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 :)