Oh my oh my oh my… the loveliest of lovelies has done it again! If you haven’t met Lizzi over at Considerings, you haven’t been blessed with the sparkling goodness of a friendship topped with glitter and tiggerlicious love. Seriously. This precious blogging friend has blessed me in more ways than I can count. She dares me, prays for me, taunts me, challenges me, embraces me, cares for me, loves me, laughs at/with me, plays in the snow with me, has sleepovers with me, sometimes punches me when I tickle her, and simply honors who I am. And guess what? I’ve never met her in person. But we have grown a friendship that withstands the distance of two countries. One day I received a beautiful heart stopping comment on my blog. It was her. And from that one comment, a friendship was born.
Amazing.
This is the beauty and wonder of the internet.
Lizzi is one of many incredible people that have been placed in my life through this blogging gig, and I am profoundly touched and gifted by every person I have connected with through this ‘world of words’. I may never meet some if not most of these precious souls, but funny thing- I love them. They are all over the world and although we are all separated by miles and oceans and countries, the connection can be closer than someone sitting at your kitchen table every morning having coffee. Day after day, these friendships build into something spectacular. Something real.
Although we can’t physically hug each other, wipe away tears, hear each others laughter and walk hand in hand in this life we live together… we use words. And because most bloggers are wordsmiths- we can communicate our deepest thoughts, feelings, hardships, victories, and laughable moments with clarity and distinguishable presence. And quite frankly, we often get more real through our words than we ever do in ‘real life’. It’s inspiring, really. And I am infinitely blessed by every writer I have had the honor to know.
And Lizzi.
I have received some beautiful cards, one filled with a sparkly glitter bomb and another filled with a tiggerlicious cartoon. Both of which I saved and will have forever. They come straight to my doorstep delivered by the postal carrier from across the pond. And each time I open her gorgeous words and gifts, I am reminded how God takes care of us through friends. I know I am not the only one she has sent her glittery goodness to, there are probably oodles of others. This is just one part of her that is treasured and cherished by many. Today I received something more than a card. I could almost feel her… and as I squealed and laughed and sighed… she was right there with me.
Cassidy taped me, as I took the risk of opening this on camera. I promised Lizzi I would, so I am following through on my promise. I am still stirring with that giddy excitement of it all. What a way to end the day.
Oh dear Lizzi, you are truly one of a kind.
YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!! I am seriously laughing so hard, and so happy right now I have FOR REAL teeny-weent tears in the corners of my eyes – I LOVE THIS!
Cass did AMAZINGLY and
THAT. WAS. PERFECT.
ALLTHETIGGERLOVE
<3 <3 <3
Yay finally got to see you on video and I heart Lizzi so much, too. Her niece and my daughters are pen pals now and we also love getting mail them here, too 🙂
OH DID I SAY! Your most recent arrived, and I gave it to her the other day, with the mermaid and the beach house and the gorgeous SUNSHINE, and she sat right up in her chair and shouted (across the packed restaurant) “It’s from EMMAanLILY!!!!” she was SO happy 😀 Thank you <3
I LOVE THIS!!!!!! OMG Chris your reaction is priceless and Lizzi is such a fabulous friend! I was laughing so hard when the butterfly jumped out at you— and that mask is AWESOME! One of the BEST blogs I have ever watched!
*HUGS*
Didn’t she do WELL 😀 <3
If you ever want to get glitterbombed, you know what to do – I would LOVE to send you some sparkles and sprinkles 😀
Wow – I loved this – the friendship, the vlog, the gifts, everything! And Chris, I couldn’t agree more about the way bloggers communicate and how it can be more real than real life. My online friendships are just as important to me as the ones I have IRL…great job Lizzi on surprising her with such perfect gifts!
Why thank you. I feel that convincing Chris to vlog it was one of my more perfectly sneaky moments, too 😀
Oh how I LOVE this video 😀
THIS THIS THIS. I was grinning through the entire vlog (I love your face so hard!) and the butterfly scared me too! Holy cow I would’ve screamed. Lizzi is BANANAS!!! Which is why I LURVE her to pieces and pieces and pieces. 🙂
This was SO fun!
I’m still cleaning up glitter from my last Lizzi bomb too…..
You would have screamed? Oh, my BW, but that is too tempting for WORDS!
I just loved sending glitterbombs at Christmas – that was the MOST fun. And hearing the ‘backlash’ from it. Glorious 😀
Yes. These friendships are realer than real. Someone asked me if I’m in real life like I am on my blog and I said, “oh yes, but people always think I’m very tall and I’m really just average.”
Love your face and your melodic voice! I know Lizzi a bit and she’s fantastic.
Hey, thanks, you 😀 Shall we be friends?
OMG! That is so sweet! Your reaction is awesome! I jumped off my chair and nearly had my heart stop when that butterfly flew out! LOL! What an amazing friendship you have!
That was a hoot when the butterfly flew out and I loved your reaction Chris! I don’t really know Lizzi that well but everything I have read of hers, I just love.
Aw thanks Michelle 🙂 That’s a lovely compliment
Okay so I’ve watched this a BUNCH of times today and my face hurts from grinning SO MUCH 😀
Ohhhhhhhh how I love you guys – and Cass’s little voice there as she does the camera so well and then cracks up laughing when you jump.
