Liz's Letters

Adam's girlfriend, Thien , made it to Texas this week. (she is the one on the far left) It is fun to watch both of "my boys" interact with their girlfriends. I have a friend who recently said to me that she is praying that all our boys will turn out to be good guys...as in good men to the women they marry. She also has two sons about the same ages as mine and we concluded that so far, so good. As I watch my now adult sons as they court these two young ladies, I see that they are caring and respectful toward their girlfriends. Adam clearly enjoys sharing his joys with Thien and is very considerate of her and the way she feels. Aaron is loyal to Amy, protecting her and respecting her thoughts and feelings. It is a wonderful thing as a mother to look at these two grown men and remember them as my baby boys. They are grown up, they are now my men. They are good guys, good men, and good boyfriends. They will make good husbands, when the time comes. I am so proud of both of ...

And what a delight it is to make friends with someone you have despised. -Colette Hmmm. When I first read this, it stopped me in my tracks. I thought, the last person that I would want to make friends with is someone that I despise. Eeewww! The thought of this being delightful was more than my mind could comprehend. But as I gave it more thought, I realized, yes, I can see this as being a delight. If I actually despise someone, I must actually care deeply for them. If I despise them, most likely I have invested a lot of energy into this person, but unfortunately it has been negative. But, if I did not care about them, I would not have invested any time at all. If I respond to this person in my natural self, sometimes the negative energy becomes almost an obsession. It can consume my time, gnawing at my self-esteem and taking my focus off of what really matters. But, with God's help, there can be one moment of lightening like change; a moment of release from the bonds of o...

This Christmas season seems to have barrelled through my life, challenging me to keep my focus on the birth of my Savior, on love, and on family and friends. It started with my father-in-law being diagnosed with cancer just days after the Thanksgiving holiday. My husband has had to travel back and forth to Tulsa, our hometown, to help with care giving and to spend time with his father. His absence has been difficult for him and for me, but an absolute necessity in regards to love and responsibility. We traveled to Virginia for our son's graduation right after Fred's dad's surgery and right before he began his chemotherapy treatments. It was stressful to leave at such a crucial time and then the traveling weather was horrible due to the winter storms that were making their way across the nation at the time we were driving. The graduation was fabulous, and it was great to bring our son home for the holiday season, but it was difficult to focus on the peace of the seas...

Prayer. It works. That is the first real truth about God that I understood when I first asked Him into my life. When I was first checking Him out, and checking out the people who said that they believed in God (and even NEEDED Him...interesting thought for me prior to my relationship with Him), I saw things happen in the lives of these different people that I knew who called themselves "Christians". I watched my father-in-law become well when the doctors said he would probably die, I saw a friend of mine manage a family situation that I thought would certainly tear her family apart. I watched another friend stand beside her father (and my then pastor) as he was pushed out of his pastorate for no reason, and remain loving and caring toward the people in that congregation. God keeps His distance from the wicked, He closely attends to the prayers of God-loyal people. Proverbs 15:29 Provision. He has never let us down. Finances have not always been easy for my husband and m...

The countdown is nearing the end. I have been counting the days until our oldest son, Adam, graduates from Virginia Tech! I started counting in August of 2002, when we dropped him off and left him in that stinky, noisy, all boys dormatory on campus. As my husband and I walked down the hallway to go back to our car, I could hear Adam's new roommate's loud music echoing profanity from his computer. I walked, stiff as a soldier, trying to keep as much composure as possible, as tears rolled down my cheeks and we left our first born child in that crazy place to get an education! The mommy in me wanted to go back and tell his roommate to turn off the music, and while he was at it, he could take down the poster of the band members in thier underwear! But, I left the two of them in that dorm, puttering around and probably excited to finally be alone in this new world of college, and dorms, and freedom, and loud, unmonitored music. I have to admit, I did call about 15 minutes down the r...

