Rocking Chair Lessons

I sat there in the dark. The weight of her too-light body in my arms. and I ponder, I wonder, why it's taken me so long to get to this place, to this moment.

~~~~~

It started well. I gave them a bath, brushed the blonde wisps of hair, zipped the cupcake jammies and held them while they prayed. Laid them in their beds, found Snuffy and Dimples, covered up little girls with fuzzy blankets, turned off the lights and shut the door.

Not five minutes had passed before the first "Deedeeeeeeee. I have to go pottyyyyyyyyyy."

And because there's two of them, everything has to be done twice.

Two pairs of jammies unzipped.

Two diapers off.

Two girls wanting a new roll of "paper toilet."

Diapers back on.

Jammies zipped back up.

Blankets covering two girls up.

I sank back down into the red lazy boy downstairs when, moments later,

"Deedee. I hot and cold. Deedeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee."

Back up the stairs I went.

An hour later, we had solved these issues and more:

Dimples had "fallen" out of Ellie's crib
Two girls were thirsty and wanted water "right now" not in the morning
The hall light must be off, but the night light must be on
Hannah wanted to know what I had said to Ellie- "last time."
I must remember when Mommy gets home that both girls want "a big hug and a tiss"

It was almost 10 when I went up again. Standing there in front of Ellie’s crib, exhaustion and annoyance rose up within me.

But then,

“I give you second chances by the oceanful. Will you extend grace to her?”

So I put on the soft voice, pick her up, hold her tight and sink into the rocker in the corner. A few hymns later, I lay her drowsy body back into the bed and move on to the next little girl- who has been patiently waiting ever since I lifted Ell-Girl up.

I finish singing through Little Women, singing every quiet song whose words I can remember all of.

Then I sit, just dwelling in the quiet of the room. Wondering why I get exasperated so easily and why it can be so hard to love those closest to you.

Wondering how much soon I could have gone to bed if I had tried this grace an hour ago.

But I realize that it’s a lesson that must be learned and that I have the best Teacher possible.

And Hanni’s big blue orbs blink open, connect with mine, and close for the night.

A Peek Behind the Scenes... (Part One)

Here's more of the pictures I promised you on Friday... Welcome to the secretive area of "backstage." :)

A few of the Dads that flew Sam and Tanner every night.

Older sisters like to "come back" and lend a helping hand.

Naomi and her left prop table... she was an amazing props mistress. :)

okay, isn't Christianna gorgeous? and she's so much fun.

A tray of food for Augustus Gloop's "I Eat More" dance

Keeping the Word of God readily available... sitting on the props table.

And the afternoon show starts...

A sign on the stage door... reminding us why we're doing this. (and those who know me well might recognize the handwriting... *cough*)

All the cans of gray hair spray we used...

A golden ticket... we had so many printed up that they were laying everywhere.

"extra strength" :)

Our monitor so that we can check where the show is at.

The order of the show, costume changes and song numbers. This was so nice to have blown up so big!

 

They were checking out the photo shoot pictures...

I think they were checking out the program

Nan watching Greta for Mrs. H.

Lights! Cameras! er, Naomi. :)

Pairs of Oompa sock drying

The harnesses the Dads wore so they didn't drop the guys

Cade's final devotion for the cast... remembering to glorify God. I didn't make it into every devotion during show week, but I was greatly blessed by those I did hear.

Ahh, I thought I could fit everything in one post, but I'm guessing that you're getting tired already. Part Two on Friday. :)

Wonka Pictures

I thought you all might want to see some pictures from this Wonka thing I keep talking about. I decided not to post all 104 edited ones... :) just a few favorites from closing night. I might post more later.

She was so enthralled by him and his wheelchair...

...It was adorable.

We called them our "big hair peeps"... yes, it's all natural. Luke's does that with just the smallest bit of combing and Marissa's... is teased. a lot.

The schedule for closing... it was a full, beautiful day.

The piano was constantly playing... even when everyone was in costume.

This is my favorite Wonka picture... is it not SO cute?!?! Greta Faith and Sam (Charlie)

I have a "behind the scenes" post too... going to be posted Monday. Let's say there's some goofy faces, tired people, the joy of the Lord and a whole lotta prayer. :)

Another Example of Working Prayer

Our leads for Wonka have been working hard. exceptionally hard. Final dress rehearsal went amazingly well. They sang. They danced. They improv-ed. especially Breilen. He belted so hard that Friday morning (Jan. 27) - opening night- he woke up with a sore throat.

The day went downhill from there.

When we arrived at HPA, his momma was pinning a sign on his shirt that read, "I'm on voice rest. Mum's the word from me!" As playful as this seems, Breilen was not smiling.

We didn't hear him speak until he sang the opening note of the show that night and as he worked his way through both acts- with the help of tea, raw honey and gargling salt water in the kitchenette- my heart hurt for this young man who had worked so hard, yet had to perform under circumstances that were beyond his ability. The moment the show was over, his parents swept him home to rest.

That night I prayed and went to bed. Around one I woke up. and no matter what, I couldn't go back to sleep. God brought Breilen to mind. So I spent about an hour praying for him.

We were up bright and early, at HPA by 9:30 to be ready for the two more shows that day. We poured out effert, prayed hard and cried. We -the crew- poured out ourselves to do anything -anything- we could to help this cast.

By the end of the day, I had talked to 5 other people who, from 1-2 that morning, had been awake and praying for Breilen.

That night I had chills.

It was amazing to me that I was able to be a part of something bigger, something stronger. Never before had I experienced being part of a group prayer... when the "group" wasn't together. Mrs. C told me that she had told Breilen that he was being bathed in prayer, but she hadn't known how much. Only God could unite our hearts to lift up our "Wonka" during a time when we all should have been asleep- but were petitioning on our knees instead.

(For those wondering, that Saturday's shows went better than could be expected. God came through, answering prayers, giving strength and voice. This weekend's show were amazing. A healed Breilen did wonders for this cast and no pain enabled Breilen to be Wonka- to be himself- and to be better then we ever could have prayed.)

Opening scene- a healed Breilen Wonka. All praise due to Jesus Christ.

"I have created Two Hundred Original and Sensational Candy Bars- Each with a Different center and each one sweeter and creamier than the last...."
Photo Copyright by our show photographer