As you probably know, last year got gross when we had a few scammers show up and I considered just stopping the whole thing. Many of you offered to help this year but frankly there are already organizations who do this shit way better than us so instead of just chucking the whole thing I decided to do one more year of the miracle but instead we’d go back to the simple, small way that this started.
So, if you are struggling this year and you need help getting your child a present for Hannukau/Christmas/whateveryoucelebrate then I am ready to Santa Claus it up and drop one lovely toy at your doorstep.
To make it fair and easy for everyone I’ve selected about 100 different gifts that I’ll link to and if you need help this holiday then you can pick one gift for each of your children from that list to put on your wishlist. They’re all around $20-35 each and there’s stuff for babies to teens…art kits, book sets, dolls, science kits.
I always use the profits I make on affiliate links to buy toys for kids so that means that if you’ve clicked on one this year then you are the reason why I’m going to be able to buy toys for at least 100 kids this year. That is amazing and I’m so grateful. Thank you!
The wishlists will be posted in the comments so (as always) if you want to buy a present for a stranger you totally can. Or you can donate to Project Night Night, an amazing organization that provides a tote bag, book, stuffed animal and security blanket to homeless or displaced kids throughout the year. I just started today off with a $500 Project Night Night donation in you honor.
SO…if you want in on this you have to read all the directions and stick to the rules or otherwise you will be set on fire and pushed out a moving plane. Or just banned. Or maybe I’ll just delete you comment and look at you with that disappointed look your mom gives you when she knows you’re trying but are still fucking up. One of those. Here are the rules:
IF YOU WANT TO GIVE:
Okay, how do I do this?
You are my special angel. Just look in the comments and find someone who has an unfilled Wishlist. (If there’s nothing on their list it means their toy was already bought- yay!) Buy their present and make sure when you check out that you select their shipping address. (It won’t give you their full address but it’ll tell you the town you’re shipping it to.) If you try to fill a wishlist but it doesn’t give you a shipping address that means the person didn’t assign a shipping address to the list so delete their present out of your cart and go to the next wishlist. If it says “these are duplicates. Someone else may have already bought this” when you try to check out then someone else already bought the stuff so delete it and try another one.
But what if I want to give more?
Then find another list and fill it. Or donate to Project Night Night. But don’t fill lists that aren’t following the rules or are asking for more because then it gets nuts. After Xmas we’ll open up a post where people can ask for food or clothes or whatever but for this Jame Garfield Miracle it’s just one simple gift per child. 🙂
IF YOU NEED HELP:
You are my special angel. Here are the things you have to know: You have to make a BRAND NEW wishlist, you can only choose one gift per child to put on your wishlist, and it has to be a gift chosen from this list. In your comment you need to say the city and State you’re in (it has to match what you have on your wishlist), how many kids you have, and a link to your wishlist. (Add your country to the comment you’re outside of the US so people in your area can find you.) Do not make multiple wish lists. Just make one. One of the most important things (people do this wrong every year so PLEASE do this part right) is that you have to assign a shipping address for this specific wishlist. I’ll give you the details on setting up the wishlist below.
But what if I want something that isn’t on the list?
Sorry! Next month we might do an open post where you can ask for clothes or food or specific stuff but for this it’s just one simple present from the list. 🙂
What if I want to make wish lists to surprise other people who I think need help?
Nope. But you can totally tell them to come here and make their own.
I’ve never done this before. How do I make a wishlist?
It’s pretty easy if you follow the formula. I’ll walk you through:
On Amazon, click on Accounts & Lists and then “Create a list”.
Choose “wishlist”. Name it “James Garfield 2020“, make it public, then choose “create list”.
On the right you’ll see something that says “…More”. Click on that and choose “Manage list”. Click on the drop-down for the shipping address and add yours. Make sure that “keep purchased items on your list” and “don’t spoil my surprises” are NOT selected. Save changes.
Now go to this list and pick out one present for your child. When you have the one you want click on the “Add to list” drop down on the right (next to where the price is) and then select your “James Garfield 2020” list. Click “view your list” to make sure it’s there.
If you have another kid just go back to the list and pick a present for them and add it to the same list.
Now you go to the comments below and leave a comment saying how many kids you have, what city and state you are, in and a link to your wishlist. That’s it!
So for example, I would say, “Hi. I live in San Antonio Texas, and I chose the art kit for my daughter. Here’s my wishlist:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/2ZVDARK2A03K3/ref=cm_wl_huc_view Thanks!”
(A quick note: The list to choose from is an influencer list which isn’t affected by wishlist buys but if you happen to buy something directly from it I’ll be using any profits to buy more toys. The list was created by lots of amazing people who came up with diverse toys and books and I’m so grateful to everyone who gave suggestions!)
Now…to go shopping. Happy James Garfield Day!
(UPDATED: Some of the stuff on the amazon list gets sold out so if it doesn’t give you the product with prime shipping pick something else. I’ll try to keep the list updated to remove stuff that gets sold out and replace with similar choices.)
PS. Please please please double check before you hit the submit button that you have assigned a shipping address to your wishlist, that your comment has a link to your wishlist, the city and state you live it and the number of kids you have.
UPDATED: As always, 99% of the people here are amazing and I love you. Unfortunately there is one person here already pretending to be many different people so it is with a heavy heart that I suggest you donate to Project Night Night or Toys for Tots. There are still people here who are amazing and need help and want to give help and I’ll still be giving more here and there but sadly you do have to be really, really cautious even with the new rules. Maybe next year we can find a way to run this through my bookstore so that I can actually see the exact addresses things are going to. Who knows. But to everyone who helped and to everyone who opened up about needs and let us have some magic I cannot thank you enough. The sadness I feel at the one or two scammers does not dampen the happiness I feel at being able to part of the holiday celebrations for so many. I super crazy love you.