•11:52 AM
LANA:

 I know DH is completely blasé about the whole thing (or maybe it's clinical-level exhaustion), but the boys and I visited him on set for the first time yesterday to watch him in action, and it was about one of the coolest things ever. When we were driving closer to the set location, there started to be little yellow signs tied to the street poles saying 'LEVERAGE' with arrows pointing out the turns. That was exciting. Then I had to talk to someone at the parking lot entrance. I told him I was there to have lunch with DH in catering, and he pointed me to 'Crew Parking'.

The boys and I found the base camp where DH was set up and then mainly lurked around the catering truck and tent to wait for lunch to begin. Christian K. was one of the first to come striding up to the table to table to eat. No thoughts of 'he looks shorter/fatter/paler/disappointing in person' here. Quite the opposite - he practically sparkles. Seriously. Like he walked - go figure - right off a tv set. He was tan, cut, upbeat and friendly with the cooks, complimenting them on the dishes and flipping his hair around like no one's business. DH says he comes out for lunch pretty often (many main actors just have production assistants run them food in their trailers).





Timothy H. made an appearance not too much later. He doesn't come out to the truck to eat very often, so I guess we were lucky yesterday that his son was on set so they came together to get some grub. He was tall and calm, mostly cuddling and speaking quietly to his son while they waited for their meals.



And of course I had to have an awkward moment with him. All Theo's fault, as most of my awkward moments are (usually involving his penchant for spontaneously stripping his pants off at inappropriate times). I was watching the boys play outside in the lot several feet behind TH, and Theo had just splashed into a deep puddle and soaked his pants up past his knees. I was just sort of playfully reacting to it by putting both of my hands up to my cheeks in a sort of Home-Alone-esque expression and that's when T turned around and caught my eye.

And he smiled and WINKED at me. 

Interpret that how you might, but I have no other theory except that he thought that was my faint-of-heart 'star-struck' face and he was throwing me a bone.

I wanted to crawl under a table and die!

OK, so now I have -80 dignity points with TH. Thanks a lot, Theo.

Anyway, beyond the cast, just watching the ebb and flow of activity on set was so much fun. Everyone is communicating constantly in their headsets ("Gina probably has two more takes and she'll be down to lunch,") and little go-carts are zipping about everywhere, and the extras were getting all dolled up in 1920's era evening wear, getting their hair curled in rollers and bowler hats cocked at the right angle, and red lipstick done in front of the lighted mirrors. It's just like everyone's getting ready for a play - and I guess essentially they are.

The boys loved the catering truck where DH works. They know really nothing else of what's going on, except that their Papa cooks in this big kitchen truck, and they are beyond impressed! His boss invited them to come inside the truck and watch him work, which I was surprised about (considering liability and whatnot). They loved the spigots of never-ending juice on the outside, and Mike the driver gave them a tiny toy monkey.

All in all, we stayed about three hours watching all the activity and in the end got to sit down with DH and his co-workers and eat some pasta before they had to start cleaning up. Let it be noted that this is the first time in our entire relationship of 14 years that I have gotten to visit him on a work lunch break! 

I'm proud of DH for being a part of a production like that, something that so many talented people are working so hard on. And I overheard CK say the chicken in the pasta was just awesome - yeah, my husband made that. :)






•6:03 PM
 LANA:

I woke up in the middle of the night not too long ago, and in my foggy 3am brain, I could just grasp at the tail end of this cool dream - our family had made the move to Oregon, DH was cooking for tv shows and movies, and I was about to start shopping (and working out amongst the moss-enrobed pines) for my dress for the wrap party.

Then I grinned like a lunatic at myself in the bathroom mirror and literally boogied my way back to bed - my bed that is safely anchored under a patch of pine trees right outside of Portland, empty because my caterer husband has left for the set over an hour ago - to envision what sort of pretty cocktail party dress and shoes I finally have a decent excuse to buy.

I'd had a lot of those dreams in the past year - the we-made-it-there-everything's-going-fine dreams - only to slowly surface and see I was still existing quite solidly in our unfortunately-decorated orange bedroom with brown marbled wallpaper in Detroit Lakes, with no hint of reliable employment in sight and the ever-present dread of having to visit 'the weird tenants' this week.

So what with already being so happy and thankful for our prayers having been answered about all of this, it's with a little trepidation, a bit of guilt (here it comes again) and a lot of shyness that I admit... I'm asking God for more.

A house.

It's been just 3 weeks since I got here, but I can barely think of anything else. We are so close to being truly HOME. This apartment, while quite nice and safe and happily not boasting the brown/orange/green color scheme of Detroit Lakes, comes with a Japanese businessman upstairs who unwinds by singing some karaoke into an impressive sound sytem every Saturday night and the constant threat of receiving a lease violation if I use the washer/dryer after 10pm (or fail to use the fan while I cook, or hang curtains without prior approval, or my bike rolls 6 inches off the patio, etc., etc.). You get the gist of it. This isn't really OUR place.

I can't wait to make a home for my family again. I've got stars in my eyes, dreaming of pretty paint colors, sparkling lights, a fenced yard with a puppy. And the best part is I wouldn't have to ask anyone if that's ok with them first!

We know the responsible thing to do would be to put this job DH has been given to good use and put together a 20% down payment. That would still be hard to achieve (and more hard to wait for, especially since we rented this apartment with only a 6 month lease in hopes of being in a home by then), but God has brought us this far; I know He'll give us His patience and wisdom and bring this whole journey to completion; I really can't wait to see what He's got in store for us.