Friday, as I was driving into Zyla's school to help Nanette Estrada with the Silent Auction Art projects for the pre-k and Zyla's class, Kids Management texted again.  This time they needed her for a new show called Bounce.  I had her booked on the show for Monday and told Zyla to bring home extra work for set school.  I called Jessica's to book me out so I could take her to set.  By late afternoon, Kids Management called saying Bounce had changed the call and no longer wanted 12-13 year olds and had changed the age range.  I asked if they had anything else for Zyla and was told she could work Parks and Rec on Tuesday.  I had to call Jessica's back saying Zyla's call was moved to Tuesday and I was available again for work Monday.  Jessica's called back a little while later with a gig for me on Monday on Criminal Minds playing a bartender in some western themed scene.  I was excited for the following week, but first, the weekend was getting under way and Ed was seriously celebrating his 40^th birthday!  Zyla and I had gotten him canoles from the Italian bakery and his favorite black and white cookies.  He grew very popular on FB when he posted himself with his bottle of Johnny Walker and his skeleton shot glass kicking off his birthday eve.  On Saturday, Ed, Zyla and I all went to Racers Edge in Burbank to race the karts.  Zyla slammed into Ed a few times, but we all agreed it was a lot of fun and would return again soon.  Zyla needed to serve Mass for one of her last service hours before we headed over to Ed's cousin Rebecca's house.  Rebecca agreed to be the last test subject for Zyla's science faire project before we walked over to Little Dom's for Ed's birthday dinner.  It was a beautiful evening, festive atmosphere, when Ed received a call that his beloved co-worker Peg O'Connor had passed away.  It was with heavy hearts we ended Ed's birthday. 

Sunday we slept in late, had some breakfast before heading down to Disneyland.  I tried to keep things light considering the news Ed had received the night before.  Staff and students were continually calling to make sure everyone knew what had happened to Peg and line up a memorial for her at school Monday morning. 

Monday morning, I was able to take Zyla to school before getting ready for set.  Criminal Minds was shooting on location.  I had to park at Griffith Park near the Merry-Go-Round, then shuttle to base camp which was outside the park.  Our shooting location was at Bigfoot Lounge on Los Feliz.  After signing in, wardrobe had clothing they wanted the bartenders and wait staff in.  I was given a black blouse and purple tank to wear under it.  They liked my jeans and boots so I kept them on.  The PA asked if I had ever bartended, to which I said no.  She wasn't sure why BG were being brought in who had no experience with bartending and said it happened often.  She was also surprised a woman had been brought in to bartend as it usually was only men.  The other BG playing a bartender with me was Johannes.  We shuttled to set and sat in a blue tent for an hour before crew broke for lunch and we shuttled back to base camp to eat.  After lunch, we sat in the blue tent for a few more hours.  The girl sitting next to me, got booked on Parks n Rec for the next day to play a parent and I told her she could be Zyla's set mom, since I would be with Zyla at that set the next day as well.  Finally I was called into set and the 1^st AD asked me if I knew how to bartend or had any experience.  Again I said no.  He asked if I had been to a bar and drank.  I said yes.  He explained he wanted me to pour shots for the four people sitting at the bar in front of me and to make it extravagant, with the bottle high and it was ok if the liquid splashed on the bar.  So that was easy to do.  The scene went fairly quickly, some guy on the phone leaving the bar runs into another girl.  One of the principals of the episode was sitting at the bar taking one of the shots I was pouring.  Another guy I served I had just seen doing BG on Perception the week before.  The girl the guy on the phone ran into was Angela Bettis who I stood in for on Dexter way back when.  She had died her hair a dark brown from when I last saw her as a dirty blonde.   I had fun being a bartender for Criminal Minds, was told I did a great job and wrapped out in under 8 hours.  They shuttled us back to our cars and I got home in time to help Zyla finish her homework and pack her up for her set day the following day.

