Day Two Hundred Thirty

I think we've reached the point where I need to stare at the election results. just in case. They need me to stare at them. It's now my job. My staring is vital to the process.

So! Super short post with some random things:

1. Somebody asked for photos of Matilda lit up. Ask and you shall receive!

Matilda was put away for the year before the sun was up the day after Halloween. I miss her already.

2. I took the girls to the Pittsburgh Botanical Gardens the morning of Halloween mostly because I needed Mila to not make me insane with her endless "Is it time yet? How about now? Now?" It's still a great place to go with all of the COVID nonsense going on, even when the weather isn't perfect. I'm not just saying that because the girls wore their costumes, either. I'm saying it because instead of holding hands, Mila decided to hold her sister's tail most of the time.

It was magnificent.

3. Christmas Crazy is continuing to leave me kerfluffled. Y'all are the best. If you'd like to jump in on the phone, here's the wish list and here's the PayPal link. The sidebar total updater thing will be up and running this weekend, so maybe help it start out with a nice big number?

Day Two Hundred Twenty-Nine

Hello, wonderful people of the internet.

Yes, you.

We kicked off Christmas Crazy a little early this year because FTLOG THROW SQUIRRELS AT ME, PLEASE. I maybe need a distraction or two from the chaos that is this world. And, as luck would have it, so far y'all have sent 640 distractions.

Seriously.

Our one day total for Christmas Crazy is already up over $640. Even more impressive, there are already five packages waiting to be opened. I don't actually understand how that Amazon math works. I posted the links and less than 24 hours later packages were delivered, but yet some of the stuff I've ordered on prime has taken over a week to show up?

Craziness.

Regardless, $640 is a super impressive start. We still have a long way to go, but it's pretty great to be where we are so far.

So! More warm fuzzies, perhaps? Here's a few photos from previous years. We may not get the mountain pic in 2020 because of COVID making delivery a little different, but the goal is for that collective mountain to rival the 2019 mountain. Isn't it lovely?

2018 was pretty great as well.

Let's go make 2020 another fantastic Christmas Crazy story, mmkay?

Here's the wish list.

Here's the PayPal link.

Thanks for throwing squirrels my way.

Day Two Hundred Twenty-Eight

CHRISTMAS CRAZY LET'S GOOOOOOOO!

Hi.

Perhaps you are new here? If you are indeed new here, it probably makes sense for me to start at the beginning. Christmas Crazy is this wild thing that I've been doing for twelve years now. Yes, TWELVE YEARS. I happen to be a bit excessive with all things related to the holiday season, and making sure that local kids share in a little magic is one of those things that I get excessive about. For years, I've taken to this space and asked for help in this little quest. I ask for help getting toys for kids at Pittsburgh domestic violence shelters and the internet provides.

I don't ask why the internet provides. It's a weird bit of magic that I just admire from afar because I'm afraid I might jinx it if I gaze longingly at it too long.

ANYWAY!

It's time to do it again. Yes, we are indeed starting this much earlier than usual. The reason for that is 2020 is deeply stupid and has this little thing called COVID-19 making it stupider. I need more time for delivery and the back-end coordination of this whole thing, so we're backing up the whole show.

We will, once again, be helping Center for Victims. They do amazing things for people who are victims of violent crimes, including providing emergency and transitional shelter to the survivors of domestic violence. I am also working with a smaller agency that does the same sort of amazing work - we'll be helping them as well and more information is coming. Some of the magic of this whole thing is that we can shift things around to make sure we create the most joy possible.

So! Here we go! The Wish List is up on Amazon. More items will be added in the coming weeks, but there's a fairly good start already available. All items are delivered to one of my elves. We'll then sort and deliver every last item and then some because you should see the Christmas Crazy closet in my house. It's already well-packed. Big thanks to the super awesome people who helped to get us that head start.

The other way you can help is to throw a few dollars in the pot. Money mostly gets turned into gift cards, which in turn create last-second magic for kids who land on the doorstep of a domestic violence shelter in the days leading up to Christmas. Money is also used to get a few higher dollar items. Some past examples have included a laptop for a high school senior headed to college, gaming systems for common areas, etc. If you'd like to pitch in that way, here is the link.

Thanks so much for your help again this year. It truly makes the world a better place and it especially makes my world a better place.