Hey Kids...You just got PUNKED! Our Pre Trip Report!

[Melanie230]

Well I guess it is time to start my pre-trip report! We leave in 2 weeks and WOW it is going to be very busy and more difficult than ever to keep the surprise going.
On this trip to Universal will be DH Matt, Me Melanie, DS Hayden, and DD Lauren. I will start with how this trip all came to be. I am a Thirty One consultant and in February I moved to a Director’s position. When you promote to Director you get a $1000 bonus. I told the family that if I did get the bonus I would buy us all a Universal Studios annual pass. The day my bonus arrived…I bought 4 Annual Passes!!! We had no intention of going to Universal this year, because we lost our beloved Golden Retriever PJ in January and soon after got a new German Shepherd puppy. Well-being the vacation planner in the family in April I stumbled across $169 a night rate at Hard Rock for 10/3-10/6 Garden View and booked it. Our kids are in year round schools here so we get a 3 week break every October. The only week we can get this rate is the first week in October, so I knew it was meant to be!!!

The only problem was what to do with the dogs??? Our Golden Retriever Goldie is just too old to go to a kennel, and Bruno the German Shepherd is too young…not to mention the cost…$250 for two dogs! ACKK!! So that is where the mother in law comes into play. DH calls his mom and she is on board for the pet sitting! So happy I could fly her here from Atlanta for only $136 round trip! It is now time to figure out how to get there. We usually drive but we are always up for something new! We love the drive down…the coming back is always bad…traffic is a nightmare and we are just sad to leave. Last year we flew Southwest to Disney…gotta love the days of $49 tickets! But I didn’t like the early flight out. YUCK! So I checked Amtrak and for $280 round trip…I was thrilled! Then (THANK YOU DISBOARDS!)I found out I could apply for the Amtrak card and get 32,000 points and redeem for travel. So I got the card and booked 2 roomettes for the trip down to ensure a good nights rest before we arrive! Nothing wrong with free breakfast either! So now our travel cost is $140. After LOTS of looking around I found a car service that will pick us up, and return us to the station with a free grocery store stop for $90. So now I have found cheap transportation to Orlando, cheap transportation to and from the hotel, AND a great Hard Rock Hotel rate! Almost too good to be true!

With all this saving…I decided to check to see if we could still get our $169 rate if we added one more day to our stay…YEP it was available! WOOHOO!!! So now Matt and I have decided we have to surprise the kids. We surprised them in 2009 with a trip to Disney when they thought we were driving to Georgia to see grandma and that was a so funny! But how do we do it? They are older and wiser now and we knew it would be hard to surprise them. We just decided to not say a word. Keep with the plan that we would go next summer and take Bruno with us. That worked until our son saw my ticker on the Dis and started asking questions. I came up with a quick response that it was an old ticker that I didn’t know how to get off my signature. He bought it…sort of. So I knew we had to come up with something else. We then started talking about grandma coming for a visit. Hoping that would throw them off. We then decided to add that we would look into going to the Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, NC and that seemed to do the trick. Whew…dodged that bullet. So now we spend our mornings driving to school talking about how many more school days until we head to the Lodge….me with a little smirk on my face.

Next: How we are going to punk them, and the chaos of packing/planning without the kids catching me.

 

[Marquibiri]

Great Pre Trip Report.. Love it

I enjoy reading on how you keep the trip from your kids for now!

Surprises are awesome! Can´t wait to read more.

Marquibiri

 

[schumigirl]

Looking forward to more Melanie......sounds like fun

 

[Melanie230]

Thank goodness I work best under pressure. Two weeks ago I finally took out the family bathroom bag (LOL!) and prepared it. That is a job within itself. Everyone relies on old mom to gather all the goods needed. Air freshener check, shampoo conditioner check, toothpaste check....you get my drift. Once all is packed and I have my list of missing items, I head out to the local drug store to pick up those missing items. One of my main staples for that bag is ponchos. Gotta love WalMart...great hooded ponchos with pockets for $4.48 each...much better than the glorified theme park trash bag for $12. Come home and kids are sitting in the living room...me with the bag of goods that if the kids see...we are so busted. I go directly up the stairs and throw my stash in the closet. Dodged yet another bullet. All the while saying...Must remember to get the refillable mugs, must remember to get the refillable mugs. The next day as soon as DD heads for the bus I begin the digging for the refillable mugs...one, then two, then the big SpongeBob one that if I forget DD will not ever let me live that down. So now my stash is growing rather large in the closet.

Time to check in with the mother in law to make sure she received the confirmation I mailed her for the plane tickets. Yep…all is well…she has a ride to and from the airport, and her friend will print her ticket since she doesn’t know how to manage a computer.

Finally last week the Facebook contest has ended. I was only slightly crazed during that time. I manned the computer everyday for hours…yes hours to make sure I reminded all of my friends to vote for our photo! After a delay in announcing the winner, we finally received confirmation that we WON a 4 day/3 night stay at any Loews Hotel, $50 per day food credit, and Loews Gold for a year! I can’t tell you how excited I was to get that prize! Of course the kids say, “Now can we go to Universal?” We had to explain it wasn’t about the money, it was about not having anyone to take care of the new puppy and the old dog that we have. They said they understood with the sad faces. I hate those faces…those faces have made my DH and I almost cave and spill the beans. Somehow we have managed to hang tough!