Zyla had to be on set at 8:30am Tuesday.  We drove over to CBS Radford and parked in the far parking structure since it's closest to Parks n Rec stages.  I usually never take the elevator but since we were on the 5^th floor of the parking structure Zyla wanted to.  Unfortunately, as the elevator descended, it started flashing ‘out of order'.  By the time we got to the first floor the doors would not open.  I pressed the button to go back up to level 2 thinking maybe we could get out there, but no.  I pressed the alarm, which sounded, then pressed the emergency call button.  I told them we were stuck in the elevator.  Thankfully there was a window to see outside and a guard came over and waved to us in the elevator saying help was on the way.  It took about 15 minutes for them to pry us out of the trapped situation.  We walked over to the MPR 1 building then took another elevator to the basement where holding was.  We still arrived early.  Breakfast was being served so Zyla and I both had poached eggs.  Afterward the children went to set school for 3 hours then we were shuttled down the street to location at some clothing store.  We sat in the room next door to set all day until it was lunchtime.  I wasn't sure what the space was used for, but it was only half finished.  The walls had exposed pink fiberglass, there was broken pieces of wood swept up in a corner, the florescent lights were out in some places, it looked like someone had vacated the premises next door to this clothing store of business where production was filming.  Video village was set up in the room at one end, tons of grip and electric carts were around us.  We grabbed folding chairs from outside and brought them in and found places to sit.  Crafty set up in the back of the room.  Production was running behind because casting sent two younger boys and the scene called for older boys.  So a rush call went out for older boys and our scene was put on hold.  Lunchtime came and we shuttled back to the stages to eat.  They had great food and great desserts for the kids.  We shuttled back to location and sat around all day in the make shift holding.  All the chairs we had been using were lined up in rows in the center of the room, facing the empty wall, as if maybe a movie might be projected on it for us to watch.  Zyla made new friends, played on her ipad and ate lots of great food, but along with about six other kids they did not make it to set.  She was a little upset about that, but it happens, sometimes they hire too many BG.  At least she got paid overtime and had a fun easy day.  I made friends too with a number of the mom's who were there.  We were shuttled back to the stage right at the 9 ½ hours mark when we had to be wrapped out, but no one was there to sign us out for another 20 minutes.  I wasn't too upset about it, considering they came in apologizing for the delay and that the kids had to be signed out first.  She hadn't been overworked or gone into a meal penalty and starved like when we did Touch so I did not make an issue about the delay.  We arrived home to Ed making us steak dinner.

Wednesday morning there was a rush call to the Parks n Rec set.  Zyla passed on it.  I had heard it was a really big casting call, like 60 kids, and around 300 adults.  Since we had just spent all day there yesterday she was ready to get back to school to make up what she missed.  I ended up back at the dentist to finish the intensive cleanings before picking her up.  Whitney was airing double back-to-back episodes for the first time.  February had been a hard month for the shows ratings, but they were on an up trend and I was hoping this new strategy would bring in higher ratings.  I found out my episode would be airing in two more weeks. 

Thursday I was back in the school library, alone with the kids.  They behaved better than usual, and I did not have to send anyone back to class.  I had started coughing a bit, feeling like the flu was coming on, so I decided to take it easy the rest of the day.  Friday, Zyla had no school, so we worked on her science faire report and she helped clean up the house to finish her service hours required for school.  Kids Management called with a job on The Mentalist for Monday.  Zyla did not want to miss Monday since it was free dress day at school and they always get the most homework that day, so we passed on the job.  Saturday, Zyla was having a sleep over with her friend Clarissa at our house and taking her to the Cheesecake Factory to celebrate Clarissa's birthday.

By Monday morning, I was glad Zyla had passed on the job because I was not doing well and had to go in to see a doctor.  I was wheezing and coughing more than I could handle.  The doctor said I had pneumonia and gave me antibiotics, an inhaler and cough medicine.  She told me not to go back to work for at least a week, so I booked out with Jessica's.  Kids Management kept calling every day all week for job opportunities for Zyla.  Because my meds made me tired I missed the call for Zyla to do Dexter by two hours and when I called in it was already filled.  On Friday, I managed to book her on a new Fox pilot called The Gabriels to work on Saturday.  Zyla was excited to make money and not have to bring schoolwork to set.  Ed ended up taking her since he missed taking her to set and hadn't done so since last summer.  Zyla was chosen to be featured with a tight close up in the classroom scene she acted in.  Everyone on set knew her name as the director gave her notes on what he wanted out of her performance.  Ed watched from video village behind the director and was a very proud papa when she pulled off everything perfectly.  Everyone loved Zyla and she was the star of the day! 

The last movie of the Twilight saga was finally available on Netflix.  I had waited to see Breaking Dawn until I could have both part 1 and 2 at the same time.  Zyla had never seen the first three movies in the series, but jumped right in watching the last two with Ed and I.  I really enjoyed them and felt drawn to read the novels I had passed on until now.  Another amazing movie I watched while sick at home on Netflix instant, was called @Suicide Room.  This powerful, dark Polish foreign film was unexpectedly amazing; I simply loved it, the acting, the animation, the storyline, brilliantly done by director Jan Komasa.  Sunday, we printed all of Zyla's Science Fair information to glue to her display board, her project looked very professional.  The results of her project proved women were better at remembering and learning information than men, which of course we already knew.  It also showed that adults remember better than children.

