God, I Hope She Gets It!

It has been quite some time since I posted, over 2 months, almost 3. So much has happened in my little life, but today I am writing a post for someone. Tomorrow, my oldest daughter turns 26. This birthday is different. She is not here, and probably won't be for many birthdays to come. A little over a month ago she moved to New York City to follow her dream of being an actress. It came as no surprise when she told me she wanted to move to the big city. In fact I was a little surprised she waited as long as she did, but opportunity presented itself, and she jumped on it. On August 11th, at 6AM, she got into her rented car, packed to the brim and started on her journey, not just to another city, but another life. Being an actor is hard! It takes sacrifice and perseverance, and the willingness to be told, "No," over and over again, and bounce right back. I know because I wanted to be an actor. Well, I am an actor, but I wanted that to be my job. I let other things get in the way, not that I have any regrets, mind you. I am exactly where I am supposed to be. I made choices, and I am happy with them. She has made one choice: TO BE AN ACTOR, first and foremost. The first serious step she took was moving to NYC, a step that would terrify me, but she is up there seeing theatre and hustling to auditions and picking up jobs and navigating the subway like a pro - this alone would do me in - and she's not only doing it she's loving it! I never did it. I played it safe, and I have to say I'm a little envious, a tiny bit surprised but most of all in awe of her determination and basic guts to be up there doing what she's doing every day. I told her a long time ago that she had to decide if she wanted to be famous or make her living as an actor because they were two different things. Sometimes they're both, but rarely. My wish for her on this birthday is that she continue to have the drive to go at it day after day, that she stay comfortable, but not too comfortable,  that she continue to grow as an actress and keep working and studying and learning by experience or class, and, most of all that she be happy wherever she is and whatever she chooses. Happy Birthday, little girl! Love, Mommy!

QQQQQQQQQQ Very Much!

The title of this post may be confusing, but years ago I worked in a Hallmark store that my parents owned. At that time Hallmark put out a line of cards called lite. They were printed on this brown recycled paper, and I loved them because they were filled with puns and corny jokes. When we would get a new shipment, I would stand over in the aisle unpacking them and laughing as I read each one. This one card we had had this message: On the cover: QQQQQQQQQQ On the inside: Ten Q very much!
Well I want to send out my 10 Q's. Tomorrow, bright and early at 6AM, my two girls will depart for New York City. Neither one of them have ever been and they are VERY EXCITED, and I am excited for them. Mostly I am excited because when this trip was proposed at the beginning of the school year, and I realized that I would need to raise $1600.00 for both of them to go, I thought, I am never going to be able to make this happen, and I just can't tell them, "No!" They've heard it too many times in their lives, and I want this one to be a "YES!" A trip to New York, and singing at Lincoln Center? It had to happen, and so the fundraising began. We sold "Enjoy the City" coupon books. One of my dear friends from New York actually said he'd by one. He thought it was an actual novel. No, I didn't take his money. Then we sold fruit and cheesecakes, Virginia Diner products,  next came cookies, and in the middle of all of it, I baked my famous carrot cakes, and started a mini business called 24 Carrot Cakes for the sole purpose of fundraising for the trip and baked 26 carrot cakes over the holidays, 15 of them for the week of Thanksgiving alone. Donations also came in from some very caring people, some I hadn't seen in years that I had reconnected with on Facebook. And I have to reserve one of the Q's for Facebook because it was integral in getting the message out that we needed help to get these girls to NYC. My friends, YOU ARE AMAZING!!!, and I am so thankful for all you have done to make this trip happen for them. I truly could not have done it without you, and I know that I am truly blessed beyond measure. Thank you for loving me and my girls enough to help. You have made two girls and their mama very, very happy!