430 PJs and Counting!!!

So this is truly incredible. In 5 weeks, I have 430 pajamas sitting in my living room. Since it is way past the 250 goal, I contacted 2 additional shelters to give pajamas to. They are confirming the number of children they have-and based on need, we will now have at least 4, maybe 5 organizations that will be receiving pajamas!

Since so many have come in, so quickly, I have decided to end the drive on December 18th. That way, all the children will be able to have pajamas by Christmas.

Some Jammie facts:

*Of the 430 I have, 80% are brand new
*39 pairs are adult sizes
*Disney and Carters are definitely the most popular brands
*I have over 20 pairs of SpongeBob
*One pair may have a bone hidden in it (courtesy of my dog Buddy). We could not figure out how all the stacks kept being messed up, until we saw Buddy snooping around. He seemed really upset when we straightened them back up, and has a tendency to hide his bones. The bone is still missing.

Cincinnati Enquirer

Have I mentioned how much I love the press??? Today the Cincinnati Enquirer ran a story about the pajama drive. Click here to see what they had to say.

Thanksgiving Article!

On this Thanksgiving, there is so much to be thankful for. What I have seen through this pajama drive, is that people are more aware then ever, what blessings they have, especially in this difficult economy. I give thanks to all of you who have supported this endeavor! We will be way over the 250 mark-come mid-December.

The drive did make it into the Dayton Daily Newspaper on Thanksgiving. Click here to see.

Have a great holiday!

I have a lot of pajamas in my living room!

So I have been quiet for a few days, but wanted everyone to know there has been a ton going on. I have had A LOT of pajamas come in. Some groups, like Wright State, (with the help of my good friend Jenny), organized their own drop-off site for a couple of weeks. The advantage of reaching out to so many different groups of people, is receiving a tremendous variety of pajamas!

Since the shelters needs vary greatly-we need pajamas from infant all the way to adult. Some people are still asking what I need the most of, and at this point (probably really close to 250 pajamas, and most likely going to be quite a bit over!)I need JUNIORS for GIRLS or BOYS. That is probably what I have the least of....

Here's a glimpse of what some of the pajamas look like...this is maybe half....each "stack" has 5 pairs piled high....and yes, I am a dork and have wrapped them individually with bows.

Shout-outs

So not that I normally do shout-outs, since this is a community effort, and would not be possible without tons and tons of people being generous and giving...that said, I am making an exception just this once for Pam who called me yesterday.

Here's the scoop. I was folding pajamas which is pretty much what consumes every free moment-that and rearranging once Anna messes them up for the 9 millionth time-and the phone rings. Like all good people, I don't answer, and stand by the machine, listening for who it is. When Pam (whom I do not know-even though now she is a bff) mentioned the pajama drive, I conveniently decided I was home, and decided to answer.

Pam said she had some pajamas, and had received some from some neighbors, and was asking how she could get them to me. These calls are few and far between in the land of fundraising, and so we agreed to meet yesterday afternoon. When I pulled up, I was thrilled to see I had my lady-as her trunk had all sorts of pajamas, not to mention some coats, shoes, blankets and all sorts of things. (NOTE: to everyone else please do not send me anything other then pajamas). That said-I was there, and so were all these amazing things-so I took everything. I sent a note to the three organizations yesterday and whatever "extras" (Other then the pjs) came in, will be split among who can use them.

Thanks so much Pam-and thanks also to Rick-who did such an amazing write-up-which always helps the cause.