The following week, I booked out of Jessica's again because I just wanted a little more time to feel 100% after the pneumonia episode.  I stayed home mostly watching movies and reading Twilight.  One movie that stuck with me was Trust.  Wow, this movie was intense about the reality of online child predators and the lengths they go to get our children.  It was rated R, so I did not know if I was going to let Zyla watch it, but I wanted her to have the information since she is online and the dangers out there are very real in this new generation that is growing up with the Internet.  I explained the entire story to her, which only made her want to watch it first hand.  She brought home her 2^nd trimester report card, again getting straight A's!  We were very proud of our hard working daughter and how serious she takes her education.  I don't think I did that well in Junior High and was amazed by my daughter's ability to juggle Honor Roll, with performance on movie, tv sets and in gymnastics, along with creating her drawings of art, I was the mother of a very talented little girl! 

Keeping with our Stanley Kubrick theme, and still anticipating our visit to the LACMA for his exhibit on all his films, Ed and I watched The Shining.  I forgot how scary it was, and at first did not feel it was that bad, but by the end of the 2 ½ hours I remembered that the movie freaked me out.  What brilliant performances he pulled from his talented actors, and the music was perfect.  I think The Shining and Misery are my two favorite Steven King books made into films.  While watching the movie, my guest star appearance on Whitney was airing.  Ed posted it to his Facebook page so anyone with a TV signal could help my episode with its ratings.  I was pleasantly surprised when I went to the NBC official Whitney page and found my picture there!  The Show night picture of all the stars of Whitney coming out to bow to the audience for episode ‘Crazy, Stupid, Words' and of course there I was in my American Horror Story T-shirt, since I hadn't know previously I would be running out with them for the curtain call!  Ed posted up the picture on his Facebook page along with a bunch of shots the crew had taken of me that day and sent to my email.  Everyone was leaving comments on his page for me, I felt famous.  I had not updated my website in over a year, since I still had confidentiality agreements and could not post everything yet.  But I chose to update with the Whitney show information of my episode along with some pictures since it had just aired and would be playing for free online at NBC.com for the next few months. 

Thursday, I was back in Zyla's school library earning my service hours.  Well, technically I had already earned them all, but they needed me and the kids were familiar with me so I still went in.  The other mom, Denise, was there to help out, saying last week when I had been out sick the boys had been crawling on the floor barking like dogs.  Just then the 3^rd grade came in and a group of boys dropped to the floor to start this new dog game.  I put a stop to it and reminded them we were in the library, not the playground and they could go back to class if they did not want to quietly look at books.  Later some of the boys ripped out a section of the dictionary on sexual intercourse, but no one would fess up to who actually did it.  By then it was time for them to go back to class.  Zyla brought home a new service hours worksheet to be filled out for the third trimester of school.  I was upset, I thought she only had to do it for the 2^nd trimester.  It had been such an ordeal figuring out what she would do every week for service for the past 12 weeks and now I had to figure out what she would do every week for the next 12 weeks to get the thing filled up again.  Thankfully there were beach clean ups for Heal the Bay and some other volunteer opportunities emailed to me to help me not get stressed out about it.

Late Thursday night after Zyla had finished all her homework, wouldn't you know it Kids Management texted saying they needed rhythm gymnasts for a new NBC pilot called ‘About A Boy'.  It was working the following day and on Monday.  I asked Zyla if she wanted to go, but she seemed like she was conflicted.  She would be missing a spelling test, and did not have a lot of her homework to do on set for two days.  I reminded her that Monday would probably not be a big homework day considering they were about to go on Easter break and mostly she was just gearing up for end of unit tests before the holiday.  She deliberated about it, finally choosing to go with the opportunity and I called in and booked her the gig.  Thankfully it was a late call time of 2:30pm on Friday so she could sleep in.  She actually wanted to go to school since she would be out by 1pm, but that was against Child Labor Laws, to do double school and we were told that any child doing that would be sent home from set, no pay.  Her location was Universal Studios.  I was excited to be taking her there for her first time.  Her friend Lauren's mom called to ask if Zyla could come to a last minute birthday party dinner at the Universal Studios City Walk Friday evening.  I told them Zyla would be working on set, but if she finished in time we would make the party.

