Just had a wonderful "tech week" rehearsal for Wife Begins At Forty. This is sort of like a British "Sitcom" story, reminds me of "Fawlty Towers" for those who follow John Cleese. This is my first director spot for this great community theater I have been involved with for over a year now. It is up for the M.A.T. Awards (translated that is the Metropolitan Atlanta Theater Awards) so every detail has to be "just so". I have a brilliant or "brill" cast who have been a dream to direct, and the most amazing set designer who just "does" it.

I have been just impressed by friends of cast and cast members, who have turned up consistently to paint and help the designer build the set, which is just a hard job and not the set designers, but mine to do. My lighting guy, has a dad, who is dying of cancer in hospital, and we just didn't get things done today because they were deciding his next and last couple of months in this life. There is this little darling girl or young lady I should say, who is an intern at the theater where we are performing, who is coming in and running the sound effects (of which there are many) for most of each performance. I'm thinking she has a "curfew" of sorts because she disappears at the same time every night. And then, guess whose job it becomes. Not that I object, I am somewhat a perfectionist, and like to know exactly what happens and make sure it happens when it is supposed to.

Tonight, my eldest at home, was having a crisis, because Rog and I felt that something that she REALLY wanted to do, was just too "risky". She is 18 going on 30 but about 13 when it comes to relationships with the opposite sex. So, cutting a long story short, my amazing husband had stepped in a couple of months ago to fulfill the role of the "somewhat demented grandad" and we have been having this wonderful time together going to rehearsals, but tonight we not only went ourselves, but took nine kids with us to the quiet please "dry run" of performance. I can honestly say, I would rather not repeat that. Not that they were awful, in a house of our magnitude there has to be order and discipline, but wearing so many hats has it's disadvantages.

Might I add, that our "three legged" dog is also in the show. She is more needy than the kids. Oh, isn't life amazing and wonderful and full of surprises. It would be good though, if I could get notice on the next taking nine kids to rehearsal surprise.

Have you ever had so much to say you don't know where to begin? I can't believe how busy the last couple of weeks have been. Rog has had two business friends come to stay one leaving, and one coming within a couple days of each other, we "tried" to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary, and as well, I felt that because of several circumstances, our twin nine year olds needed to come home to school this year.

Let me tell you just a little about our miraculous 9 year old twins. I first found out about them when they were still in hospital struggling for their life. When they came to us at 9 weeks of age, (they were born at 31 weeks addicted to cocaine and alcohol) they were on fetal heart monitors, and one of them was on oxygen. At nine and a half weeks of age, they weighed 4 whole pounds. They were on "minor" reflux medicine and looked so fragile I didn't know whether they would break when I picked them up.

The first night we had them, the "people" forgot to tell me about the monitors that told me when they stopped breathing. The heart rates and oxygen rates were set too low, so about every ten minutes after we went to bed at oh, around midnight, their monitors went off. Now this is not a little, nice, alarm, it is one of those sounds that brings you upright from a sound sleep of oh, around 10 minutes or so and you jump so violently out of bed because you think the baby or babies have stopped breathing. At three in the morning we found the monitor people and called. Well what do you know, the rates were set too low. So we reset everything, at three in the morning, and went back to sleep for a few minutes before they awoke again.

One, Jada, could not suck so feeding her took around an hour or so. I would feed the other one, Alexis, and she would struggle to suck, swallow and breathe at the same time, and then throw the whole bottle up on the bed. We soon learned not to feed them without copious towels surrounding every area of the bed that we could find. Rog would take Jada, and would I feed Alexis once, then clean up, feed her again (because she had thrown up the whole bottle) then Rog would hand over Jada and I would put my finger on her cheek and my thumb on her jaw and emulate a sucking action so she would get her bottle. I think I averaged about two hours of sleep. I can only say that the Man upstairs was looking not only after them, but me as well.

I could tell you countless stories and miracles that we have been blessed to be part of with these two amazing and incredulous children, but that would take three pages, which I am sure you would not want to read in this blog. You can read that in my book "Is Eight Enough (God Knows and He ain't Telling) available from Amazon. But, in telling those short small things in their journey, I could not let them stay in their very wonderful school with a teacher that just was "not the right fit".

Jada has been "ticking" with a blink and a jerk of her head for some time but it had increased to not ever stopping, and Alexis, was very changed, grumpy, tearful and even rude at times which just is not these precious little girls. Then there was the "straw that broke the camels back" and Rog and I decided they would come home to be schooled. This is not the first we have done this with our children, but in every case that we have made this decision, it has worked beyond what we ever thought could happen.

