My New Book!

Many years ago, when I had five children age 11 and under, I wrote my first book. It was based on hilarious and profound things my children would say, full of stories of life in the Baird house. 

Now, there are EIGHT children, ranging from age 5 to 19. You can imagine the conversations we have! There are plenty of quibbles about who should be first, or the lack of personal space in our house, but most of the conversations are just hilarious, silly, and oftentimes, charming.

My new book is full of stories of my family. You'll meet my children. You'll get a glimpse of our homeschooling life, and how we manage with only two bathrooms. Here's a sneak peak:

You may think that homeschooling eight kids is tough, but remember that with homeschooling, I don't need to drop off or pick up or deal with homework ("because it's all homework," my kids would say.)

And really, when my littles are simply following and doing what their older siblings are doing, may job's not tough at all! I  teach science, history, and foreign language to all the children, regardless of age. We truly do have a one-room schoolhouse!

But I have found over the years that not every child catches (or remembers) everything I teach. The younger children pick up a lot, but they don't always make the right connections. So just because we've covered geology or US history once doesn't mean that I won't have to teach it again in a few years.

Mom: Do you know what punctuation is?
Tovi: Yes, I know what it is!
Mom: What is it?
Tovi: It's when you have a ballon, like a blimp, and there's a hold in it, and the air comes out.

I couldn't figure out what Tovi meant until Arianna came in and said "Do you mean a 'puncture'?"

Looks like it's time for a short lesson in periods, commas, questions marks, and exclamation points.

You can order my book through Amazon. Just click on the link below!

From the Mouths of Babes ... and Teenagers

On Being Pregnant

I only realized today that I have never written about pregnancy. Probably because in the past, whenever I was pregnant, I was also trying to keep up with a toddler. And truthfully, I've never given much thought to pregnancy. I just accepted it "as is". Even now, if someone asks me how I'm feeling (6 months pregnant at this point), I usually just say with a smile, "Like I'm carrying a bowling ball in my stomach."

But my emotions are much more complex than that. It's a "bowling ball" that is depending on me for life. And so far, this baby is pretty mellow, so every other night I wake up in a panic, wondering if she is still alive because I hadn't notice movement since the afternoon.

And though I KNOW that I'm not "fat", I can't help but be self-conscious about how this "bowling ball" makes me look. Clothes don't fit like they used to. People say I look "glowing" and "beautiful", but most of the time, I don't feel like that. I'm tired. My legs and ankles ache. If I don't wear compression tights, the veins on my legs bulge (I apologize in advance for the gross imagery) like I have slugs and worms living under my skin.

Simply put, I don't feel like myself.

But then again, that's because I am NOT myself. I am, in fact, two people right now.

And maybe that's the whole point. These nine months before the baby is born puts me in a place of discomfort and inconvenience–to say the least–which forces me to be less self-centered. It's not all about me. Just as it will not be all about me when this child is born. Can I put myself aside during these months, before this tiny human arrives and I have to put myself aside even more? And for my husband–this is training time to care for me more as I go through nausea and pain and self-doubt. He is my encouragement, now and for the months and years ahead.

So rather than treating these months of pregnancy as a waiting period, impatiently whining and griping while the baby is "just growing", I can learn to enjoy this time as a period where God is growing ME. 

Surprises From God

I'll cut to the chase. We're expecting Baby #9 in October.

When I had my first prenatal appointment, the doctor asked what is now a routine question, "Was this a planned pregnancy?"

I said, "No, not exactly."

"And you plan to keep this baby?"

"Yes," I answered, when what I really wanted to say was, "HECK YES!" (pardon my language)

Before the baby was bigger than a grape, before we found out if the baby is a boy or a girl (it's a girl!), before I ever saw her wiggling on the ultrasound, I cared for this human.

My husband and I were not expecting another child. After all, I'm 44 years-old. My youngest is now 5. I had become really good at tracking my ovulation cycle, and then...

God surprised us.

And this all happened RIGHT BEFORE the opening of my musical. Not the best timing.

And yet, it was my musical that helped me wrap my head (and heart) around this surprise.

I didn't expect to get pregnant, just as I didn't expect to write a musical. And if I saw Five Children and It as a gift from God, entrusted to me to bring to fruition and share with the world, how much more can this child be a gift?! God surprised me with 3+ years of working on a musical, and if I said "No" to him at the start, I would have never experienced the joy that the musical brought me. And that is how I see this child. There will be years of work involved, but the joys will outshine the work.

Children, ALL children, are a gift. It sounds clichéd, but I must say it, because I hear parents, Christians and non-Christians alike, complain about their children. Some people (Christians and non-Christians alike) think I'm crazy to have nine children. They see children as a chore and an inconvenience. I admit that in my younger years, I would have been whining to God at this point, "How am I going to handle another one? When will I have time to do the things I want to do?" 

But children are people, and we need to fight the urge to think of the people in our lives as "inconveniences." Let us love as God loves us; we are God's children, and we are NEVER an inconvenience to Him. 

A Musical is Born! -Part 17- The End?

The cast recordings are not yet done. We spent 2 days–nearly 8 hours–in the studio getting every cast member on the recording. Now it's time to edit, balance, fix, and maybe add some instruments (everything was sung to piano only.)

And I still need to update the script, librettos, and all scores to reflect the changes we made in perfecting the show. I want to have the new scripts, scores, and recordings ready for another theater group. I would love for Five Children and It to live on on other stages. And I would love to see the other versions of it!

