Fish Extender Etiquette

[angtomczak]

I was planning on writing my family names on the FE. Is it ok to put mommy and daddy's names in addition to my daughters name? I assume since I'm giving my daughters' name to the coordinator of our group on our cruise, that the gift givers will know to only put gifts in my daughters pocket...? Or should I just write "Mommy" and "Daddy" so they'll know?

Do you leave the gifts every day of the cruise?

Anything else I should know about?

 

[lbgraves]

to the DIS boards!

FE exchanges vary. Some give per person. Some give for just kids. Some give gifts just for adults. Some give per stateroom. Anything goes so yes, most people do have a pocket for everyone with their name or ID on them.

 

[Yonkrs_Girl]

For the ones we have participated in, you just give a gift ONE day during your cruise and there is no designated time or day for everyone - just whenever you want to.

We have gotten things like a few lollipops, stickers, magnets, bags of candy, to total gift bags so it certainly varies and like the previos poster said - some were geared to just the kids, some just the adults and others were just a generic "stateroom" gift. We have done it both ways and it's so much easier on the distribution side to make them all the same for each stateroom

 

[FairyGrandmother]

I have a question about the FE gifts. Do you put your name on the gifts or just leave them without indicating who you are?

 

[Yonkrs_Girl]

Totally up to the person/people giving them out. Some have labels to say who they are from and some don't There really is not right or wrong way to do them

 

[imanazd]

We left gifts everyday. Some people in our exchange group did a little something everyday and some did just one day during the cruise. I know we all sound like broken records, but really anything goes for FE gifts/exchages. It is a personal choice on everything from what to give to when to give it and how you give it. It is tons on fun! It's fun to come back to your room and find surprises and fun to "sneak" around the ship and deliver without getting "caught". I got busted a couple of times on our last cruise (and by the same cruiser...she was sneaky (lol)). We just laughed both times it happened. Whatever you decide, have fun with it...that's what it's all about.

 

[imanazd]

Another little side...split your gifts up before you leave home...it's tons easier that way...I learned the hard way! I just took a suitcase full of stuff and just planned on splitting it up once we got on board (I was very unorganized) and it took FOREVER each day to figure out what I had bought for each person/cabin (I had made a list at home, but neglected to pack it). Most all of the gifts we rec'd were bagged or packaged and had little tags for stickers on them indicating who they were from and I just realized how much easier it would have been for us had I done the same thing (I spent 30 minutes to an hour a day or night getting stuff ready to deliver...I learned a HUGE lesson!)...just a little piece of advice I wish I had had...I'd never done the FE exchange and had no idea.

 

[Carol G]

Another little side...split your gifts up before you leave home...it's tons easier that way...I learned the hard way! I just took a suitcase full of stuff and just planned on splitting it up once we got on board (I was very unorganized) and it took FOREVER each day to figure out what I had bought for each person/cabin (I had made a list at home, but neglected to pack it). Most all of the gifts we rec'd were bagged or packaged and had little tags for stickers on them indicating who they were from and I just realized how much easier it would have been for us had I done the same thing (I spent 30 minutes to an hour a day or night getting stuff ready to deliver...I learned a HUGE lesson!)...just a little piece of advice I wish I had had...I'd never done the FE exchange and had no idea.

: Sounds like pure mayhem! I'm glad you mentioned this, as I was thinking of sorting the rms out when we were on the cruise. There are a couple ready to go...need a list for the rest of the bags. : Thanks for the great idea.

 

[djd7292]

I am doing a cabin gift then a kid gift.. I put them in individual bags then into a little bit bigger bag so I know what gifts go to what rooms. I, also, did name labels & postcards w/their room # on it so I don't have to carry a list & my DD can help.

We have some very creative people on my cruise & soo looking forward to meeting them & possibly getting a little surprise.

ANYTHING GOES!!! Don't make it into a big deal ~ do what you can afford. Dollar stores have a great selection of items.