Friday morning I woke up same time as usual, but Zyla slept in for a bit.  I had emailed her teacher about what she should do on set and she had enough things that it would be ok, not going into the school to get more.  She had three test to study for, a book report book to finish reading and a final draft of an essay to write.  Zyla needed to earn a service hour and had never cleaned out the snake cage, so I assigned her that.  We went to the pet store to get Roseblood her rat, some new fluffy Desert Snow bedding and a bigger water bowl that she could swim in.  Zyla cleaned out all the old Aspen wood chips and spritzed down the cage with Healthy Habitat before we dumped the fresh clean Desert Snow in.  Roseblood had been agitated for a week that the wood chips were dwindling and she couldn't bury herself properly or immerse her growing body in the tiny water bowl.  We put her rat in her cage then put her back in.  She did not seem interested in the rat at all, which was rare.  Instead she just slithered around checking out the clean fresh cage.  Then she started going underground which is what she likes, finally finding her new water bowl and discovering she could take a bath in it.  This seemed to cheer her up and invigorate her to then go eat her rat, which she bit through its brain, then squeezed to death before inhaling.  All was back to normal.  Zyla and I had some sushi lunch I had picked up at Ralphs, then it was time to go to set.  We pulled up to the guard gate and I presented our ID's.  Got our drive on guest passes, parked in the structure.  I was told by production and the guard gate that stage 43 would be right outside the parking structure but it was not.  A friendly guard we found told us it was a 5-minute walk down the way, and usually they had shuttle vans provided, but not today.  Zyla and I saw signs for The Mindy Project so I texted my friend Zack who stands in on it to say hi.  I had figured out why his show wouldn't let Zyla work since she was 12 years old but only in 6^th grade.  The TV pilot we were working on today had the same rule but let the parents say whether it needed to be enforced.  It primarily was so kids could come at a later call time.  If you child is 6^th grade or lower they must do set school by 1pm.  If they are 7^th grade and above they can do set school in the afternoon.  I had agreed to let Zyla do set school at her 2:30pm call time when I booked her on About A Boy.  Zack was on the lot, said things were tense on his set and congratulated Zyla on her gig.  One of the tourist trams drove past Zyla and I as we made our way to the stages.  It ended up being one of the Parenthood stages I had sat in before when I worked that show a few years ago!  I thought we must be in the wrong place, but we went inside and found a quiet little group of adults and kids waiting to check in.  We were a half hour early so it was all good.  Got Zyla's voucher, then we waited until 2:30pm for her to start her homework.  While Zyla did her set schooling, I started reading the next book in the Twilight series New Moon.  The kids were only holding at Universal to do their set schoolwork.  After the required 3 hours, we were told we would be shuttling to set at the Walter Reed Middle School down the street where we would remain the rest of the night.  But before we went, they brought in sandwiches calling it our lunch.  At the 2 hour break mark of set school their had been a bag of chips passed around with not enough for all the kids and Zyla had not gotten a snack.  I had a premonition to pack some snack foods but Zyla had not wanted me to.  Since most productions are so good about having abundant food, I forgot what a low budget pilot could be like.  When the sandwiches came, we lined up fast and each got half a sandwich, some salad, chips and a cookie.  On any other set this would be considered a snack from crafty, but on this set, they told us write in on the voucher we had lunch.  I was like, oh this is going to be a long night.  If they claim that as lunch we will be here until midnight.  They ran out of food before everyone had gotten some, and had to order more.  While waiting for the extra food to arrive, everyone who ate was shuttled to set.  Wardrobe dressed all the specialty acts, such as Zyla, playing the rhythm gymnast who got a Dexter pea-green leotard and purple pink dance pants.  At first she was not thrilled with the green leo, but later the four rhythm gymnasts were given ribbons to twirl and the girls started playing and having fun in our holding in the cafeteria of the school.  I remembered when I had been in holding at this school before when I worked as a stand in on Parenthood last summer and then shuttle to set at Republic of Pie.  I took lots of pictures of Zyla in her costume while we were in holding.  As the evening wore on we were told the BBQ grill right outside our holding would be grilling up burgers and hot dogs all night and we could eat as soon as the crew went through.  The only food we had in holding was water bottles and a sad display of cheap snacks.  The PA's came in saying they were going to shuttle parents back to Universal to get their cars and bring them to the Middle School so we could just wrap out there.  I had never heard of this before.  Letting parents who are supposed to be within eyesight of their child at all times on set, being shuttled a mile back to set, then asked to take a map and find their way back to their children.  I had not seen any of the set teachers from when we had been at Universal, to ask if this was legal.  They told us all the parents could not go at once and to ask another parent to watch your kid while you were gone.  I did not make the first wave of parents to get their cars.  As they returned, I made the second van back to Universal and told Zyla to just stay with her group of girls doing the gymnastics.  The van driver pulled onto the Universal lot and hit a speed bump way to fast bouncing me along with everyone sitting with me in the back to the roof of the van.  I hit my head hard and felt like I had gotten whiplash.  We were all very upset.  I found my car and drove back to set.  Thankfully I had been there before and knew my way because they ran out of maps to give us.  One fellow said he got lost and did not make it back for almost an hour.  It was his first time doing this sort of thing with his grandson and I assured him it usually never goes like this.  I asked the PA if we could have the burgers yet since it had been about an hour and a half since crew went through.  He said no.  Crew still was not done going through, but he would let me know.  Then the 1^st AD came in to tell us what our kids would be doing in the scene.  I immediately recognized Franklin Vallette from back in the day when he was my 1^st AD on Head of the Family!  I couldn't believe it and went up to him to confirm since he had grown out this huge white beard and looked a little different from almost 20 years ago.  But his voice gave him away and his good nature and he remembered me from the Full Moon, Charlie Band days.  He worked on a number of sets with me back then, including Femalien, Demolition High and Lolita 2000.  He came over to meet Zyla and showed us pictures of his beautiful daughters.  Finally Zyla and all the kids went to set at 10:30pm.  After they went to set we were told we could have burgers finally.  I ran out to get one and heard someone yell my name.  I turned around and it was Brian, the stand in for Chris from Whitney!  What a small world!  He was standing in for David Walton, who he regularly stood in for on many projects.  I told him Zyla was working on set, so he went in to say hi to her.  I got my burger and went back into holding.  Later Brian came to tell me, that Zyla remembered him from Patti's beach party.  A PA came in to announce that one of the children on set had been upgraded.  Then all of a sudden the fire alarm sounded.  They had us all stand and file outside like a real fire drill.  Of course there was no fire and moments later they got the alarm under control and we returned to holding.  Then it went off again, but we just stayed in holding.  One more time it went off right before midnight.  I found out from Zyla that there was smoke being blown on the set and that's what kept setting it off.  They were shooting in the school's auditorium.  Zyla finally got wrapped about 10 minutes to midnight so she could change out of her clothes, get her voucher and be signed out right at the 9 ½ hours mark.  I almost forgot her backpack in holding, she ran in to grab it, then we walked over to my car and drove home.  She was due back to set Monday morning at 6:30am.  Ed was going to take her and Brian said his wife, Heather, would be there playing BG for the turn around shot of what the kids had been filming that evening.

