Deciding to Rejoin "The Entertainment Biz"

I will never forget my first paying job in Los Angeles. I was cast in a movie called Getting Hal, starring Brad Rowe and Brian Doyle-Murray. I was cast as a Blind Skater because I knew how to ice skate. The director called me over and asked me if I would take on another role to be shot later in the day: as a Nurse. Jubilant, I agreed. Let's face it, though-- I was a featured extra. I was no one; just in the background. To tell you the truth, I never even saw the movie when it was released in 2003.

From there, I went on to do such television shows as ER, CSI, Malcolm in the Middle and Deadwood, among many others. I also can be seen in the movies America's Sweethearts, Not Another Teen Movie, Old School and more. It was fun while it lasted, especially since I was able to be a working actress and not have to do anything else. The people were great, the money was good, and I had a blast.

When I moved back to New York in 2004, I filmed one last movie and started doing regional theatre again. Theatre had been my initial passion before getting involved with TV and film. My then-boyfriend proposed in August 2004, we were married in 2005, and started trying for a family later that year. When things started to go amiss in the conception arena, my husband asked me to stop with the entertainment industry and focus on myself and our marriage. I agreed and worked on my travel business, among a couple of other things.

In 2007, we finally went through IVF and got pregnant with twins. Charles and Catherine were born in March 2008, and my travel business started doing quite well later that summer. I had done a couple of destination weddings, which whet my appetite for more.

In June 2009, I went on a familiarization trip to Beaches Turks & Caicos where I learned more about the destination wedding business. I came back totally recharged. I had already done a few destination weddings, but I had learned SO much more. I implemented everything I learned. Eager and energized, I started getting more business. Bu August, I had over 15 weddings on the books! It was awesome.

Then I realized that there were no television shows about destination weddings. There are shows about crazy brides, mothers who want to take over their child's weddings, amazing wedding cakes, weddings that cost over $250,000 and other wedding-themed shows, but nothing about destination weddings. I called a producer friend of mine and told her my idea to create one.

Long story short, she loved the idea. She brought it to another friend of hers, who also loved the idea. Between September 17 and October 26, I had been to Jamaica three times for four of the weddings that I planned. I was filmed non-stop. The show was supposed to be about the weddings, but things changed and it became about me and my relationships with the couples. The show even has my name in the title: Wedding Lane with Candy Cain. It is a far, far cry from a no-name Blind Skater in dark sunglasses that was so unnoticeable that she could double as another character in the same movie.

My decision to rejoin the entertainment industry is one of necessity, really. I would love to be a professional actress, but it isn't my dream. My dream is for my kids to be successful, and to have a solid path laid out for them. I believe that in order to do this, all of my debt should be paid off, and they should have a nest egg for each to at least pay for their college. My show will provide exactly that. Granted, I don't need it to survive. However, I do need it for a solid future for my family.