Soon to be on our way.....

The time has come that we must face the inevitable and prepare for our move from Deltona to Jacksonville. Steve has accepted a position there and has been commuting daily since February. We have had our home on the market for sale but not much is happening there so we have decided to find a renter instead.

We are going to Jacksonville this weekend to look at some homes for rent in the Mandarin/St. Johns area. If we find something that meets our needs (and some desires) we will move forward and make plans to move at the end of the month.

I'm already training my replacement at the crisis pregnancy center where I have been working for six years. It will be sad to leave such wonderful women that I have grown to love and respect very much over the years. We currently have 15 volunteers weekly and 5 staff. It's been amazing experience to see God working through them to help young women facing an unplanned pregnancy. We see up to 160 clients every month and that's with only being open 24 hours a week. Crazy! Right!

So, what will I be doing in Jacksonville? Well, after much prayer for God to lead me to where He is already at work and where I am most needed. I have found that the Student Venture ministry in JAX has need of a woman staff trainer to train a new staff girl coming to town from Atlanta. Since I have trained new staff before, I can bring my past experience with SV to help her. I was on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ from 1993-2002. It was such a wonderful experience and I have missed it for some time now.

The director of SV has been there for 20 years leading a thriving ministry but with no adult staff women to help reach and mentor the teen girls. This will be a new opportunity for all of us. I believe God is leading myself and this other young woman to work in JAX and I'm just so excited to see what He has in store for the students we are going to be meeting in the fall!

It's funny, I left SV 6 years ago because I had such a burden to help girls protect their purity and thought the crisis pregnancy center would be a way to reach out to more kids in that specific area. Granted, the kids we met were already sexually active and coming to our center for a free pregnancy test, but I digress. If it was negative, we had an opportunity to educate them on the risks of STD's and encourage them to try abstaining. "Sexual Integrity" was the latest catch phrase that seemed to be more tolerable than "abstinence" ~ at least we got less eye rolls.

If the pregnancy test was positive, we educated them on all three options and explained the risks of abortion so they would make an educated decision. We offered support and resources to help them throughout their pregnancy and beyond. We even had a boutique full of donated maternity clothes and baby items to help the financial burden most people face. I was always amazed at how we never ran out of supplies and just when we needed something, someone would walk in with what we needed in the same hour. Or a double stroller or car seat would be donated the day before someone called needing one. It was so cool to see God circulate stuff to help those in need.

I got to witness God bringing people to our door that needed more than a pregnancy test, they need prayer, they needed to know someone cared, and he would always equip us with just what they needed to face their crisis. God was already working in their life to bring them to us! He was just allowing us to be his hands and heart to show them unconditional love.

I'm already talking about it past tense. My mind is jumping foward to doing SV ministry and I'm continually in prayer about the kids I"m going to be meeting. I'm looking foward to building relationships and watching them grow spiritually from freshman to senior year and beyond!

I'm looking foward to stepping out in faith with creative outreaches, evangelism, team talks, Bible studies, and training the new girl. I hope it all comes back to me like riding a bike. I want to reach kids before they need a free pregnancy test at a crisis center! I want to encourage them to walk in purity and with integrity for the rest of their lives. I want to help them learn how to make good decisions and follow God's plan for their lives.

Steve and I are really looking foward to getting involved in a church and starting a new phase of our life together. We truly belive God is calling us to Jacksonville for a bigger purpose and we are following His will for our lives whole heartedly!

This is our kitchen. Sharing this with miraclemama since she posted hers. I will miss our first home very much. We are moving from Deltona to Jacksonville whenever we can find a renter. here is the link to find out more. www.obeo.com/519251

we have it listed for sale for $199,900 It's a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage, and 1900 square feet. Rebuilt in 2005 with new laminate floors, updated kitchen and baths, and new roof. If you know anyone interested please let us know! thanks!

This was my fall place setting last November 2008. Now I have spring stuff out. I'll take a picture later if you'd like to see it.

This is a chicken and broccoli roll with cheese, cream cheese and sour cream inside. It was very yummy. I love to experiment with whatever I have in the house at the time and a little help from Kraftfoods.com too.

This is an Italian almond pastry I made for Easter with my family.

April 2009

Lots to catch you up on. . . . . Here are the highlights: Steve and I went to San Antonio and Austin, TX in March for my brother's wedding. Introducing: Joe and Robin Muscarella!

In April, Steve had to travel for work to Wisconsin one week and North Carolina another week. In May we are going to NY for my cousins' wedding. We are still trying to move to Jacksonville wehre Steve has been commuting to every day since February. Our house in Deltona is for sale or rent. We are looking for a place to rent in Jacksonville and a job for me. My dream job would be to do Student Venture ministry again in that area. I miss it a lot and want something different that doing crisis counseling at the pregnancy center. I could still volunteer at a center in JAX once I'm there, which would be great.

Another big accomplishment is I've been actually using my gym membership since January! Yeah, who does that?! I've lost a total of 35 pounds and 5% body fat in four months so far. It's a long road but we are seeing progress finally. I have a trainer named Linda that I meet with once or twice a week. That helps a lot! I highly recommend finding the right trainer to meet your needs. I figure she knows best what I need to do to keep losing and its an investment worth making for my future. Every workout is different and intense. I'm enjoying pushing my body to do things I don't think I'm strong enough to do.

Lately the weather has been so perfect that I just have to go to the beach to walk. I just don't want to be stuck inside a gym when the weather is so nice. Last week I started with just walking 2 miles. But this week I've gone twice and did 3.2 miles each day. Steve is goin with me tomorrow to walk together. yeah!

Well, that's the latest news from the Burns'.

We are off to Sanibel Harbour Resort and Spa for New Year's Eve Vacation

Steve surprised me with booking a vacation getaway for us to enjoy three days and two night at a beautiful resort. We've never been to Sanibel but we heard good things about it. He wanted me to enjoy some spa treatments and the package includes four hours of massage, facials, body wraps, body scrubs, etc to choose from. I'm sooooo going to be pampered and loving it!

The best part is how God provided for all this. We've had a blessed year and had our first garage sale to raise more money so we could help others during the Christmas season as needs presented themselves to us. After Steve booked this wonderful vacation, we received a check from our Mortgage company because we had too much in our Escrow account after our insurance and taxes were paid for the year. it was such a wonderful surprise. We are debt free and guilt free and it is such a great way to start the new year! isn't God amazing at blessing and providing! I knew God was faithful but I had no idea He could show off His goodness like this!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Hello Friends,

We had a great Christmas and made special memories with our families. God has blessed us abundantly throughout 2008 and we are looking forward to see what is ahead for us in '09. We wish you all the very best and pray God's abundant blessings on you and your family too!

My traditional Christmas Sugar Cookies were gone fast.