By Random Acts
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Zoie has sickle cell anemia, which prevents her from being able to play in extreme temperatures. If she gets too hot or too cold, she’ll end up in the hospital. Because of this, Zoie has never had the chance to play in snow. So Will and Emilie secretly built an (early) Christmas winter wonderland in Zoie’s backyard while the outside temperatures were just right. Surprise!!!
Transcript provided by YouTube:
00:00
Brrrr!
00:01
Today is the day!
00:02
Uhh- Will, I know that it’s a little early and kind of chilly but it’s going to be over
00:07
70 degrees today…
00:08
Oh!
00:09
well I’ll just look forward to that then.
00:10
Let’s do this!
00:37
Okay so we are outside Zoie’s home, the family is going to be leaving any minute now.
00:41
Oh!
00:42
Oh my gosh, there they are.
00:43
They’re leaving right now.
00:44
Oh cool!
00:45
We’ve arranged for Jessica to take Zoie shopping so we have about three hours to pull off this
00:49
makeover.
00:50
Okay, all right, the partridge has left the pear tree- let’s get to work!
00:55
All right team, let’s go!
00:56
There is so much to do to transform this yard into a Christmas winter wonderland!
00:59
We have Jill and her team of snow making experts here and their first step roll out that snow
01:04
blanket and hide the grass.
01:06
And the rest of us are focusing on the activity stations and the decorating.
01:10
This is the sledding hill?
01:11
(This is it) Oh my gosh! oh wait- lift with your legs!
01:12
Lift with your legs!
01:13
Oh my goodness, ready?
01:14
1, 2, 3 drop!
01:15
It’s a tree!
01:16
Why don’t you go find a place you think that’d look nice.
01:25
Where should you live?
01:28
A lot of trees…
01:36
Here?
01:37
More trees!
01:38
To the left?
01:39
More trees!
01:40
Emilie, can you come help us?
01:41
We set this thing up backwards so we’re gonna have to rotate it.
01:42
Ready!
01:43
When it was deflated we moved it with five people, but let’s see if we can do it with
01:44
the same five baby!
01:49
Oh no, I unplugged the fan!
01:50
Let’s go!
01:51
Move, move, quick, quick!
01:52
They don’t plug into each other.
01:53
I made a huge error of judgment, I thought we could run one extension cord and connect
01:58
all the trees together, but every tree needs its own outlet.
02:01
We gotta go get a lot of extension cords.
02:03
Okay, the snow crew is framing out the snow pit.
02:06
The snow pit is not round, but I’m gonna let it slide because it’s a lot bigger, which
02:09
is cool.
02:10
And around the perimeter we’ve got a team lighting the real trees.
02:13
Everything’s looking good so far!
02:15
Just tap that corner again one more time…
02:17
This is basically a kiddie pool full of baked snow.
02:21
We get to make a lot of it!
02:22
Oh my gosh!
02:25
It’s snow!
02:26
You know that you like make straight up magic, right?
02:29
Yes I love it.
02:30
Do you want me to mix and you can keep going?
02:33
I keep thinking it’s going to be cold- but it’s not!
02:36
Warm snow… crazy!
02:38
Yes- mix away!
02:39
Here goes the snow, look how fast this snow is made, this is crazy!
02:45
And really good because we have about a hundred more buckets that we have to fill!
02:50
Hey Anne, so we are one hour in, how’s it going?
02:57
I’m a little nervous, as usual we’re in a race against time to fill the snow pit.
03:01
We didn’t have the right kind of cords on all of these millions of trees and got to
03:05
send somebody to the store and then figure out a way to get these things electrified.
03:08
How can we help?
03:09
You guys want to put this together?
03:10
Sure, yeah so do you think that we’re going to make this timeline work?
03:14
No.
03:15
Great sense of humor Anne!
03:17
Really!
03:18
So we’ve got a little over an hour left, and I’m going to try out our sledding hill…
03:21
Maybe I’m a little too heavy for that.
03:24
But we’ve got some hay bales over here- this is perfect!