Saturday I was up early, out of habit.  Zyla slept in until 9am, then had breakfast and got ready for gymnastics.  Ed took her shopping for new hiking shoes for our Easter Break Road Trip while I took a little nap.  Around 5pm, I headed out to Woodland Hills to meet Shanna at Maggiano's.  She wanted to take me out for my birthday and this was the first weekend I was finally available.  As I exited the freeway Kids Management texted that Zyla's call time had changed to 5:30am for Monday and I had to call back and confirm.  I called to let Ed know.  The food at Maggiano's was amazing.  First we sat in the lounge ordering some wine before being seated at our table.  I had never been here before so the menu was overwhelming with all the choices.  Shanna said all the pastas were amazing, so I went for the specialty pasta Mushroom Ravioli with Braised Veal.  Simply divine!  For dessert we shared a Tiramisu and our waiter brought me out these half moon shaped lemon cookies with candles in them for my birthday.  I ended up taking those home to share with Ed and Zyla.  I brought along Twilight to return to Shanna, who had lent me all the books in the series.  The ambiance reminded me of Carthay Circle Lounge at Disneyland California Adventure, the old time, 1920's feel.  I had a wonderful evening and thanked Shanna for sharing my birthday with me.  When I got home, Ed and I watched Stanley Kubrick's Lolita.  I had not seen this version, only the 1997 version with Dominique Swain, which I loved.  Stanley's version was a MGM production being shot in the 1960's, so it had the feel of old Hollywood.  It was 2 ½ hours long, which I always expected from Kubric.  It seemed really tame compared to the R rated version of the 90's.  It was not rated, but Netflix said it was iffy for 15+ so we did not let Zyla watch it. 

Palm Sunday!  Zyla needed to alter serve since it was the 6^th grade weekend.  We were all ready to go to church in time for the 11:30am Mass.  Afterwards, we came home for lunch and a naptime.  I was just so tired after the past two late nights, and never felt like I could catch up on sleep.  I woke up around 6pm and fed Zyla dinner.  We all needed to go to bed really early since her call time was so early the next day. 