Still during all this time we haven’t quite planned out just how to *Punk* the kids. Lots of different ways of doing it…just haven’t nailed down just how to do it. I have recruited my dad to take us to the train station downtown since it isn’t a good idea to leave your car there unless you have hopes of someone stealing it. So we want to make sure he is in on it, and we know we want to get them in front of the mother in law. We know how much she will enjoy seeing the kid’s faces when they find out just where we are going for real!

I decided to head to the mall yesterday to get DD at least one pair of jeans just in case we have a cool evening. While we are there she mentions that she only has 10 more school days left. As she says that I notice the car beside me with a Mickey sticker. I point it out and say…”So, if you had the choice of where to go for vacation where would it be?” After taking a couple of minutes she says, “Well I would want to go to Universal because we haven’t been in a while, then second would be Disney because I really loved the Halloween party, and last would be the Great Wolf Lodge.” She then says, “Sorry mommy…I don’t mean that to sound bad because I am glad we are going to the Great Wolf Lodge, and I know we can’t go to Florida because we have Bruno, I just wish we could go back to Universal.” Little does she know that a trip to Universal is just around the corner, and she won’t know that a MNSSHP is also on the books with an appointment at Bippity Boopity Boutique for hair and makeup! I manage to snag a rental car from Hertz for $34 to get us to Magic Kingdom. My 6’1 DH will try his best to fit into this Nissan Versa. I forgot to mention that we started a fun fund for our upcoming trip. The kids think it is a new way of getting their allowance. We have told them when they complete their chores, each ticket they earn doing chores is worth $1.00. They aren’t allowed to cash in tickets until they have 50 tickets. Both have tried their best to get us to cave and allow them to spend their money before they hit the 50 ticket mark…nope. Little do they know that when they hit the $50 mark they will be receiving their Universal Fun money! Hey…I must cover all the bases. If they want extras on this trip, they will have their own money to buy them. That is the one thing we never do….they must earn their own money and take that to spend. Works like a charm. Can’t wait…13 more days!!!

Next: Trying to manage getting everything done, putting together our FAKE house LOL, and making sure it all gets done, with work, school, baseball team, and life without anyone being suspicious.

 

[mercydisney]

Great Pretrip report!! I can't wait to read more.

 

[xApril]

I love this! I can't wait to see how your kids react.

 

[reelmom]

Sounds like fun. Can't wait to hear about the big reveal.

 

[SharonK0527]

Sounds great so far! We've done the "surprise" trips to Disney twice over the years and it is SO worth keeping the secret! You'll be so glad you didn't cave and spill the beans when you see their reactions!

Can't wait for the next update!

 

[Trae13]

Can't wait to hear more, as we are also planning a surprise trip to Universal! You are inspiring me to get started on my secret packing, thanks!

 

[Melanie230]

So we move closer to the day we have to leave. Being a substitute teacher has its benefits and its drawbacks. Since our kids are tracking out for 3 weeks I try my best to work as much as I can before they track out since I usually don’t work much when they are home. Needless to say 2 weeks before we leave, and I am working 6 out of the 10 school days. I have made sure to block out the last two school days as NO WAY DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT WORKING DAYS, but those days have been somewhat taken from me.

I witnessed a friend of ours daughter get a ticket for going through a crosswalk, in carpool one day and she shouldn’t have gotten the ticket. Needless to say, I have been called to testify to help her save big money for that ticket. (The crossing guard was out of her line of sight and was not holding the sign up) So that should gobble up most of my Thursday, ACK!
So yes, I have put together a list of days that I can get the house cleaned before the mother in law gets here. This is what I call our Fake House. Our house is only this clean when we are having the mother in law come to stay with the dogs. Nope, not even this clean when friends come over because the upstairs is not done, that would be a Half Fake House. (Are you nodding your head yes…we do that too?) Certain days will require certain chores; if I get off the schedule chaos will indeed follow.

Today was supposed to be cut the grass day. Well, I guess the lawnmower didn’t agree. It won’t start. See?...chaos. Geez! Did I mention my husband has Crohn’s disease and is currently not feeling very well? A flare has begun and he is doing his best to get it under control. This surprise trip has just hit…possible no trip. He swears that he won’t allow that to happen…but like I have said in the past…this is a great reason to surprise your children, if something bad happens…they never knew! So we will march on with the plans to go, if we hit the 5 day mark and he isn’t better, we may have to rethink this trip. We also got bad news today that our beloved Golden Retriever Goldie may have some serious health problems. We meet with our vet on Friday to decide what needs to be done. More chaos.

Our son’s baseball team is full steam ahead at this point. Gotta love 4-0!!! Home from baseball tonight, exhausted from a crazy day, more crazy days ahead!

Getting to the final countdown! Work, school, packing, and the decision on PUNKING our kids.

 

[reelmom]

I hope your husband feels better soon and you are able to go on your trip.

