More Crazy Because It Makes Me Happy

You guys. YOU GUYS.

I lurve you.

$3796.63. BAM!

We've still got a week to finish pulling everything together so that we can make Christmas fantastic for area children who are going through the unimaginable. I would absolutely love it if we were able to add another domestic violence agency to our shopping list. To do that, we need to pass the $5000 mark.

We're close. Let's get there.

Helping us get there is X Shadyside Health and Fitness. You may recall that last year they were a fantastic sponsor for Christmas Crazy, and they're back to do it again. This Saturday (December 1st), they will be holding their annual Class-A-Thon. Details are available on their blog, but the short of the long is that X Shadyside Health and Fitness will be collecting toys and gift cards for Christmas Crazy during classes all day on Saturday. It's a great chance to check out what is most definitely one of the best fitness centers in Pittsburgh and give a little love to some kids who could use it right now.

After the Class-A-Thon, X Shadyside will also be hosting their first ever Pinterest party. There will be recipe sampling, demonstrations, and all sorts of fun stuff as they make pins come to life.

I should probably try that trick sometimes. I'm all about pinning pretty things, but I rarely actually make the pins poof into reality.

Anyway.

Thank you all for your help in getting Christmas Crazy as far as you have, and thanks to everyone who will be helping in the home stretch.

Thank You to You Sunshine People

I should have predicted it, but I did not. It's not because I underestimated y'all, however. It's because you are constantly finding new ways to blow me away with your kindness and generosity.

We're already up over $3000 for Christmas Crazy. We've got a week left to go (I need to shut 'er down on December 5th), but we are in great shape at this point.

There are over 30 reasons we're already that far, and each and every one of you who have already donated are fantastic and amazing and I'm pretty sure you poop sunshine.

Thanks for that. The world needs more sunshine.

As everything starts to come together, I've been checking over the list that Center for Victims provided and making sure that some very specific dreams come true this holiday season. One person's generosity took care of every single item on the 16-year old girl's wish list, while another person took care of three kids in one fell swoop. Slowly but surely, little-by-little, it's coming together. We're making sure that kids who have had their worlds turned upside-down by violence are able to have a little sunshine and magic this holiday season.

Looking through that list, there was a theme. Time and time again, there was mention of "art supplies" or "craft kits" and the like. Bunches and bunches of little kids share a love of making things with their hands. I'm happy to report their wishes will be coming true in just a few weeks. It's happening because sometimes random boxes show up at my house.

Eight random boxes, each filled with toys sent by Orb Factory.

I didn't reach out to Orb Factory and ask for their help. Rather, they found me. I received an email a while back offering a donation. No strings attached. They didn't ask me to write about them or anything at all ... they simply wanted to help.

And help they did.

There are dozens of crafty-type toys in those boxes. There are sticker mosaic kits (Alexis wants that owl one in a very bad way), wall art kits, and even a bunch of Hero Kits.

Since the boxes of fun showed up at my house, I've pretty much fallen in love with Orb Factory. There are good people working there, that's for sure. I can guarantee that a toy or ten from them will wind up getting purchased for the short person in this house because she can stay busy for hours doing anything and everything crafty.

I love knowing that some kids who are living at a domestic violence shelter will get to be blissfully busy as well when they play with the toys that we're providing.

The donate button is in the sidebar. You know what to do.

Bieber Returns for Part Three: The Story

I feel like I've beaten the Bieber Thing like a dead horse at this point, but it turns out that I haven't actually written a single word about what may just go down as the greatest night in all of Alexis' life. I guess maybe that means I've just spent entirely too much time watching the video from when I gave her the tickets.

It's the words that go with the evening that make that video so very hysterical.

It started the night before the concert when I primed the kid for what was to be the biggest surprise ever. I asked her if she wanted to have a girls night out, to which she promptly replied, "Can we just stay home and watch movies?"

No, no we can't.

The fact that she asked should have been a hint that I was going to have to drag the kid out of the house kicking and screaming just two hours before the Bieber show was set to begin. She had no idea why I really wanted to go out for dinner with her, so she threw a monumental fit. There were tears and there was door slamming and generally the kid just wanted to stay home and chill out on the couch.

I tried to take a photo or two of her making her most miserable pouty face, but was met with her covering her miserable pouty face with her hands and saying, "No! You'll put it on twitter!"

And there's our answer to whether or not she understands the interwebs. Heh.

Eventually I managed to get her in the car. As we drove down the road, I tried to ask her where she wanted to go for dinner. "Anywhere! It's your choice! Pick anything!" I told her.

She replied by snidely throwing a few words in my face. "You can't make me pick!" she snarled. "And I talked back to you so now you have to ground me. Guess we better go home," she continued.

And there's our answer to whether or not she's too smart for her own good. YES. YES SHE IS.

Despite it all, I drug her to a suburban Olive Garden with the thought that we would be less likely to run into anyone headed to the Bieber concert there. I really didn't want the surprise to be spoiled, so I thought it wise to avoid any and all indications that he was in town. Who goes to Olive Garden anyway?

It turns out that very large groups of people headed to a Justin Bieber concert go to Olive Garden. It's true.

I have no idea how I managed to distract the kid away from wondering why we were surrounded by dozens of Beliebers, but I did. Then we dined on remarkably tasty fake Italian food right up until I handed her the envelope. While I'm mentioning that video again, I think I should point out that there is a very precise moment when Alexis remembered that she was in public and tried to tone down her reaction. She was all set to run and scream and be all sorts of screechy, but she calmly settled for her Bieber dance instead.

Self control. She has it. Sort of.

After the video evidence that she should always listen to me no matter what had been created, we piled into the car and drove to Consol. While there, there was screaming. There was dancing. There was chaos.

And there was a lot of happiness.

At the end of it all, I can honestly say that Bieber doesn't totally suck in concert. Big Time Rush was better (SERIOUSLY), but don't say that to Alexis because she will glare at you so hard you'll think she might be about to murder you in broad daylight.

Not that I would know. Ahem.

If you do happen to find yourself at the center of an Alexis death glare, just ask her what she thought of "Baby Baby." That will put her right back in her happy place. Bask in the glow that comes from the kid being in her happy place and then you'll know what it was like to arrange for her to have what she referred to as the Best Night Ever.

Sometimes this parenting thing isn't all that bad.