Since I started keeping this blog, there have been a lot of comments made to me about my writing. Almost all of them have been positive, most of them complimenting my ability to put my thoughts to words. I am a little embarrassed by these compliments, but I take them with a thank you. It does make me think about writing. Why do I love to write? I could write all day long if I had something to write about. And when I do have something to write about, there is an urgency in my brain to get it down on paper (or web). Some people don't like to write. They think it is difficult and I tell them it is easy...just talk. I usually type out one of these blogs in 10 minutes or so. They come together quickly since the thought has already been born. I don't always know where they will go, but there is usually a theme, or a message, or even just the need to get something off my chest. Writing is cool. My grandmother was an English teacher. If I remember right, one of the subjects...

Recently, I was talking with a friend of mine who is on the verge of becoming a Christ follower. We were talking about the Bible, tossing around different reasons of why we read it, how we read it, and the different ways of applying it to our life. She mentioned that some of what she had read seemed like just stories, and wondered what the purpose to that was. I had the opportunity to share with her that God recorded these stories for us to read so that we could learn from other people's examples. She noticed that he was descriptive, he told who the person was, often times, calling them by name and where they lived. We discussed how it is helpful to read about the ways that other people succeeded in their walk with God. It is encouraging and gives us goals to strive for. Then we began to talk about the stories that didn't seem to go so well. Some of them end up being good, like King David and his horrible choices with Bathsheba. Or Peter and his denial of Christ. But some of th...

It seems that I have had several opportunities lately to really appreciate the man that I married. We have been together for over 27 years. Yes, we were but babes when we started dating. Even though I would not change a thing about how and when we met, the fact that we were only 18 and 21 when we fell in love has added to some of the challenges that we have faced over the years. I did not believe all the advise that was thrown our way about the difficulties that couples face when committing to one another at ages so young. I felt that I was quite mature and knew what I was getting into. Well, it wasn't exactly what I imagined and it has been a little difficult at times. Now, here is where the appreciation really comes into place. I realize now that many of the difficulties that we faced were brought on by my own immaturity. Me?? Immature? I wouldn't have thought so 27 years ago! But I had some ideas in my head about husbands that my immature self couldn't seem to find in th...

I LOVE LIFE!!!!!! I love Christmas time! I love my family! and friends!

My daughter and one of her best friends have had a few conflicts (over 8th grade sort of stuff) the last couple of weeks. They are both good at working through these conflicts, but they are a little worn out from all the drama. Tonight, they wrote a treaty. I ran across an unsigned copy and found it entertaining and worth sharing. At any age, here are some things that should be agreed upon between friends. Peace Treaty of the B.F.F.L.'s Number One: Never get mad at each other without laying down all the facts and getting each other's point of view. Number Two: There is no reason to get mad at somebody if they don't wait for you. Just catch up! If they ask you to though, that is a different story. Number Three: Never cancel each other's plans or overlap them with something else. Write them down if you have to! Number Four: Never talk about each other to anybody behind anybody's back. If you do, it cannot be serious: it will have to be an innocent joke. Number...

' Tis the season for gift giving. In my last post, I commented that I would strive to give gifts out of love, not entitlement. So, I have been thinking about the people that I love, the gifts that I think they will love, and even about those people who don't have anyone to love or it seems no one loves them. The nursing home resident's gift went out today. Rebecca proudly carried it to the drop off location at our church this morning. And as I signed on to my computer this evening, she was standing over my shoulder as I read an email about a family that my Home Team is adopting for Christmas. Our agreed amount to spend per family is $125.00 and when Rebecca read that, she exclaimed, "Wow! That's a lot of money!" So, I had another opportunity to share with her about how fortunate we are and how so many people cannot even pay their bills, much less think about buying gifts for their children. She thought this over and agreed with the amount that we were givin...