Monday morning in the wee hours of predawn I woke up at 3am to make some coffee.  Ed got up 15 minutes later to join me.  I woke Zyla at 4am and made her breakfast.  She did not want to get up.  I packed her a sandwich and lots of snacks for set, since last Friday the food there was non-existent.  Ed and Zyla headed out to Universal Studios at 4:40am getting there in time to park and get the shuttle bus over to the Walter Reed Middle School.  After checking in, Zyla went straight to wardrobe.  Holding was in a huge tent, since there were so many more BG playing in the audience scene.  Ed saw Heather and Brian and said hello.  He was able to go into set and sit in the audience section behind video village and watch filming commence seated next to the director and other principal actors.  I spent the rest of the morning printing out our directions for the road trip, doing laundry, getting an oil change and reading New Moon.  My car needed a few other fixes as I was at 100,000 mi and getting ready for a big road trip, so I took care of those as well.  I texted Brian on set to say hi to Franklin for me.  I wanted to show Franklin this funny Polaroid picture I had of us on set of Femalien back in the day that he had autographed to me.  Brian suggested I scan it and email it to him, then he could show Franklin on set.  So I did.  Brian said Franklin loved it!  Then Brian introduced Franklin to Ed and they got to talk for a few minutes on set during some rare down time.  The communication was not the greatest and from Ed's angle in the audience section, he could not see that Zyla was no longer on the stage or set.  I texted him that it was almost Zyla's lunch time and he needed to find her.  He asked Brian where she was.  She had been at set school most of the morning, finishing her math homework, book report book and studying for her spelling and religion test.  She had wondered where Ed was since he was not in holding.  They found each other and went to a big catered lunch.  I was happy the show was feeding everyone this time, Ed even said they had a catered breakfast even though we were told come having eaten breakfast.  After lunch Zyla went back to set.  Ed, along with the parents, was told to come into set too and sit off camera in the audience section.  I guess the show ran out of BG to use and asked if any of the real parents wanted to be in the scene.  At first Ed said no, but then they asked again on a close up of Minnie Driver playing Fiona the mother of Marcus.  Benjamin Stockham was playing Marcus and Zyla hung out with him most of the day on the stage set, talking and laughing.  Zyla ended up getting wrapped while Ed was in the middle of doing the shot and she had no idea.  Since she could not find him she asked a PA where he was and he brought her to set asking if she belonged to anyone.  Everyone thought he was joking.  Then an announcement was made where Ed was in the auditorium that parents of minors needed to wrap their kids out, so he left the shot to go do that.  They were home by 4pm and Zyla was able to study for her big history test since I had gone to the school and picked up her History study guide and notebook.  Afterward we went to eat at Granada.

Tuesday I got Zyla off to school along with her Science Faire Project.  Ed and I went to celebrate the last of his 40^th birthday gifts.  I had gotten us tickets to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Stanley Kubrick Exhibit.  So we had a nice date day at the museum, perusing through all things Kubrick.  I loved looking at his films from behind the scenes.  There were personal letters, one from Sue Lyon almost 30 years after she starred in Lolita.  Scripts, with hand written changes, props, wardrobe, and a whole section on one of his films he put a lot of time and energy into then abandoned The Aryan Papers.  This was to be his Holocaust film, but with Spielberg releasing Schindler's List, and his growing depression about the subject matter it was abandoned.  The exhibit had an amazing room of mirrors with the actress Johanna ter Steege talking about how she worked with Stanley on her character and movements for camera in pre-production for the film that never was.  Ed took a lot of pictures while we were there.  With so much to look at and observe we spent almost two hours wandering around the exhibit.  I had no idea Stanley had been married three times and all his wives had worked in his films.  The exhibit made me want to rewatch Kubrick films with my deeper insight of his projects!  Afterwards we drove back to the Valley and ate at Sushi Dan's before picking up Zyla from school.  She had a successful day getting A's on all her tests and Science Faire report and presentation.  I was happy for her!  And since they were about to be on Easter Break she had no homework to make up from the days she had missed and no homework for the next day or her break!  We came home and found a package had been delivered to us.  It was from Ed's mom who mailed us the movie The Staircase.  We had dinner then sat down to watch the miracle of Loretto.  We would be seeing this staircase while visiting my friend Sonia in Santa Fe and wanted Zyla to see the true story behind the chapel spiral staircase that was built over 100 years ago. 

Wednesday morning I woke Zyla up to get ready for her last day of school before the Easter break.  Thankfully it would be a half-day for her, since we needed to pack up my car and get ready to go on our Road Trip!  I had to turn down about six job offers from Kids Management because we would be gone on our road trip, including a pilot Zyla was picture picked for.  Ed and I went to Zyla's Science Faire being held in the Social Center of the church for the first time.  Usually it was in the cafeteria, but this was much nicer.  Then we brought her home, packed up the car and fell asleep early.

