noah is just as great as ever! He has the greatest, sweetest personality EVER! He smiles, coos and slobbers ALL the time! He entertains himself wonderfully in his exersaucer and his johnny jumper!! He is great, even pulling his knees up underneath himself too!
John is enjoying coaching the high school club lacrosse team! They had their first win since the team was formed 2 years ago last week! I think it is because John is the assistant coach! He is really great! He is about to start his Adult soccer league-it's adults and high school students! His first game is this Sunday and he plays against his little brother's team! It should be greatly entertaining!
Me...I am gearing up to run my first 5K Memorial Day weekend in Portland, OR! I am going to run it with my sister, Lauren. If you know me, you know I am not the biggest fan of running. I would rather do Tae Bo on the television or do cardio on an eliptical machine!! But, I need to get in shape (having 2 children in 2 years does wonders to the body-and not good wonders!)! I am excited! I ran 2 miles yesterday-in the mountains...WHOA Mama! My legs are aching like you wouldn't believe today...but I am ready to push myself and see the progress! Plus it's a great excuse to get outside for a little while alone and enjoy this beautiful area of the country I now reside in! The only thing that is starting to freak me out is that the bears are stirring-yes, bears! And they are NOT warm, cuddly things either. They will rip faces off...EEK!
So...that's how the Burke's are doing...I still have moments where I have to remind myself that I really do live here and that I will not be going "home" (Atlanta) in a week. I am counting down the days until I can go and visit you Atlantans!!!!

Somtimes...

Sometimes you wake up...and feel like this...

and the only thing that sounds like it'll make you feel better is doing this...

you look your troubles in the face and do this...

but then you realize, life is pretty great, so you do this...

at the end of the day, this makes everything seem okay.


Cheers...
Linds

Pray for Noah Bear...

He has lost his voice...almost all the way. I wish I knew how to record his gurgles, mamama's, and giggles so you could hear it. It sounds so cute, but a little sad too. Almost like that sound should NOT be coming out of a 3 month old. Please pray for him. I do NOT want him to end up in the hospital-you cannot begin to imagine the heartache it causes to see your child with IV's, monitors and all the hospital garb in/on him. To be honest, I think I am freaking out because of his NICU stint when he was born. Prayer would be greatly appreciated.

On more happier news, John gets home tomorrow from being at a Wilderness First Responder course! He's been gone for 10 days and I am missing him like crazy. Life just doesn't seem right without him here. EVERY TIME Eli hears someone coming around the corner into whatever room he is in he excitedly squeals, "DADDY!??" And I have to tell him, "No Baby, Daddy will be home in x days!" And he just looks at me...oh man! But, we are going to get a voice recorder and have John record some of Eli's favorite books onto the tape so Eli can listen to them when John goes out into the field to work for 6 weeks. Sheesh. I can't even go there right now!!!! Okay...yay for John getting home and life returning to normal.

I have found a new hobby. (At least I want it to be my new hobby) Running. I am going to buy shoes this weekend and going to start training for a 5K I am going to run with my sister in Portland at the end of May! I am pretty excited. A little nervous because I have never been very fond of running. At the gym I would get on the eliptical machine any day of the week rather than run on a tred mill! Okay...I just wanted to share with excitement! I am going to have to get a double jogging stroller too so I can take the boys with me when John is out in the field!

It's late, my boys are sleeping and I should be too.
Peace from the great Northwest.

Pictures of Noah (sprinkled with a couple of Eli)

The MANY faces of Noah Lee Burke :)












Noah, 3 weeks old!

Eli, 3 weeks old!

Breakfast with Eli!


These boys are the joy of my heart! I received my very first unsolicited hug from Eli the other night after his bath. He just walked up and started hugging me and patting me and rubbing me on my back! It was the sweetest thing! THEN this morning Susan (MIL) was holding Noah so I could finish breakfast and Eli stood up and said, "Hold." And he walked over to Susan and sat down and wanted to hold Noah! He "held" his "baaby" and laid his head on Noah's shoulder and patted/rubbed his back while closing his eyes! I wish I would have my camera handy. It was the sweetest! I just thank God all the time for them! Especially in the sweet moments it reminds me of how God must feel when we run to His arms for comfort, rest, love, peace...thank you Jesus for my sons. I am worthy to raise them because you think I am!
Have a great week :)

A few pictures...

Here are a few pictures to hopefully give you an idea of what life has been like the last month or so! Eli is loving the snow! Not so much snow boots! Thank goodness for snow suits with built in waterproof booties that will go over his sneakers! He enjoys eating bowls upon bowls of snow! Noah is more alert than ever! He coos all the time and giggles when tickled under the neck or on his shoulders. It is pretty darn cute! John has had some manual labor to do since being here. Chopping wood with his little brother Daniel, shoveling the driveway one morning for over an hour because it snowed 6 inches, camping-yes, camping! I'll have to find the pictures! They dug out about 4 feet of snow (correct me if I'm wrong Babe) and John made a little "snow chair" to sit on and...it's pretty surreal. Now we're upon the "Mud Season" which I'm not too sure about! At least it's not Georgia clay, right?!?!?? Susan (my MIL) is going to plant a vegetable garden and here in Idaho gardens have to be started inside! In old egg cartons! Pretty crazy! We have to figure out how to keep all the deer away, but cabbage, cilantro, tomatoes, cucumbers...I can't think of what else! But there are lots! I am excited as I have been wanting to do this. MUCH different here than in Atlanta, that is FOR SURE! Oh, our drive was long. But we all made it alive. Thankfully Noah saved his newborn blowouts for our last day in the car. And it was a monumental explosion. Pooled in the bottom of his car seat, poor guy. It was hilarious. And the gas station we stopped at, of course, did not have one of those changing tables that pull down from the wall! Okay, pictures!


