I met Lizzie in February of 1991, when I was dating Paul. She walked up to me and matter-of-factly stated that she was going to be a Paleontologist when she grew up! I knew I was in trouble then, because that precocious two year old had to explain to me what a Paleontologist was! She's been schooling me ever since!
Although Lizzie has never lived in our home, we endeavored to make her part of our lives as much as possible. From weekend visits, holidays and vacations, we carved out a life with her that we could only hope meant as much to her as it did to us. Always a flurry of activity and creativity, she has been a source of joy and inspiration in our home. Parker, Noah and Isabel love and respect her deeply. Claire has yet to meet her and our only regret is that we weren't able to adopt her when Lizzie was younger so she would get to bond with her too. Our fond memories include Dad's frozen underwear, room sized blanket forts and "boot camp", Lord of the Ring marathons and Harry Potter trivia games, scary movies 'till dawn, Renaissance festivals and stand-up comedy reenactments. We've had treasure hunts and a New Years Eve murder mystery party. We've been to Washington DC, Cherokee, Busch Gardens and Sea World. Each memory is cherished and we wait patiently to make new ones!
Unfortunately our time with Lizzie is limited now. Life caught up with her this year and she found she had to spend her free time studying to complete her senior year, applying for colleges and working a part time job. But, even amid all the activity, she found time to visit with us a few times and continues to email with us and the kids. And, all her hard work paid off. She applied to and was accepted at four colleges-Randolph Macon, Clemson, College of Charleston and UNC-Wilmington!
Lizzie is planning to pursue an undergraduate degree in anthropology with a concentration on
archeology. She intends to go to graduate school as well. However, her dream is to study abroad and she hopes to go to Ireland in her junior year.She is still writing and acting when she gets the chance. I think she will continue with the acting in college, taking some drama classes. She has been working on a novel for a while now. I know she will continue to work on this every chance she gets. I've read the first part and it is quite good. Her imagination astounds me!
Lizzie has worked hard and we are so very proud of her! We love you, Lizzie!
Daddy, Mom, Parker, Noah, Isabel and Claire Hope
1 comment:
Congratulations, Lizzie! Our oldest graduated on Friday night, too. Very exciting. All our best wishes on beginning the next chapter of your life!
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