 

[karibritt01]

Talk to the people on your FE list to determine what they are planning. Our cruise we had assigned days to deliver, and only delivered once. I personally liked knowing who the gifts were from each day, so I reccommend putting your name on the gifts. Also, it is much easier if the gifts are generic, and only have your name on the tag. Trying to find each person's name and stateroom in a bag full of gift bags is tough. If they are generic, you just drop one in each pocket and continue on your way! Last suggestion is use a rolling carryon suitcase when delivering, because carrying all the gifts and walking up and down each deck takes a while and gets very tiring!

 

[shellfish_mickfish]

How do you find out who wants to participate in the FE on the ship and what cabins they are in? Do you just post on your cruise meet forum that you want to participate?

 

[ibouncetoo]

Another little side...split your gifts up before you leave home...it's tons easier that way...I learned the hard way! I just took a suitcase full of stuff and just planned on splitting it up once we got on board (I was very unorganized) and it took FOREVER each day to figure out what I had bought for each person/cabin (I had made a list at home, but neglected to pack it). Most all of the gifts we rec'd were bagged or packaged and had little tags for stickers on them indicating who they were from and I just realized how much easier it would have been for us had I done the same thing (I spent 30 minutes to an hour a day or night getting stuff ready to deliver...I learned a HUGE lesson!)...just a little piece of advice I wish I had had...I'd never done the FE exchange and had no idea.

I had brought all the 'stuffings' for some kids bags I was making. They had different contents for boys vs. girls. Thankfully it wasn't too time consuming building the bags....except when I was done I had one item left over, and it was one of the items that went in both bags! Just had to do some rummaging to figure out which bag it was (there were only 20).

How do you find out who wants to participate in the FE on the ship and what cabins they are in? Do you just post on your cruise meet forum that you want to participate?

Yep, that's exactly what you do!

 

[Blueyed Girl]

I was planning on writing my family names on the FE. Is it ok to put mommy and daddy's names in addition to my daughters name? I assume since I'm giving my daughters' name to the coordinator of our group on our cruise, that the gift givers will know to only put gifts in my daughters pocket...? Or should I just write "Mommy" and "Daddy" so they'll know?

Do you leave the gifts every day of the cruise?

Anything else I should know about?

I was planning on having a pocket for myself and DH too. I do have a small gift for the adults on our cruise as well as the kids. I was thinking of delivering my gifts to 1-2 staterooms per day. Maybe I should do them all in one day? Who knows.

Anyway, I didn't put any rules on this for our cruise because I thought that if we left it open then everyone could just do it when they have time rather than being glued down to one day or time. Especially since our cruise is only 4 days.

 

[karibritt01]

I was thinking of delivering my gifts to 1-2 staterooms per day. Maybe I should do them all in one day? Who knows.

I would suggest doing them all at once and getting it over with. I did mine at night while DH and the kids were eating room service before bed. The halls were quiet, so it was easy to get around. It takes a while to walk all the halls on each floor, and breaking it up will probably take more time away from other things. Also, it could get confusing if you have a large FE group.

 

[MonkeyDishwasher]

OK, I give. What is a "Fish Extender?"

 

[karibritt01]

Its a hanging pocket that you put outside your room, and people from your meet thread leave you gifts. You have to find your meet thread, and sign up to participate. My kids loved coming back to the room and finding presents for them in their pockets!

 

[Blueyed Girl]

I would suggest doing them all at once and getting it over with. I did mine at night while DH and the kids were eating room service before bed. The halls were quiet, so it was easy to get around. It takes a while to walk all the halls on each floor, and breaking it up will probably take more time away from other things. Also, it could get confusing if you have a large FE group.

Thanks. I will probably do it that way instead!

 

[BobandLee]

OK, I give. What is a "Fish Extender?"

See this thread....http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2192078

 

[MonkeyDishwasher]

Ah! I see now. Thanks for the info, guys

 

[Blueyed Girl]

For those who've done a FE exchange, do you typically have a Dis "meet" during the cruise so that you can meet the people you are exchanging all these gifts with?