Our society just made a complete 180 degree turn around from thinking about what we are thankful for to thinking about what we want…NO, I mean what we want to give! Isn’t that what it seems like though? We go from the focus of thanksgiving directly into spending time figuring out how to satisfy one another’s wants. This year, I am taking my best shot at trying NOT to do that. I recently realized how serious I needed to work on this when my daughter decided to ask for a Wii game system for Christmas. She started out saving her own money for this popular gaming toy, but soon realized that it was well beyond the reach of her 13 year old budget. After doing some odd jobs and a large babysitting job, she had saved a good deal of money, but not even half of what she needed to purchase the system, the remotes, and a game or two. So, she decided that this would be the big ticket item on her Christmas list. When she approached her frugal father about her wishes, he explained to her that it was ...

The season of Thanksgiving is officially over and the Christmas season has begun. Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year will end in a few hours as the clock strikes midnight. I did my own share of shopping today and now feel the excitement of Christmas spirit. That is something to be thankful for...the Christmas spirit! As I have spent time in the last week and especially the last two days thinking about the things that I am thankful for, I have to mention how thankful I am for my family...biological and the one that I married into. One of the reasons that I am grateful for having moved to Texas is we can now spend holidays with our family. As much as I enjoyed the traditions that we created in Virginia, there is nothing like the joy of being with family. There are memories, love, genuine care, and simple pleasure of just being together that cannot be experienced with anyone else. Family is irreplaceable , unconditional, and precious. I am thankful for my mother,...

For those of you who know me, you are probably shocked to see that one in writing! However, yes, I am thankful for my job. Even more of a surprise is the fact that I am also thankful for my commute to and from Dallas! Let me explain. I am thankful for my job for the obvious reason, first being the income that it provides. I have been able to contribute to our family finances and more importantly to help pay for college tuition for BOTH kids in college without having to take a loan! This is a wonderful thing to be grateful for! I am also thankful that my job provides our family a few extras. We don't have to over think purchasing things that we did when we were on a single income. American Eagle, Journey Shoes, and places like this that make our kids smile are now places that we can shop...on occasion...but they were way too frivolous before this job. Fred and I were able to take a fabulous anniversary trip to Mexico, something we would not have been able to do if I were not...

I am thankful for my kids. My husband and I have been blessed with three of the best kids that anyone could ask for. Our oldest son, Adam, is 23 years old. I am thankful for the fact that he is about to graduate from Virginia Tech! He chose a career path when he was in High School, Computer Engineering, and he has stuck with it ever since. He selected his university based on his degree program knowing that he would get one of the best educations available in his field. I am so proud of him. I am thankful that he has stuck with it. I am also thankful that he is the kind of guy that enjoys being around his family. I love my relationship with him because it is so easy to talk to him. He is easy going and fun to be around. Aaron is our middle child, and is 20 years old. I am thankful for Aaron because he is very caring. He looks out for the people that he cares about, always making sure that we are safe and doing the right thing. His career path is a good choice for him...law enf...

Continuing my thoughts on being thankful, I have to talk about friendships. Through the course of my life, I have been blessed with many friends. Starting when I was a little girl, I loved friends. I collected them like treasures. As far back as I remember, I realized that friends make the world a better place. My first best friend was a girl that I met when I was in first grade named Michelle. She and I are still friends today, and our "best" friendship lasted well into High School. Our families did things together, we spent the night together often, invited one another along on family vacations and looked for any opportunity to hang out. This life philosophy continued for me as I have gone through all phases of my life. God has always provided me with circles of friends, really good friends and a handful of those who I call "best" friends. Best friends are the ones who you can not only confide in - the good, the bad, and the indifferent - but also the friends who ...

As Thanksgiving approaches, we are reminded from every direction to think about the things we are thankful for. Emails go around, radio programs are directing our minds toward thankfulness, even advertisements hint of thanksgiving. Although I try to make thankfulness part of my daily living, this time of year does cause me to give additional thought to the many ways that I am blessed. One of those blessing is that I have a great husband who treats me well. He loves me and wants what is best for me. He even will sometimes give in to me and allow me to do what is not best for me (like over-eat) and not give me a hard time. He looks for ways that he can make me happy, provide for me financially, emotionally, and physically. ;) If I am tired, he makes sure that I rest, if I am hungry, he makes sure that I eat, and if I am broke, he makes sure that I don't spend! Seriously, he is a wonderful husband. He is also a wonderful father. He loves our children with the same kind of love. He ...