LOVE IT 😀
I LOVE IT I LOVE IT I LOVE IT!!!! I especially love that my family knows you- they know who you are, and they totally got what I was doing and why. Isn’t that just so completely AWESOME?!!! I am going to share it again soon…
You did me GOOD Lizzi!!! I am still finding little twinkly hearts EVERYWHERE!!!! Oh, and Cade TOTALLY stole my Tigger mask!!!! LOLOLOL
Oh I am SO GLAD it did you good. And I loved seeing all your family (and hearing Cass – she’s SO STINKIN’ CUTE!) and watching the furore and the glitter, and your FACE when you jumped…oh it was priceless, and it’s stayed with me ALL DAY!
I showed this vid to Joe, and he sat beside me, laughing, trying to figure out “which one is she? is she the one with the chickens? Or the boobs?” (he doesn’t pay enough attention, that one…) but I LOVE THIS so, so much. Oh it did ME good, too, to see how *sparklyhappyperfect* it was…*HAPPY SIGH*
You are the cutest, most adorable Tigger ever! 🙂 Love it! What fun to see you in real life on a vlog!-Ashley
This is amazing! What a wonderful package to receive. Good friends are just the best. Love your reaction and Cassidy’s comments!
Also, how HUGANTIC is my ego now, having read all the lovely comments from your readers. I shall have to remember that for each gorgeous comment, at least thirteen other people came here and thought ‘That Lizzi chick’s a jackass – I’m not leaving a comment for such stupidity!’
Best Vlog ever!!! I screamed when the butterfly flew out so I can’t even imagine how freaked out your had to be!!!
So glad that you shared your mail with us.
BTW – the Tigger mask is awesome!!!
BWAHAHAHA I think I ACTUALLY punched the air when that happened – I was on the EDGE OF MY SEAT WAITING FOR THE MOMENT. Ohhhhh and it was PERFECT 😀 *SoHappy*
And hey – whaddya mean Cade stole it? It’s a GIRL MASK! I DREW ON IT TO MAKE IT A GIRL TIGER.
Is your son a girl-tiger? Ask him 😉 :p
That was awesome. I could almost hear Lizzi giggling as she watched you open her card. You are as lovely on video as you are in writing, Chris – thanks for such a heartwarming post!
Dana, my lovely, I was giggling SO HARD.
And hey…guess whose address I don’t have, but NEED….
thatssright.
Yours…
Absolutely Freaking Fantastic)))!!!!!
I loved this SO DOGGONE much.
Smiling in Minnesota.
PS. I jumped when you opened the card, too!!!!!!!!!!! OMGGGGosh.
xxxxxxx
I need your address!!!! haaaaaa
Aw, that’s just beyond! How awesome of Lizzi and how awesome that it was recorded for her to see!
So much fun!! I love these blogger friendships and you have done a wonderful job of describing them. It is hard to explain to people who haven’t experienced it. I love that you and Lizzi exchanges letter and packages. 🙂
Blogging is awesome, and vlogging (in this instance) is better, but Snail Mail is PRICELESS 😀
Best vlog EVER! Chris, your reaction to the butterfly was priceless and you can tell the whole thing made you absolutely giddy with excitement! Lizzi did good here! She is pretty freakin’ awesome!
I’m just glad it was you…I would have wet my britches if that had been me 🙂
Sooooooo does this mean you won’t vlog opening the next thing I send you? #JustChecking
Well… 😉 You’re good at pressuring/pushing/threatening, so there’s THAT. LOL
(I have GOT to get to my comments!! ACK! No time. )
Ohhhh I’m sure if I try hard enough, and ask prettily enough, I can wrap Sandy around my little finger 😀
Wait, no, I mean if I’m a good and worthy friend and promise (without my fingers crossed where she can see them) not to prank her…
I mean…uhm…
Sandy?
That’s so fantastic!! The best I’ve seen..You’re both such beautiful people and I just loved watching it live:)) Kisses to both!!
Ohhh I KNOW Manal – Chris is such a fantastic sport to have done the vlog. And don’t you LOVEADORE Cass’s little comments throughout? She cracks me up 😀
OMG Chris and Lizzi! Too funny! I love that you went ahead and opened it live – Cassidy did a GREAT job!!
And I so agree with you that online friendships are so so important.
I’m so into this combination of online world + real cards and letters. We should all send real cards and letters and surprises more, shouldn’t we? Your words about connecting with other writers were beautiful, and your enthusiasm is contagious. 🙂
That is an awesome letter!! We used to have this thing as kids: It was a pouch labelled “rattlesnake eggs” and when you opened it, it rattled! This reminds me of that! I’m going to have to figure out how to mail something like that to my brothers!!
SO fun!!! We should ask Lizzi where on EARTH she got that thing!! It was so surreal… because Butterflies are SO meaningful to me. So God spoke through my girl in picking out the perfect (scary though) thing to get me. 😉
This is so sweet! What an amazing friend! Bloggers are definitely a special type of friend indeed. Congratulations on finding an amazing one.
How fun! Everyone needs a friend like that.
That was pretty AWESOME!!!!! Way to go Lizzi! I jumped when she opened the card!!!! You rock!
I love this story so much. Friends in unexpected places can be the dearest and sweetest, and I’m always wowed by the blessing of them (hehem…YOU!!! xoxoxo)