 

[SharonK0527]

So sorry to hear your DH isn't feeling well. I hope he's feeling better soon. Also so sorry to hear about Goldie - I know how that feels. We had to put our beloved Australian Shepherd to sleep the day we got home from vacation last year

Sometimes when things seem to start going bad, it's the best time to go on vacation. Have a good time together as a family and let loose some of the stress. Good luck and keep us posted with updates!

 

[macraven]

i hope your husband gets better.
crohn's is pretty serious.

 

[Melanie230]

Well today is another one of those busy days. I have been scanning eBay for a while and finally found some MNSSHP tickets for the dates we are looking to go. Hopefully I will get a good deal. eBay used to make me nervous, now they protect your purchase, so if the tickets aren’t legit…I get my money back! I am one that will figure out what a great deal is, stick to that number, and if I lose, I will just move on. It would be nice to save a few bucks!

Matt (DH) is on the mend. Looks like he has been able to catch this flare pretty quickly and will be fine. Whew…dodged that bullet. Now just to put the weight back on him that he lost, and we will be set.

Kids are fried with school. Always happens about this time. We are down to just 6 more school days after today. They are so ready to be out. I got them off to school this morning and started working on my travel binder. Yes…I have a big pink binder; inside there is a SpongeBob folder, and a Disney Princess folder. Depending on where we are headed depends on which folder I will be working out of. I made sure everything we need is printed and in order of which we will need it. I swear…I am not this organized in life…only when we are headed South do I get this organized. It amazes me how much stuff I collect that I need, if I didn’t have this binder…we would be in big trouble. I also include printed day calendar sheets. I take one out every morning and make little notes while we are in the park. Funny things that happen or what rides we did that day. I have always saved this for the kids to see when they are older. I still have the printed confirmation of every trip we have taken since 2006.

Today I have my doctor’s apt, then off to the mall to pick up a couple of things for the trip, then baseball tonight. Tomorrow we take our little monkey girl Goldie to the vet. I am dreading it. It is so difficult to make a decision, when I see her still wagging her tail from time to time. Yet I also see this look of sadness on her face everyday. Her stomach is just so large now, and the thought of her suffering is worse than the thought of putting her to sleep. I am relieved that our vet is just such an amazing man and I know he will tell us what is the right thing to do either way.

This weekend is going to be crazy. We are entering the final week before we leave. This will be the toughest week to keep our travel plans from the kids. So much to do in this last week I am not sure how we will get it all done. Hopefully the craziness will make the time go by faster and we will be on our way!

 

[reelmom]

I hope everything goes well tomorrow at the vet. Our pets become part of the family and it is never an easy decision to make. Sending pixie dust your way for Goldie.

So glad to hear that your DH is feeling better.

 

[RAPstar]

Sending out good vibes for your puppy. Can't wait to hear about your kids' reaction!!

 

[keishashadow]

terrible timing poor pooch & hubby!

btw, how is your daughter feeling? wasn't she going to have some tests run?

 

[Melanie230]

She has neurofibromatosis but it is not progressing. No nodules on her eyes or brain. WHEW! Best part of this testing was that we found out she needed glasses BADLY! Poor kid was 20/80. So she is wearing glasses and we go back to the neurologist in 6 months!

 

[AJA]

Loving your pre trip report!!

 

[Melanie230]

Wow..crazy couple of days! First of all, we took our beloved Golden to the vet and the good news is, she is ok for now. She does however have dementia. Yes, doggie dementia, and some pretty bad arthritis. The wandering around and hiding are due to the dementia, and the panting is due to the pain. So we have changed her over to dog food made with nothing but fish, and some glucosamine.

It is amazing when you are about to go on vacation everyone wants their hair done. I used to hair years ago but still have some clients that like to come to my house. It is nice to have just a few extra dollars before you go on vacation! So today I spent most of the day doing hair, and decided the husband and kids needed a haircut.

Matt (DH) and I have decided that we need to start being subliminal. Last night during dinner, we watched E.T., and then Men In Black came on. I took our Disney Halloween coffee mug to work with me on Friday. We will continue with the little clues. I think it is starting to work, because Lauren (DD) told my mother today that she was wishing that we could take our Universal trip that Mommy won now, and not next summer. I said…”What made you think of that?” She said…”I don’t know….I was just thinking about it!” I swear….I must have had the funniest smirk on my face, and my mother got a good chuckle out of it!

So much to do this week to stay ahead of the kids! They only have one more week of school left and we are officially on break! I have to work 2 days, testify in court, end of quarter teacher meeting, 2 baseball games, Matt’s birthday, packing, cleaning, picking up my mother in law on Saturday from the airport. So much to do and so little time!

We have decided on how we will reveal where we are really going. I am going to print out the Universal Orlando logo on some card stock. Also attach the Universal Gift Card that we got them and put them in individual envelopes. I will get the camera out and start the filming! Matt will give the kids their *train tickets* they will need to go to Charlotte Great Wolf Lodge, and tell them to open up the envelopes to make sure they each have their own ticket. When they open it they will see where we are really going! I can’t wait to see their faces! We are going to have 2 very happy kids!!! I can’t believe we are down to 8 days until we leave!
To be continued!