Thursday morning I got up around 3:30am, made some coffee.  I was excited for our big adventure into the desert.  Ed got ready and when we were about to walk out the door I got Zyla up so she could just fall back to sleep in the car.  It was dark out, the full moon waxing just a bit.  We headed east down the 210 freeway under the cover of night praying our morning Rosary.  We stopped for some breakfast right before the Arizona boarder in Needles.  Driving down the I-40 was desolate.  We truly were in the middle of nowhere, down the long desert road that flows across the country.  About 5 hours into our trip we all heard something bang up against the undercarriage of the car.  Ed thought I hit something in the road, but I had not seen anything.  Then my car started loosing speed and if I accelerated it just revved the engine.  I pulled off to the side of the Interstate, turning the car off.  When I started it again, it would just roll backwards.  I called AAA and was told it was probably my transmission and would have to be towed.  I was not exactly sure where I was, the last sign I had seen said I was an hour outside Williams.  Ed walked down the freeway to see what the sign up ahead said.  Markham Wash.  I was told a tow truck was on its way.  AAA suggested I be towed 80 miles back to Kingman where a repair shop was.  I called my hotel in Sedona and they said I should just be towed to Flagstaff and rent a car there since it was only 25 minutes from the hotel.  Ed and I did not want to backtrack so when Randy showed up we asked if he could tow us to Flagstaff.  He said he knew of a great Transmission specialist there and it would be no problem.  Watching my car be pulled up on the rig was surreal.  We all jumped in the big rig, which had a huge backseat where Zyla and I sat.  Ed sat in front.  It was going to be around an hour and a half drive to Flagstaff.  Zyla had forgotten her ipad in the car, Ed his video camera.  I just sat looking at my car, out at the scenery and comforting Zyla who had been very upset by the whole experience.  Ed then got a phone call from In It To Win It, the reality show his friend Noah was on.  Ed was supposed to be there as his support, but since we were on the road trip they patched Ed in by phone.  So as we drove down the I-40 Ed was on hold with production and then patched through to give encouraging words to his friend who was competing for a lot of money!  We arrived at the Transmission shop and I was told that if I needed a new transmission it could be ready by Saturday or maybe Monday or Tuesday.  They let us borrow a used car to drive to the rental car places down the street.  Enterprise was all out of cars, so we went to Budget next.  They had one car in, that had just been returned and not cleaned yet.  They gave me a discount since it was not cleaned yet and I took the white Dodge Charger off the lot and drove back to the Transmission shop with Ed following.  He returned the little car we had borrowed and we were told they would call us by 5pm.  I really hoped my car would be fixed by Saturday when we were leaving Sedona to go to New Mexico.  Since we had been ahead of schedule, this whole ordeal did not set us behind in time.  We drove down the winding wooded road from Flagstaff, entering the Coconino National Forest.  We found Oak Creek Terrace Resort, got the keys to our suite and settled in.  This beautiful location was nestled in the forest just outside downtown Sedona.  We took a walk outside our room, down to the river to relax in the hammocks there.  Around 5pm we got ready for Mass.  It was Holy Thursday, the first day of the Easter Triduum.  I had read online that St. John Vianney suggested wearing white and bringing a flashlight and bell with you to Mass this day.  My phone had no signal so I called the Transmission shop from the hotel phone and found out that we were really lucky!  My transmission plug/cap had fallen out and they had one to replace it meaning my car was working perfectly fine and we could pick it up anytime.  After everything, we decided to just wait to get it on our way out of Sedona before heading to New Mexico.  Ed was having too much fun driving the rental.  We had dinner at a tasty Szechaun place, then headed to the church.  During the Mass everyone was invited to remove their socks and shoes to have their feet washed.  We all took part in the blessing.  The bells were used during The Gloria, it was really magical hearing all the bells ringing, and I had brought my grandmother's bell that I let Zyla ring.  At the end we all quietly walked out past the Blessed Sacrament into the night.  It was really dark outside so that is why flashlights were encouraged.  When we got back to the hotel, I filled the Jacuzzi bathtub and we all took turns relaxing in the bubbles.  Then in our pj's we all walked down to the river to sit under the stars in the hammocks and listen to the night sounds.  I played with my green glowing light saber I had gotten at Disneyland.  Ed tried to film but it was really dark. 

Good Friday morning I awoke early.  I showered, then went down to the river to pray the Rosary while laying in the hammock watching the sun rise over the mountain.  The birds were chirping in the crisp morning air.  Ed and Zyla woke up and I went to the front desk to get her a fishing pole.  Ed tried to teach Zyla how to fish, which she was excited to do until she found out that it can take hours to catch anything.  At noon we found ourselves in the Chapel of the Holy Cross, an amazing sanctuary built into the Sedona rocks, where the choir from St. John Vianney were to sing the seven last words of Christ.  The cellist music was breathtaking bringing me to tears.  I sang along with the Latin and English words.  Afterwards we drove 10 minutes away to Bell Rock, which is a natural energy vortex of Sedona.  We hiked up the rock taking pictures, then I pulled out my crystals.  We all took turns lying on the ground with the crystals placed along the chakras absorbing the energy.  The view from the top looked out over the Sedona land of reds that pulsed with life and inspiration.  It had been 14 years since Ed and I had been here, I was fulfilled to share the experience with him again as well as bringing Zyla into it.  I felt like I was in the flow of the Universe, God pulsing through me, leading me on His path of Illumination.  The Good Friday service at St. John Vianney was starting at 3pm, so we headed over to the church early to walk the Labyrinth that was set up inside.  Spiritual soothing music was playing while we entered the Labyrinth with our prayer intensions and walked the spirals into the center and out.  During the service everyone was asked to remove their socks and shoes again because we were standing on Holy Ground as the cross was brought in.  We all approached the cross barefoot to kneel and kiss it at the alter.  For dinner we headed into downtown Sedona to Cowboy Club, then walked around the shops and art galleries.  Back at the hotel, we all took turns again in the Jacuzzi bathtub.  Ed found The Walking Dead was on TV and playing the next two episodes we had left off on! 