03:28
Snowball (whoosh)
03:30
We’ve got the candy canes- we’re having a really hard time getting them in the ground,
03:34
so we have to dig holes with scissors.
03:36
Okay, okay, here we’ve got creative snowman.
03:39
We’ve got carrot noses…
03:40
Our snow team’s been making snow non-stop, and we’re still going!
03:44
This is pretty amazing stuff- it really is!
03:46
You want to know what’s in the bag?
03:48
It’s a bag of power… outlets!
03:50
That’s right, we’ll have a magical Christmas forest after all!
03:54
Starting to blow up…
03:56
It’s alive!
03:57
You guys it’s so tall!
03:59
Okay so we’re in a mad dash now, we have 30 minutes left- we still have more snow to make,
04:08
we’ve got to put a hot chocolate station here: cake, cookies for everyone!
04:12
Emilie, I need ribbon.
04:14
I can make bows!
04:15
Not only are we still filling the snow pit, Jill is covering the whole rest of the yard
04:17
with foam snow.
04:18
If we had better water pressure, this would be so much easier- but you do what you got
04:23
to do right?
04:24
I’ve never made bows this big before…
04:25
So we have about 15 minutes before they show up, decorations are going up, the foam is
04:29
going down, and hopefully everything will be ready by the time they get here!
04:33
No time, no time.
04:34
Here take another one!
04:36
We need to start getting this place cleaned up…
04:39
Jill it looks fabulous!
04:40
Okay let’s pull it guys.
04:42
The ladder’s got to go somewhere.
04:50
We’re down to five minutes!
04:53
Everybody’s got to get out!
04:56
Teamwork!
04:57
Everyone hide please, here we go…
05:00
(laughing)
05:01
Oh, hey!
05:02
Hi you guys!
05:04
I’m so glad that you’re finally home!
05:05
So how’s it going Zoie?
05:06
Are we in the right place we’re looking for Zoie… come on out here.
05:13
Are you Zoie?
05:15
Well it’s nice to meet you!
05:16
I’m Emilie, and this is Will, and we’re hosts on a tv show called Random Acts where we do
05:21
awesome things for awesome people like you!
05:23
We have a big surprise for you, but we’re gonna need you to close your eyes.
05:27
Can I lead you by your elbow?
05:29
Follow the sound of my voice!
05:30
Keep it going, you’re gonna do one big step up now there you go.
05:34
Okay, keep them closed and we’ll count to three…
05:40
One… two… three!
05:44
There’s all kinds of winner activities here for you to do that you don’t usually get to
05:49
do during Christmas time Zoie!
05:50
But everybody deserves to have fun like this, so we have a snow pit, a snowball fight station,
05:55
yeah- we’ve got a sledding hill, and we got donuts and hot chocolate!
05:58
So cool!
05:59
We just really wanted to make you a warm winter wonderland.
06:02
Come on, let’s check it out!
06:04
Wow it does feel like snow!
06:08
It feels like warm snow!
06:11
Isn’t it crazy?
06:13
Yeah!
06:14
You can throw it,
06:17
I want to go sledding!
06:21
This is the most amazing thing ever!
06:25
Is she crying?
06:27
Oh, Zoie…
06:28
This is so amazing!
06:31
This is not something you would normally do, right?
06:36
Never!
06:37
It feels like a cloud!
06:39
It does feel like a cloud!
06:41
Hey Jessica, can I pull you away for a second?
06:45
Sure- I’ll be back.
06:47
So what does it mean for Zoie to have this winter wonderland in her backyard?
06:52
It means everything to her, she grabbed me and she hugged me, and she was crying- and
06:57
she would never show that to outsiders…
07:00
She’s reserved.
07:01
Um yes, you know as a mom you want to give your kids everything.
07:04
It’s something that i can’t give her.
07:06
So did you have any Christmas traditions like when you were growing up as a kid?
07:10
My dad would take us and we would go up the mountains and cut down a christmas tree.
07:16
So this is Zoie’s grandpa?
07:17
Yeah, and he just passed away, sorry, a couple of months ago… so…
07:24
Oh no…
07:25
I’m so sorry sorry.
