Happy Mother's Day

On Friday Dave and I worked at Mason’s 7th grade Renaissance Faire. It was really neat, the teachers that organize this each year do a really great job. It is their intention that it be as authentic as possible, they even make it clear that if the kids do not put together a real costume (not a hoodie that says, “this is my costume.”), they cannot attend. My space was the pouches booth in the merchant’s row. They had pre-sewn pouches that the kids had to string twine through the tops and make a double closing draw string. I had two 7th grade interns in the morning, and two in the afternoon after lunch. The kids had to come early and get their training and then they had to help their classmates with the instructions to complete the task. There was a flower head-wreath booth, in addition to jewelry making, braided fabric belts, and embroidery. I was impressed with the games, stilt walking, real chainmail vendors, and jousting! See the photos, it was a really awesome event for everyone who attended. 

This was year 5 for Mason to be cooking at BerryFest. It was great because it wasn’t too hot, but the weather was nice enough that families wanted to be outside. Since it was Mason’s fifth anniversary, he demonstrated how to make strawberry cream and then showed the audience five different recipes they could make with it. The five recipes were, a parfait, little strawberry pies, a trifle, brownie cheesecake bites, and strawberry shortcakes. He sampled out the trifle that he made with the strawberry cream, fresh strawberries, old fashioned donuts, and whipped cream. It was really good! You can see a bit of his demo on my Facebook page, we did some of it Facebook Live. Oh, and another cool thing, Mason did his first radio interview to talk about BerryFest. They liked him so much, the host coming on after his interview asked him to stay and to do another interview. Not bad, I've always told him he has a face for radio! HaHaHa!

So my Mother's Day was pretty ideal, I slept in a little, I did a bit of light housekeeping, Dave brought me coffee and then Mason and I went to BerryFest. When we got home, we dropped Mason off to play racquetball and Dave and I went to Petes for a drink. After Pete’s, Dave made my favorite dinner, it seems it’s becoming our traditional Mother’s Day dinner, barbecue crab, steamed asparagus, a lobster cake, and a cocktail. Mason finished it off with a strawberry shortcake zested with lime and he added caramel. #SoGood.

Funny story, while eating dinner on the patio an old country song came on, one of our favorites from the day and I grabbed Dave to dance with me. We were doing the horseshoe and Gunner was having no part of it! He was jumping on me and pushing Dave away from me as if to say, "No! She's mine!" We laughed, like that laugh that you share with few people in life. Magical, really, the stuff that makes life amazing. However, the morning did start with Mason being so eager to give me my gift that he was barely able to wait for me to finish shaving my legs! Happy Mother’s Day.

Mason on the Pat Walsh Show

That's A Wrap!

Grayson and Mason (don't mind the makeup residue)

Mason is done shooting the movie. This has been an epic experience on so many levels, mostly because Mason got to see that so many of the things I’ve been saying to him are true. I’ve shared with him how casting works, what producers and directors expect from talent, and proper etiquette through the casting process and on set. This shoot was not a big budget production, but it was big enough for Mason to note, “If this is how it is making movies, I want to make movies for a living!” I assured him there are all kinds of opportunities and sometimes the smaller productions offer more to new talent. I think that was true in this case. 

Even more interesting, Mason got to see what happens when talent behaves badly. I’ve worked diligently to impress upon him to be on time (early), to be willing to do whatever it takes, to listen more than he talks (we both struggle with that one), and to bring light and positivity to the set. Not only did we see someone “released” from the production, but we also met someone who everyone loved! Grayson Russell is a talented young actor (started at 8 and just turned 18) and to say he was a joy to meet and work with wouldn’t do him justice. You might know Grayson from his role as the young son of Ricky Bobby in Talladega Nights, or as Fregley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid films. He was just so polite, friendly, and genuinely interested in every one he met, including Mason. An amazing role model for sure! Good job mom, although I know, some of it is what we do, and some of it is the character of these amazing people we call our sons. 

This impressive and spooky castle is the location where Mason had the experience of a lifetime, Preston School of Industry in Ione, CA. We met amazing people, he got to do a stunt, he had to shave his head, and he got to be made up by real Hollywood makeup artists. I've expressed my gratitude every step of the way and I still feel like I need to say thank you a million more times. I know Mason will make more movies and I can't wait to continue this journey with him. He's a good kid and makes his dad and I proud every day.