Holiday Extravaganza 2010…It’s a Wrap!

We can’t even begin to thank all of the wonderful sponsors and attendees of Holiday Extravaganza 2010 enough for their support making Holiday Extravaganza 2010 the largest single point Toys for Tots collection in the state of Pennsylvania (to date). We collected 1,363 toys from our guests and also received additional toy donations from Learning Express of Exton. One of the guests donated 51 toys snagging her the title of “Ms. Most Toys Donated” and the prize of a $50 Gift Card to Iron Hill Brewery donated by WC Dish.

Our guests were greeted at The Downingtown Country Club, by Mary Bigham and Amy Strauss from WC Dish and Downingtown Dish and photographed as they walked the red carpet toys in hand. Click here to view all of the red carpet photos taken by the “Dish Paparazzi” and if you see yourself in a photo… feel free to tag yourself.

Downingtown Mayor Josh Maxwell, The Toy Guy, Bob Lohr USMC (Ret)and The Chesco Kids

Our Team of Retired Marines and Chesco Mom Elves got all 150 guests through registration with ease, collecting 1,363 toy donations (Thank You Marines & Elves! We heart you!) The toys that everyone donated were awesome. There were Littlest Pet Shop Play Sets, Disney Dolls, Hex Bugs, MEGA Blocks, Board Games.. everyone was so generous. The Marines brought a box truck and a trailer to cart off all of the donations. At the end of the evening Bob Lohr, from the Marine Detachment that collects for Chester County got a little choked up when thanking everyone for their incredible donations. 1,363 toys! AMAZING!

After everyone was registered they were able to browse the room and scope out the 100 items up for grabs. Below are just a few of the tables… there were 13 jam packed tables in all.

Once the guests had an opportunity to take a look at the raffle items the show got under way and by show.. I mean The Toy Guy! Our friend Chris Byrne, AKA the Toy Guy from Time to Play Magazine, made his second Chester County appearance at Holiday Extravaganza, this year introducing his Top Picks for the 2010 Holiday Season.
This year Chris had some help displaying his top picks by “The Chesco Kids”. Shannon and I both feel that teaching our kids about giving back to the community is very important and we were very excited to have our daughters participate in HE10 this year. They helped collect toys at registration then walked the “runway” showing off toys as Chris described the toys to our guests. My daughter absolutely ADORES “The Toy Guy”, as she spent all weekend telling everyone and anyone all about him..”her friend, The Toy Guy”
Chris told our guests that 2010 marks the return of the doll and showcased LIV Dolls, Babysitting Mama for Wii and BFC Dolls. He also Rocked out with Paper Jams calling it the toy that makes kids (and adults) feel like an instant Rock Star. Our daughters are fancy girls and loved the Mon Bijou Jewelry collection.

With all that toy talk a lady is bound to get hungry, right? No, just me? Well I am always hungry for cake and even more so when it is from The Master’s Baker, my very favorite bakery! The Master’s Baker has celebrated with my family for years. Birthdays, Graduations, Weddings, Baby Showers, Baptisms…it was only right for me to call upon the Weldon Family to help me celebrate Holiday Extravaganza and boy did they answer the call. Take a look at the beautiful (and delicious) cake and cupcakes that they made.

Playmobil was the National Sponsor for Holiday Extravaganza and they gave away a 1-2-3 Farm Play Set, a Pirate Play Set and lots of toys that have not even hit the stores yet. How cool is that? Huge thanks to Michelle from Playmobil for coming to Holiday Extravaganza and introducing our guests to Playmobil.


Our friends from the Downingtown Best Buy were there to show us the latest and greatest gadgets and raffled off a Nook…. The item very high on this Chesco Moms Wish List.

David Fuller of David Fuller Karate surprised our guests when he announced that not just one lucky mom would win a $200 gift certificate for karate classes, but 10 moms would win! He is going to have to start a Chesco Kid class with all of the winners. Wax on..wax off.. (Don’t forget about the fantastic offer of 4 weeks of lessons for 2 kids for $29.95- sign up by 12/15 to take advantage of the great offer)

The Scott Honda of West Chester table was “mommed” by our newest contributor Jen Lower. Scott Honda raffled off a Power Wheels, Portable DVD Player, Garmin and a professional detail service. If I put raffle tickets in I think I would have tried to win that one.. my car is a disgusting MESS!


Cusine to Go sponsored “Restaurant Row” showcasing some of the 21 restaurants that they deliver from. If you have never tried Cusine to Go.. TRY it! I LOVE this service! They deliver to 19341, 19335, 19533, 19425, 19380 and 19382. Visit http://www.cuisinetogo.net/ for more info and a complete list of restaurants that they deliver from. We also have a FREE Delivery Coupon posted on the local deals page.
Our grand prize items were a Cricut Personal Cutting Machine by Provo Craft (one of my very favorite things in the world) and a Hot Air Balloon ride courtesy of The United States Hot Air Balloon Team. As a special Chesco Mom promotion they are offering special discount pricing of $169 per person now through 12/31/10 when you mention Philly Burb Mom when scheduling.

Shannon and I began planning Holiday Extravaganza shortly, after Holiday Extravaganza 2009. We knew we wanted HE10 to be bigger than HE09 and had a lot to do to get there. Hosting HE10 would take an amazing team of women to make it happen. We enlisted the help of our Community “Mom-agers” and partnered with our friends Julie Pron & Kelly Whalen , all social media savvy ladies and the team that we knew could get the job done. Together we were able to make HE10 a fabulous event complete with our very own “Oprah Moment” where not only did each guest receive take home goodies like a $15 gift certificate to Avalon Restaurant, full size Calista TOOLS Shampoo & Conditioner, 12 FREE Holiday Cards from Shutterfly, $5 gift certificate to Avante Salon & Spa, FREE Wendell August Ornament, FREE Personal Training Consultation from Kerry Wolfe and a FREE 1 year membership to About One.. just to name a few, ALL of the 150 guests received a Tassimo Brewbot AND coffee! Valued at $200 per guest! We gave away $30,000 worth of Tasimmo Brewbots!

The video below is of the “Momumential Moment of Holiday Extravaganza” courtesy of Kelly’s handy dandy Flip Cam. (Thanks Lauren for filming)

We have some great additions to Chester County Moms in 2011, like our monthly Chesco Mom Coffee Chat online sponsored by Tassimo . Log in and chat, win prizes and have fun with us all from the comfort from your couch. Look for more information on how to join in on the fun coming soon.

So…that is it.. Chester County Moms Holiday Extravaganza 2010 is officially over, but we are not done giving away fabulous things. In addition to the live event held last week we have partnered with several nationally known bloggers and they are each hosting a round of fantastic giveaways on their sites. For more information “like” Holiday Extravaganza 2010 on Facebook and make sure you visit the following sites:

*Photo Credits – Lauren James, Kelly Whalen and Amy Strauss

One Response to “Holiday Extravaganza 2010…It’s a Wrap!”

  1. Mel Says:

    Next year, you have to do this on a Friday so I can come hang out with all of you. It looks like an awesome time was had by all!! I'm a huge fan of Toys for Tots because I love those marines and see children who aren't receiving Christmas gifts everyday. Thank you for being such fabulous leaders!!

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