07:26
Well you might have noticed that there’s no real tree back there, because our original
07:29
idea was to get everybody together to continue that tradition and to honor him, but unfortunately
07:34
we’re not able to do that because we’d have to go to Idaho which is too far…
07:38
I’m sorry… what?
07:39
Oh, we found another ride, so we’re actually gonna go and do that right now!
07:42
What?!
07:43
Yeah!
07:44
And we’re gonna do it in style!
07:45
I’m serious, in that!
07:46
They want to know where she’s going.
07:47
I’m going up the mountains to cut down a christmas tree like grandpa used to take me and do.
08:07
I’m so excited.
08:08
Oh, honey.
08:09
Thank you guys so much!
08:10
I’m so excited, let’s go get a tree!
08:11
There is your winter wonderland!
08:23
This is so awesome!
08:28
So what are some of your favorite memories of going to get the tree?
08:30
We would file in the back and my dad would pretend to slide off the road and stuff so
08:31
just hear us scream it was, he was, the best…
08:32
We made all of our own decorations, gifts for each other… that’s cool!
08:33
So how are we getting the Christmas tree back home?
08:34
We’re just gonna, you know, get a rope and dangle it from underneath… or we’re gonna
08:46
send a truck back with it.
08:51
I don’t know, either one!
08:54
Have you wondered how this all came to be?
08:58
A little bit, yeah…
08:59
Yeah?
09:00
Well your friend Caleb nominated you!
09:03
(That’s so nice!)
09:04
Well we thought like, what’s a winter wonderland without your friends to share it with?
09:09
So we’ve invited your friends Caleb, Kenzie, and Millie to come play with us too- is that
09:15
okay?
09:16
Yes! more than okay!
09:18
Thank you!
09:19
This is like the best thing ever!
09:22
Get on in there!
09:23
I want to make a snow angel.
09:25
And don’t forget to add the legs! and then you sit up with your arms like Frankenstein.
09:32
Now it’s the best part- destroying them!!!
09:41
This is portage canyon.
09:43
Yeah- it looks so different from up here.
09:46
Hey that is my sister’s car!
09:48
You!
09:49
We know that you used to do this tradition with all your siblings, so we thought we’d
09:53
bring them out here to help! so how about that?
09:55
You guys are too much!
09:57
oh my gosh!
09:58
Listen, the amount of care and love you put in day in and day out, sometimes you deserve
10:02
a helicopter ride up to a place where you grew up, to cut down a christmas tree with
10:06
your siblings!
10:08
Thank you guys!
10:12
We’re here!
10:15
(It’s Jessica!)
10:18
Surprise!
10:19
You Guys!
10:22
Oh my gosh, hi!
10:27
All right so we ready to go grab a tree?
10:32
Zoie that was really fun!
10:37
Oh yeah!
10:39
Did you ever think that you’d be able to do stuff like this?
10:49
No, this is so amazing!
10:52
So what has been your favorite thing so far?
10:55
Walking in the first time and seeing it all, i couldn’t believe it.
10:59
i like, i don’t cry a lot, like at all, i really don’t cry that much, and it just meant
11:05
like, so much to me.
11:06
Well you are just absolutely incredible, i’m so glad that we could just have a day where
11:10
we could play and have fun!
11:12
Me too, yeah.
11:13
This has been the most crazy day, and i don’t want to ever end!
11:18
Well let’s make it last for as long as possible!
11:20
Do you wanna build a snowman?
11:22
i thought you’d never ask!
11:23
See this one right here, yeah, what about that one over there? the one side’s trying
11:28
to fall, oh!
11:29
These seem like massive to me!
11:31
pretty though.
11:32
It’s beautiful, i haven’t been up here for years!
11:35
This one, or there’s this one.
11:37
Oh, there’s so many options!
11:38
(We just have to take the branches off)
11:39
Oh wow i think i kind of like this one!
11:41
You like this one?
11:42
Yeah!
11:43
Don’t you think that looks more like a shape of a christmas tree?
11:45
like just naturally?
11:46
Got the cone there…
11:48
This one!
11:49
This is the winner!