Saturday morning we packed up the car and checked out.  We prayed our morning Rosary as we drove back to Flagstaff, picked up my car and returned the rental.  Back on the I-40 heading toward New Mexico, I was nervous because of the scare we had gone through before.  I was always listening for any sound that my car might break down again.  But everything was fine.  We entered New Mexico, stopping in Gallup for some lunch at Cracker Barrel.  Sonia called saying they were in Albuquerque for her son, Jamaica, who was rehearsing for a movie he was cast in.  It was called Things People Do, starring Wes Bentley from The Hunger Games who would be playing her son's father in the movie.  She wanted to know if we wanted to meet there for dinner.  Since we had just ate, and only 2 hours away, I said we could just meet up with them back at her house.  I forgot about the time change in New Mexico and did not realize it was an hour later.  Some random woman came up to me and sat down next to me while I was on the phone outside the restaurant.  She wanted money, saying she was had not eaten in three days and was homeless.  I had no cash but offered her our corn bread, which she turned down, saying she wanted hot wings instead.  I did not feel right about the situation since she kept pressing for me to give her money so I got up and brought Zyla back inside the restaurant.  We continued down the I-40 until we hit the I-25 then headed north to Santa Fe.  Ed texted Sonia to let her know and she said they were just leaving Albuquerque and would find us on the freeway.  A few minutes later, she pulled up next to us and we followed her car back to her home in Santa Fe.  Zyla had fun playing with Sonia's four children, Zion, Lillian, Jamaica and Kingston, while Ed and I relaxed.  I had not seen Sonia since last year when her family had made a road trip out to Los Angeles.  We all went to her friend's house for dinner, where I had stayed with Sonia when Sonia was house sitting for them 8 years ago and I had come out to Santa Fe for her daughter, my goddaughter Lillian's dedication in the church.  Her friend was actually her kids' agent Jody Black who co-directed A&M Talent House.  She wanted to have Zyla read for a role in a movie being shot in New Mexico in May.  Zyla passed on it because she just wanted to have a fun vacation and not learn lines and perform.  Their dog had just had puppies that were the cutest things ever.  We drank wine enjoying the company.  At one point after searching the house for hours, Jody asked me to call AAA because she was sure the keys to her car had been locked in the trunk.  When AAA showed up, the kids confessed they had played a trick on us and hid them in the couch cushions. 

Easter Sunday, I woke up at 4:30am, not realizing my phone had adjusted to the time change, I thought it was 5:30am and started showering, getting ready for church.  Ed got up after me and got ready too.  Half awake, he sprayed his cologne on twice filling the house with its fragrance.  Sonia's other houseguest Rodger woke up to the scent and was really upset.  While Ed and I were getting ready in the bedroom, the lights went off and the door closed.  We thought maybe it was a sign we should go back to sleep.  My eyes were burning so I lay down to close them.  A few hours later I woke up and felt much better.  Everyone in the house woke up and we went to The Vineyard church that Sonia's whole family attends.  It was a beautiful Easter service, then we had lunch at Sonia's brother Ronny's house.  The kids played games, egg hunts, egg tosses.  After, we all jumped in the cars and headed to Philippine and Gustave's house in Cordova.  It was near the shrine El Santuario de Chimayo which meant people making pilgrimages to the Holy dirt found there would be walking along the roads.  Because of this there were signs up saying ‘Watch out for Walkers'.  I thought that was funny because on The Walking Dead show, the zombies are called ‘walkers'.  As we drove the winding road, a sign up ahead said Gustave and we turned down their driveway.  As the sun set, the kids all ran to play in the big trampoline outside, while the adults took glasses of wine and walked down to the river, where hammocks were swinging in the trees.  The house was very artsy and a previous owner, Byzantine priest, had painted the interior with many icons covering the walls.  Philippine made artsy jewelry, clothing and paintings.  We scavenged through her creations and found a sparkling cool hair wrap of precious stones and beads that Zyla could clip into her hair.  Philippine wanted to use Zyla to model the piece for her upcoming show so Gustave took many pictures.  Sonia also fell in love with a piece that had feathers and looked amazing in her short hair, so they took pictures of her as well.  I bought the piece for Zyla, which had a magical spiritual feel to it.