So I know everyone was excited to hear what happened yesterday and I only had time to write a short post and by the time I got to my room and ordered room service, which I really needed to do because Waylon was exhausted and I needed to give his meds and hook up his feeds, I was exhausted! Soooo, heres the scoop. We met our St. Jude representative and the other patient/tv star, Sam, who is 13 years old, and her mom Nicole Jones in the hotel lobby at 12:30, along with the photographer from St. Jude. I dont really know what I was expecting the studio to look like, but the outside was almost rundown/older and it seemed like we were in an alley. The inside was very industrial looking; nothing fancy at all. As we walked all the way to the back, we went through many different rooms or areas and along the way we passed 2 or 3 long tables filled with all sorts of food. Im talking lots of food! Once we got passed the set, there was a dressing room with a vanity and mirror. This, of course, had Sam and Waylons name on the outside of it. Next, there was the make-up and wardrode room. So for those of you who know me well, know I was most intriqued by this room because of all the make-up and make-up brushed that were laid out. And of course, in this room were the make-up artist and the wardrobe person. Beyond this room was the lounging area for the two stars :-) and their agents aka the moms...ha ha. In the lounging room, they had toys set out for Waylon and Sam. Naturally, Waylon was thrilled. Other than the lay out of the studio, there were people, equipment and cords everywhere; sound guys, camera guys, set guys, the stand in for Jennifer Aniston, the producer, the director and who knows what specific jobs the others had. The set was really neat with a basketball hoop and trees. In front of the set, there was a small room where we were able to watch everything on what I would guess was a 60 inch flat screen tv. And watching it was incredible. It looked like they were really outside! Before Jennifer arrived, we were instructed that we were on cell phone lock down and would not be allowed to take any photos of her. I was allowed to take the few photos I did of the back areas but none of the set. I think it was about 2:30 when Jennifer arrived and 3:00 when the filming began. The first commercial was the one with Sam and Jennifer and the director didnt want Sam or Waylon to meet her until on set to capture the excitement. Sam is also being filmed for a behind the scenes segment on Access Hollywood, although I suspect Waylon and even Nicole and I will be in some of the footage. In fact, I forgot to mention earlier that as soon as we arrived at the studio, there were camera crews following Sam and Waylon around, along with the sound guy holding the huge, long fuzzy microphone close to them to capture everything being said. It was overwhelming...in a really good, totally awesome experience kind of way! Just a few minutes after Sam and Jen began chatting, they called for Nicole to go on set. I was so excited watching them on the tv screen and just so anxious for it to be my turn. Sams commercial is 30 seconds and she has speaking lines and also shoots a basketball into the hoop. She did fantastic as if she was a pro! Im sure this experience is much more meaningful to her than it is to Waylon, so for her to be so grown up and so calm the entire day was very impressive. It took lots of takes to get everything perfect but watching everything unfold was surreal. The make-up artist and hair stylist for Jennifer would periodically pop in for touch ups. Once Sams commercial wrapped up, my heart was beating super fast because I knew I would be meeting my idol very soon. And yes, I do know this is about Waylon, but hey I may as well enjoy it too :-). I just prayed I didnt say anything stupid or trip as I walked up to her. Finally, it was time. Waylon grabbed my hand tightly and told me he didnt want to go on set without me, so we walked together. Once Jennifer Aniston and I were face to face, she shook my hand and said Hi, Im Jen. I was all smiles and said Hi, it is soooo nice to meet you. And then, it was all about Waylon and getting him comfortable and trying to make him smile. There was no time for chit chat because everyone is in a hurry and this is costing lots of money. Instead of going back into the viewing room, I stayed onset, next to the camera and the director kept putting paper over my face and pulling it away, like peek a boo, to make Waylon smile. So even though I was seeing everything first hand, I didnt really see what it looked like on tv. Oh yeah, and after Jennifer speaks, she leans in and hugs Waylon. He is sitting in a tall chair with her directly behind him. By the end Waylon was smiling great and having fun. After the commercial wrapped, I had the opportunity to tell Jennifer how honored I was to meet her and told her that she has always been the ONE celebrity I have always wanted to meet. She smiled and said thank you or something like that. I was so nervous that its all kind of a blur, but she also hugged me. Oh yeah and when trying to get Waylon to smile and hug Jennifer, I kept saying Daddy would love to hug her! Youre welcome Chris Malone :-). I will tell you that since I was so close to her, I had to examine everything about her and there were no wrinkles, her hair was amazing, her body was perfect and she looked absolutely the same as she does in the movies or tv or magazines. We also did a group photo of me, Waylon and Jennifer!! It will be sometime after the campaign airs before I can get a copy of it and theres a long approval process from Jennifer and her team before it will be released to me. Also, I wont be able to post it on Facebook, but I will have it for my own special memory, so dont be surprised if we have a huge party just to show off the photo...ha ha. I know this post is super long so I will try to quickly wrap up. After leaving the studio and getting back to the hotel, Waylon and I got in a cab because I really wanted to go to the Dash store, the store owned by the Kardashians. I know they are crazy and wild, but I totally love their hair and make-up and are facinated and intriqued by them even though they are pretty raunchy. Its a rather small boutique and really theres not a lot in there. And looking at some of the clothes, I dont think one of my legs would even fit into anything! But theres one thing that fits no matter what and thats lip gloss! So, I happily purchased some lip plumping lip gloss and a pen with bling on it and the Dash logo for me and one of my besties who also loves the Kardashians. Now it was time for Waylon to go to the Disney store since I had promised him that and he was really very good the entire day considering we got up early, walked around, went to to Ripleys Believe it or Not and then we were at the studio for hours. I think it was around 6pm when we left. So, he deserved to pick out a toy. Afterwards, we went to McDonalds for Waylon to get nuggets and then I opted for room service since it was already after 8pm and I knew Waylon was exhausted and not to mention, I needed to give his meds and start his feeds. Even though I was exhausted, I had to treat myself to a glass of wine and the food (grilled cheese with turkey, bacon and avocado and reggiano and garlic fries) was oh my gawd good. I couldnt stop eating the fries! This afternoon we fly back home and will get to relax and enjoy our family time before heading back to Memphis on Sunday.
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 16:32:49 +0000
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