11:50
So now we are going to chop it down and take it home!
11:56
It was so great to see you guys, but we gotta take off!
12:06
Bye!
12:07
Let’s do this!
12:08
What a great day… doesn’t get any better than this!
12:11
Ready?
12:12
(Yep!)
12:13
Set?
12:14
Go!
12:15
We split up into teams, the object of the game is to create snowmen masterpieces!
12:18
We should do a monster snowman with one eye!
12:22
Eyebrow!
12:23
Best snowman ever!
12:24
Let’s make it a unicorn!
12:26
i got the perfect thing! a piece of hay in his mouth.
12:29
Finishing touches on your snowmen!
12:30
So it’s between unicorn snowman and cyclops snowman!
12:34
What was his name?
12:35
Mike Snowzowski!
12:36
Ah!
12:37
The winner is…
12:38
Zoie!
12:39
Because it’s her day!!!
12:40
And everybody gets a doughnut!
12:41
Tthis is so good!
12:42
So what do you think the kids are doing back at home right now?
12:47
They’re probably eating all the donuts and cookies!
12:52
Here we are, let’s go get some of those cookies now, huh?
13:01
Yes, please!
13:02
All right!
13:03
Did you guys have a good time when we were gone?
13:04
We most definitely did, so much fun!
13:05
What about you guys?
13:06
oh we had a blast we had a great time, and we got an amazing tree which will be here
13:08
in a couple hours, so we have to make some decorations.
13:10
let’s do it!
13:11
All right we have popcorn here, we have needles, are these the types of decorations you made
13:15
as a kid?
13:16
Popcorn strands, and paper chains?
13:17
Yes, and we ate a lot of popcorn! this is so fun!
13:20
you know what we haven’t done yet?
13:21
who’s ready for a snowball fight?!
13:24
You can fake pretty much everything, but the one thing you can’t fake is snowballs… but
13:31
you know what- i brought some genuine real snow!
13:34
Ooh it really is cold!
13:35
Everyone get set…
13:36
Snowball fight!
13:37
I prefer fake snowballs!
13:51
Guys our tree has made it back! wow, i’m so excited!
13:55
I’ll pull, you push?
13:57
there we go…
13:58
that is really big!
14:02
Look! (can we keep it?)
14:06
This has been a crazy day, huh?
14:10
Today has been, like, the best day ever!
14:13
(gasp) the lights! my favorite!
14:19
Homemade decorations are the best!
14:24
i can’t believe this happened
14:29
What an amazing day, we set up a winter wonderland, we played in the snow, we went and found a
14:34
tree, brought it home, and decorated it.
14:36
So now is the moment of truth.
14:38
And we’ve been hearing so much about your dad and your grandfather, and he sounded like
14:43
such an amazing person- so we would like you to light this tree in honor of him.
14:50
So ladies, you will do the honors? in three, two, one…
14:56
That is so pretty! oh man!
15:02
Yay! (clapping and cheering)
15:06
Perfect, now there’s one more thing… give it a little push.
15:17
It’s snowing!
15:20
That is awesome!
15:24
It’s snowing, for you!
15:29
I think this is the most amazing thing i’ve ever seen! wow, and i’ve never even gotten
15:36
to really experience this kind of stuff, and it’s so cool- it’s just like the movies!
15:41
We just love you, you’re just glorious- look at all that snow!
15:55
This is so awesome!
15:56
That’s our snow everyone!
15:57
Big thanks to everyone who helped put this winter wonderland together!
15:58
and to Don Harris for allowing us to take this gorgeous tree off of his property,
16:01
and a huge thanks to Cirque Lodge for the very generous use of their helicopter!
16:06
Random Acts on three!
16:08
One, two, three, RANDOM ACTS!
16:11
We really hope you enjoyed these Christmas Random Acts!
16:14
And you know what would be the best gift, is if you found your favorite segment and
16:18
then shared it with someone that you love!
16:19
That’s right, it can be from this season- or any of our other seasons just find one
16:23
that you like, and that brings you joy, and send it to somebody you love.
16:26
Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays!
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Photo credit: Screenshot from video