WOW! Life has been wild...great...but certainly wild! I loved the cruise! Jamaica was wonderful. It was rich, it was poor, it was real and it was beautiful. Grand Cayman's was a place that I would just want to kick back and spend about 3 months out of every year. And Cozumel , I always love Mexico! The Mayan Village was great, the history was interesting and the shopping was fabulous! My mom and I enjoyed our time together. We relaxed. We played. We ate...and ate...and ate. I danced, I swam, we sunned, we napped and we enjoyed. The crew was great. They were entertaining. I loved the different nationalities that were represented. It was great to talk to the crew members, to find out about their lives. They took great care of us! I had time to think about life. About family. About marriage. About friends. About God. About what's important. I know that I am very, very blessed. When I came home, I had two days at home and at work before I turned around and we...

Our daughter, Rebecca, is the second best flute player in Lewisville (Texas) Independent School District. Wish her luck...regional's are next week! She will be playing in the district band...another musician in the family! Her friend, Akietha, made district band too! Congratulations to both girls!

Emotional roller coaster ....that is the best way to describe me. I have so many different things going on in my life, in my heart, and in my relationship with God, that the ride is coming close to giving me motion sickness! Some of what I am experiencing creates the feeling of being way on top of that first great big climb of the best roller coasters ...you know the ones....you start out slow, the coaster is clicking away as you climb to the top of a huge mountain. The anticipation is great while you climb, seeing nothing but the top where you are headed. Once at the top, there is usually a few seconds where you have time to take in the view. When I do this, I get a thrill. I love to look all around! I feel big and tall and excited! I feel this way about the cruise that I am getting ready to take. I feel this way about my marriage. I feel this way about the new friendships that I am making and expect to make. I feel this way about Adam's upcoming graduation, his new girlfri...

I have been married for over 25 years. My husband and I met in 1980 and I fell quickly in love with him. Through out our 27 years together we have gone through good times and some bad times. This past weekend, he and I had one of those serious conversations about where we have been and where we are going in our marriage. Sometimes these discussions can be difficult, but they are always necessary in order to build intimacy, health, and to grow. We didn't scream, cry, or yell during our talk which was a great mark of success. But what really was amazing was his closing statement to me. Out of respect, I will not quote him (I believe in honesty, yes, but will always protect) but what he said to me was loving, kind, encouraging, and true. He filled my world with hope for the future and I fell in love with my husband all over again.

Countdown Clocks at WishAFriend.com

This weekend I experienced something quite fun! I took one of my "new Texas friends" to an Open House at a new housing development. She likes to decorate so I thought she might be interested in looking around at the model homes as well as some of the other products available for viewing or purchase. It was a nice "Ladies Night Out" sort of thing. What made it even more interesting was the host of the Open House was a woman I went to Middle School and High School with. Also attending this Open House was her sister who had been one of my best friends in junior high! Keep in mind that I have not stayed in touch with either of these ladies until recently so we are coming up on 30 years since we laid eyes on one another. I asked my new friend, Ashley, along not only for something fun to do, but now you can see, for a little support. What if I didn't get along with these old friends of mine? What if I meet them again and can't wait to get out of there? I n...

Recently, I was asked what is my biggest pet peeve. In the past, I would have answered that dishonesty or lying is my pet peeve. And even though I really don't like people who are not honest, I recently have found a peeve that is intolerable for me...people who are so self focused that they can't see beyond thier own interests or problems to be aware of the interests of others. Pride. In recent months, meeting new people has been a major priority in my life. After relocating to Texas, my desire has been to build a network of friends here. This has allowed me opportunity to evaluate friends that I have held dear in the past, what made them a good friend, and even if they really are good friends. I have tried to take what I have learned from my conclusions and look for people who are good friends, healthy friends, and people who I think will be good for me and me for them. I have noticed how many people, women, especially, will talk on and on about themselves and never ask a ques...