Noah Lee Burke at almost 3 months old! My little blue eyed man :)



Elijah (Eli) Mack Burke at 20 months old in his rocking snow suit!



John, as you can see, shoveling the snow! The snow blower has a flat :/



Me, shooting a gun in our back yard!




Eli and Noah playing with the toys!



Noah Bear

Hope you enjoyed a few pictures! Thanks for checking in on us! Right now John is in McCall, ID at a WFR (Wilderness First Responder course that lasts 10 days. Tonight he went to a hockey game with some of the guys that he's met in his class. Alright, I'm off to bed. G'night from Bonners Ferry.

"Houston, we have landed."

So, we are here. I am tired. Over 2600 miles. Atlanta to Bonners Ferry, ID is a long drive. Especially with a 2 month old and a 19 month old. And John pulling a 6x12 UHAUL behind his truck. Through winds gusting up to 80 MPH. Rainy fogginess. Ice. Snow. OH, and driving up mountains. PHEW! We are thankful. God is good. We are here. We are safe. I am ready for some sleep. Maybe a week will do! Just wanted to update that we finally made it! I'll write more about our journey later when I can actually gather logical thoughts.

Love to you all.

Day 3 from Wyoming

So we have made it to Wyoming and are over half way there. Thank Jesus. So far we have driven through foggy, drizzling blindness. High winds (gusts up to 70 mph). And tomorrow the forecast is ice, snow with possible freezing rain! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! OH GOSH! And I totally saw tumbleweeds today! They were tumbling across I-70 in Denver! I kept trying to take a picture of it but cars kept crushing them right as I was about to snap it!


Today we drove 471 miles. It's all due to Eli waking up at 5:30AM. Yep, 5:30. He also fell out of the bed last night. I used to do it all the time when I was little. His lips were super swollen right after it happened, but they were back to normal by day break-or should I say Eli-break. I have notes that I have been taking while driving. Safe. I know. One thing I will say is that every time I start questioning this crazy thing we are doing (why am I doing this? why am I taking my children from amazing friends/community/church? WHY AM I LEAVING MY BFF's?) God reminds me. "Lindsey, this is what I have called you to do. You have known this since you were 15." Seriously. Since I was 15 I have dreamt of doing something like this. Did I ever think it would really happen? Hell no! That is the beauty of our Creator though. He gave me this passion in my heart, I married someone with the same passion, and now we are going to live out what God has called us to do. How often in our lives do we miss out on opportunities because it doesn't seem like it would pan out? SO MUCH. I can look back on my life and see so many! But all I can do is learn and grow and not miss out on this one! I think it's hard though. To hear/see/know God calling us to do something because most of the time it involves risk! Alas...my bed is calling my name. Actually Eli is needing to go to bed and won't sleep without me. I will write more later if time permits!


You all should be very excited though because John will write a bit soon! Should be quite entertaining!

Took a break from packing...finally.

Today we took a break from packing up our life and took our sweet Eli to see the fish. I wish there was a way for me to tell you how he says "fish" because it's great. Basically he has this animal book and he received it for his 1st birthday. I made up noises for all the animals that he pointed to. For some reason Giraffes and Fish are the ones that continue to stand out the most. Giraffes smack, yes like smacking the leaves they eat off the trees! Seriously, what noise do giraffes make? And fish, I would go,"blub blub blub blub" like bubble noises?! And that is where he got his fish noise from. Anyways. Here is our family photo from today. It is one of my favorite pictures we have ever taken. Eli is visibly exhausted and Noah's eyes are beaty (sp?) and red!





Hope you are all are wonderful. We're set to leave on our adventure across the country Thursday. I'll update if I can, but am thinking I won't be on the internets until we arrive in Idaho, God-willing, the 10th of February (Noah's 2 month birthday). Pray for the Burke's if you think about us. Protection. Non icy road. And favorable weather :) Oh and peace over Eli and Noah!

New Purpose

The new "purpose" of this blog is going to be to keep our friends and family up to date on adjusting to the new life in a small town! We are set to leave Atlanta (the big city) by February 5th because our renter is going to start moving in on the 6th! I hope you all are ready for some silliness coming from both John and I. I'll make sure he posts when he gets "out of the field" and other times if he wants. We are really excited to be following the path God has laid before us. Excited tinted with a bit of sadness to be leaving such an amazing community in Atlanta, heck, on our street. A community people are envious of! We love you our friends! I thought about deleting all the postings I have written since Eli was born, but I want to remember all the things I wrote about! So there you have it!

I will DEFINITELY be journaling our road trip to Idaho! I'm sure it will be FULL OF hilarious moments that i won't ever want to forget. I mean, come on, it's funny to think that we are going to be driving 2600 miles with a 19 month old AND a 2 month old!!!!! We are NUTS!

peace from the east, for now...
Linds