As I reflect back on the whole process, I am still in awe. I feel like the show was handed to me... I opened my hand to receive it, and there it was. Not that I didn't spend hours at the piano searching for the perfect "magic" sound, or restless nights working out a stubborn lyric in my mind, but I feel like the pieces came together so effortlessly. I can't really tell you how it happened! God gave me a mind that can solve musical/theatrical puzzles! Where I was doubting myself months ago (constantly asking myself, "Is this good? Will people like it?") now I know that I have a good sense of balance, pacing, and musical lines. Something I didn't know about myself a year ago! (which goes to show that life doesn't stop when you have kids or when you turn 40! There are always opportunities to learn and try something new. I say, go through those doors, especially when God is inviting you to do so!)

And I am still in awe of the community that came around me. This musical was like my heart on my sleeve. There was a bit of me in every character. All the "Lessons Learned" were lessons I had learned in my life, and hope that my children will learn. That was what I wanted to give the world–beautiful, Godly life lessons presented in a format that made it easier to digest. "A spoonful of sugar," as Mary Poppins would sing. I really wanted the show to be more than just entertaining. And everyone, from my artistic team members to the actors to the parents who worked behind the scenes, saw that too, and treated the musical like my newborn baby. I cannot thank them enough.

So what's next, besides all the work I still have cut out for me? Well, I have the first drafts of a script and songs for a new musical. I'm a little nervous about this one, because it's very different from Five Children and It, but I'm also so excited about. So back to step one for me! Writing, rewriting, a read-through, rewriting again... and maybe in a year or two you'll hear about the birth of another musical!

A Musical is Born -Part 16- The Shows!

Opening night was two weeks ago, and I am just now starting to feel normal. Our five shows were just THAT amazing, THAT emotional, and THAT exhausting! After spending 5+ hours at the theater every day for tech week, then spending 5+ hours at the theater every day for shows (including a back-to-back show on Saturday), plus the hour-long round-trip drive every day, I was done. But if I could have kept going at that pace, I certainly would have. It was just THAT magical.

Our tech week went as smoothly as it could have. After moving into the theater on Saturday and doing a rehearsal on the stage for the first time, we started adding elements.

On Sunday, we did a cue-to-cue rehearsal. This means adding any lighting cues, sound effect cues, or cues for the backstage crew. We worked out how exactly we wanted the show to start– do actors enter in darkness and we turn on the lights as the music begins? Or do we start with the lights and music and have actors enter? We went with the latter. This rehearsal can mean a lot of stop-and-go for the actors, because it's the stage manager's and director's first chance to work on timing and problem-solving. A show involves a LOT more than just the people on the stage!!

On Monday, we added costumes. This was wonderful because our Psammead (Sand Fairy) really got a chance to get into character with his whiskers, round belly, and furry feet. All other actors felt like they were from the time period. It was also their chance to practice dancing and moving in skirts and high heels. And it was also the time to practice any change of costumes required! For Act 2, we needed almost everyone in a soldier outfit, which they needed to get out of immediately after the scene. Some of these "quick changes" were not quite quick enough on the first day; that's why we give ourselves a few days to fine tune everything that needs to happen backstage!

On Tuesday, we added makeup. We require our actors to put on their own makeup before they arrive at the theater. Those needing special help (like when we did Beauty and the Beast in the fall) get help from our theater moms. Also, special mustaches, wigs, eyebrows, etc. are added at the theater. And we use lots of hairspray!! Any flyaway hairs can create a halo effect around an actor's head.

And throughout the week, we kept perfecting the show. The sound tech and I tried different configurations for the band so that we would have the best blend in the house. KW (the director) reblocked a scene that looked crowded on the stage. I threw out an unnecessary line (at the end of Scene 1) and changed an ambiguous lyric. Anything that we were not completely happy with, we found a way to make it better. And I saw the actors do the same! They were trying new ways to move in character and new ways to say their lines. I watched as they became more and more their characters with every run-through!

Wednesday was our dress rehearsal. Everything was in place, except for two things: 1) an actor sprained her ankle earlier in tech week and was slowly recovering, but we weren't sure if she would need crutches on stage; 2) illness had been plaguing us (no pun intended) on and off this winter, and two actors were sick for the dress rehearsal. We had two actors fill in with scripts in hand, and we were still able to go through the whole rehearsal. Everyone prayed that we would have a fully-healthy cast for opening night.

I was surprising relaxed on opening night. At this point, my job was mostly done. All I had to do was warm up the singers, lead them in a worship song, then conduct the band. The rest was up to the performers. I was so confident in our actors that I didn't worry about them at all. And we had ALL healthy actors that night! I KNEW that the show was going to be splendid. And I also knew that in the world of live theater, if something does go wrong, you just recover quickly.

And opening night was FANTASTIC! A few tiny things might have not gone as rehearsed, but I didn't even notice them! When I was conducting, I felt the music carry me away. When I wasn’t, I sat back and enjoyed every moment of the story. The audience laughed and cried and clapped and cheered. Many of them were not familiar with the story of Five Children and It, and they simply fell in love with the Psammead. The second, third, and fourth shows were the same. Every night, everyone gave their all. By Sunday's matinee, we had a sold out show!

I am so proud of my actors, and also proud AND grateful for everyone behind the scenes who made this show possible: sound tech, makeup and hair, costumes, sets, band, publicity, the directors and stage managers and everyone backstage. Without everyone's help, Five Children and It would still simply be words on a page. This two-hour production took an entire village and months of preparation. 

And like I said, I would do it all again.

But my job is not done yet. I will revise the script and scores to reflect the changes we've made in the show since November. And this weekend, we are recording an ORIGINAL CAST RECORDING!!!