I have little focus today. I spent so much time TRYING to focus at work, that since I got home, I have been bouncing off of walls like one of those little rubber balls you buy for a quarter in the gumball machine. Here are the random things going through my head. It is cold. I am not used to feeling cold. It makes my throat hurt. Well, that might be because after I got my flu shot, I thought I was going to die. I ended up with the pseudo-flu. That was a bummer. Maybe that's why my throat hurts. But I still don't like being cold. I guess I should be glad I am in Texas, where cold is not REALLY cold, like Minnesota. I lived there once. I think if one were to go "#1"outside in Minnesota, it would freeze! Thinking of being cold makes me think I want to be warm. And warm I hope to be in less than two weeks when I go on a 7 day cruise in the Western Caribbean. Woo hoo ! Grand Cayman's , Jamaica, and Cozumel ...here I come!!!! My son, Aaron's, girlfrien...

On April 3, 1997, my beautiful, then 3 year old, daughter drew a picture of me. It just so happened that she drew the picture in my Bible. I was a little disappointed to have the drawing of my 3 year old right in the middle of a page in my Bible, but I wasn't angry with her. I made a little note beside the drawing and this is what I wrote, "Rebecca: 4/3/97, "Mommy, I drew your face in your Bible!" That is what she said to me. She was so excited, she carried it to me and proudly displayed her work. How could I be angry? I never gave much thought to it after that. When I read across the scripture that she adorned, I simply read over it. It was a Psalm that she selected and one that I read, but had not zoned in on with the exception of the very last verse. This final verse in this Psalm has been my prayer many, many times. In fact the first date beside the final verse is October 1996 with the note, "Help me always do this." Recently, however, I noticed that th...

This past week I served as a juror. I must admit that when I received my jury summons, I was less than thrilled. My mind was immediately filled with visions of trials "as seen on t.v." And I had just returned from taking some time off for a retreat and to spend time with my mother during a recent surgery. The last thing that I wanted to do was take more time off of work. I opted to go ahead and take my chances, turn in my juror documentation instead of requesting the one "free" skip that I am allowed in the state of Texas. I filled out all the personal questions and sent my paperwork to the court, hoping that my chances of being selected were small. The day that I had to report, I was shocked! There were 294 of us crammed into one room. We were informed that 3 panels would be selected that day and there would be 123 of us going to the next selection process. As fate would have it, the juror selection software malfunctioned. They actually had to put all of o...

I am so blessed by God! I love life. I love Him. I think He must love me more than anyone in the world because He is so good to me. I just want to yell to the world at how wonderful He is!

Well, it is official...Adam now has a girlfriend! He has been interested in this young lady for several weeks now, but this past week they have agreed to use the titles "boyfriend" and "girlfriend"! He has spent most of his college days as a single man, mostly because his degree program is so demanding that he had little time for romance! Also, he never really found anyone that was interesting to him. But, that changed when he met Thien. How exciting! They are spending a good amount of time together. They are cooking with one another...I think she might be a little better at it than he is. :) And one of the best things is -she can make sushi...one of Adam's all time favorites! Along with spring rolls and dumplings. (Asian cuisine is one of his very, very favorites, so he is very excited about the food!) Now, all three of my kids are romantically involved! Is this the fun part of parenting? Or the hard part? I am not sure yet! Romance though...it is ...

Fridays have always been an interesting day to me. I don't know exactly why, but I have high expectations of Fridays. I am not sure if it started when I was in school and most Friday's were about slumber parties, then football games, or dates. But I almost always did something fun on Friday nights. When I got married and started having children, Friday's were still special. I did not work while our children were little so I was able to get all my housework and errands completed during the week. The reward was that on Friday, I would get together with another good friend of mine (also the mother of young children) and we would visit and have lunch while our children played together. We did this every Friday and I always looked forward to it. Often times, we would go our separate ways for the afternoon so our little ones could nap, then we would get together Friday evenings with our husbands and children and have dinner. We played board games or cards, while our kid...