So, along with the 30th, and the guests, and the school troubles, we have survived yet again. My schedule has changed, but I can honestly say my little wonders, are laughing, learning and such a joy in my life. (Oh, and Jada's tick is greatly diminished! And, Alexis is back to her happy, smiling little self.)

Well, here I am sitting here, at oh 11.00p.m. and the house is quiet. There is a reason for that. We are celebrating thirty years of marriage tonight and we sent all of the younger children to the older children. It was our actual anniversary last Monday, 28th September, but, well you know how that goes. Or maybe you don't.

Last Monday, our anniversary, we had planned to be in Scotland, digging up our ancestry and looking up distant cousins etc. But, there was a little fly in the ointment, oh and then another. We knew we could not leave Isaiah at this time, but on top of that, one of Rogers' long time friends, and business associate, was in town and stayed with us for a few days. So, on actual anniversary, I cooked, smiled, cleaned and looked on as Rog and his friend, talked all sorts of business things through, and waited, hoped and planned there would be a tonight.

We had the most wonderful, if somewhat expensive dinner, and talked or tried to talk about anything other than the kids. Well, we did talk about the play, just a little bit, but when you have ten kids, with needs that are all unusual, it inevitably comes back to "the kids". But, there was that moment when one of the older kids called, needing something, and hoping he wasn't interrupting anything, then, we get home, open a nice bottle of wine, and end up chatting on face book to a couple of the others. We must be demented or brainwashed or both.

I must say I love life. I am so looking forward to the comedy I am directing. Just worked out the curtain calls, sitcom style and laughing out loud as I picture it in my mind. Have been sitting here with Rog, as he chats and I chat online to our kids, having a glass of wine, appreciating the love, the laughter, the sad times and all that the last thirty years have brought us. I wouldn't change anything. I am so blessed.

It's one of those nights where I have a million things running through my brain, and so many great things happening, I sometimes wonder where to start, let alone finish. Today, was "drama" day and I started directing my little theater company I started at my kids school. "The Lighthouse Theater Company" presents!!! We have had auditions, and the read through, and today we got up on that stage and started "Bah Humbug" the musical.

I have not worked with a lot of kids in pretend drama, mostly kids in real dramas! I decided I would definitely get myself a microphone so I could be heard above the excited, visiting voices of thirty odd kids ranging from 6 to 16. So we blocked half of the first song in an hour, and I have decided that we need a little more time to achieve what we have planned. Of course, it will get boring for them at some time, not all of them have lines and in theater you do sit around waiting a lot of the time, unless you have a small cast.

At the same time I am directing a British comedy which has four rehearsals before tech week. That's the week where everything comes together in the theater and you add all the props, the lighting, the set, the sound effects and hope it all works! Today, before drama rehearsal, I had a production meeting in the morning and set out with my friend and leading lady to hunt for some "stuff" for our set. We bought the most AWFUL couch, which when I saw it I just knew we had to have it. It cost the whole of $38.93. I then found the worst looking curtains you could possible imagine to go with this loud red, blue, orange and green big flowered pattern couch. The play talks a lot about how dreadful the curtains are.

I have certainly tested my abilities in this play, I have sculpted a "roman girl carrying a bowl" and painted a canvas that can be likened to the couch. I have also written a "theme" song similar to those found accompanying British sitcoms. It has been so much fun and a definite break from the general hustle and bustle of raising ten kids at home and four on the perimeter with the grandchildren popping in as well here and there. Now, I will say, my artistic work has to be seen to be believed, but I think it will be popular at the auction to raise money for our company, as the best white elephants there! Or at least the "joke" items.

We had record floods last week, and needless to say I am glad that all is back to normal including the muddy pool, which is blue once more. The weather is turning cool, which I love, but with it comes dealing with how the change of season affects my children with bi-polar. The spring and the fall, always bring challenges as the light begins to change and moods begin to swing. During all the rain that fell, and mud that slid, my one really challenged child had the worst time I have seen her have in a long time. For a couple of days, it really looked like she would have to go to inpatient treatment, but thank God, we have avoided that and reverted to alternate plan B, which is Mr. Risperdal. (a common drug used for bi-polar and other similar disorders). I am often speechless when well meaning people come up and say, "Oh she'll get over it."

Isaiah is doing better with school work, but struggling in other areas. He is responding to a routine and structure along with boundaries, which he sometimes pushes to see whether he will get a "beating" or not. It brings back memories of our fostering days, when kids come into care from neglected and abusive situations, and try to re-create the very circumstances they came from. Harmony and peace do not come easily to ones who have lived with fighting, and uncertainty. What's that song? "It Takes Time". Yes it does, but when I look back to the end of July and where he was then, he has travelled a long way and I know he has not been saved from certain death in Africa, for no purpose.