Shhhhhhh, It's a SECRET......... (still)

[kaykels]

Torturing the kids is part of the fun of planning the trip! My kids don't know about our September 12th cruise. Three years ago I put the kids in the car and told them we were going to a boring convention at the New Jersey shore. They were all packed, but not all that excited. After all, it was the end of September and not the best weather. They were glad to be getting away, but figured they would spend an awful lot of time in their hotel room. I told they that whoever spotted the bridge first would win a prize. (We live in PA. and need to cross a bridge to get to Jersey). Well, needless to say.... there was no bridge. I was driving and my husband got them going when I passed the "Welcome to Delaware" sign. He said, "Where are you going, this is the wrong way". The kids faces were a riot. First we had them on video looking for the bridge... then the horror that we were going the wrong way. THEN POP POP TOLD THEM WE WEREN'T GOING TO THE SHORE. Then their faces really twisted up. We had Disney music playing on the radio but they didn't get it yet. FINALLY WE ALL YELLED, "WE'RE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD. WE'LL BE DRIVING ALL NIGHT AND WE'LL BE THERE IN THE MORNING."
It was one of the best moments of my life because my 8 year old started crying with tears of joy. My other daughter screamed and cheered with happiness .........for about 10 minutes and then we didn't see her awake again until Georgia! The video is PRICELESS and one the best surprises anybody can give a child!

 

[izzinmac]

I think in today's world you probably are guilty of child abuse!!! And since you are crossing state lines in the process, it is probably a federal offense!!! Keep up the good work!!!

 

[dizprincess27]

Hi everyone,

I'm surprising my 11 yr old dd for Christmas and I'd love to not tell her at all until we leave but she's too much of a diva and I'd have to come up with alot more x-mas presents to be able to afford our 12 day vacation in the Spring LOL !!! One of my friends did a treasure hunt for her girls and hid little clues all around the house until they found the tix!! She said it was a blast. It is fun to surprise the kids or is it more fun trying to hold it in

 

[*Huey*]

I just booked an eastern (4/30/05) a month ago and am planning on surprising my DD. She'll be 9 at sailing and we go to jetty park about twice a month to watch all the ships leave. She knows we'll eventually go, but I swear I can't afford it for a few years (Because if I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it RIGHT!)

Going to give her one scrabble tile and a small cruise related gift everyday leading up to our depart date. I won't let her keep the tiles (she'd unscramble them and figure it out right away!!) THen on one of our Saturday morning beach visits, we'll go to Perkins for breakfast and I'll pull out all of the tiles and have her unscramble them to figure it out. I'd like it to be a surprise up until we go to the port so I might just say "A cruise" because Disney was just too expensive. And then "Oops! we went to the wrong dock!"

I have 11 months to figure it out. I just have to have optimal videography opportunities (so I can get her reaction before she figures it out!)! SHe's used to a camera in her face!

 

[Cruise04]

That is so cool!!! We tried to keep our very first trip a secret but then decided that we needed my dd's input on some stuff (actually we just couldn't keep quiet any longer to tell you the truth ). So I admire people that can do this!!!!! Please do report in when you get back. And make sure you have a camera ready when they figure it out!

NO....don't spring the cruise on them at dinner Friday night. Maybe tell them that on Saturday you are going to Cocoa Beach to spend a few days at the beach and at Cape Canaveral or something. Then on Sat when you actually get near port and drive to the parking lot the surprise will still be there!!!!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Hey Huey--how close do you live to the port...

We live close, or so I thought--I wish hubby would tolerate saying goodbye to the cruise ships every now and then. I just love going over there.

In any case--all those who are in the surprise process--please post your results when you return from your cruise.

 

[Mjasp]

I am so enjoying this thread. I would love to have done this, but it would have never happened. DD 12 reads these boards.

 

[sters]

Just a thought, and not meaning to be a spoilsport, but might the offspring be disappointed after planning out their days at the theme parks? I know that for some people (particularly obsessive-compulsive planners), a change in plans, no matter how great, might leave them feeling flat. I only mention it because once my mother planned a surprise house-warming shower for her spinster friend (well, there is no other way to describe her!). The ploy was to pick up a friend for a play, but instead everyone said "surprise!" and she was, but not in a good way. She had been looking forward to the play and was deeply disappointed, and is showed. Because she was ungracious (only because she was shocked and disappointed anc couldn't recover from it quickly), the party planners felt cheated, too. They had sooooo wanted her to be happy and it was a very unexpected outcome.

I would just hate to see you put all this effort into a ploy only to have this really great gift fall flat.

Good luck... and bon voyage!

 

[PiperG]

Our Eastern cruise in January is a surprise for DS7. We will pick him up from school on Friday and fly out to Orlando. I suggested that we tell DS he has an appt with the MD. Of course, he knows where the MD office is located, so eventually he will ask where we are going.

At that point, I thought about pulling out one of the postcards we kept from our last Wonder trip. It has Minnie and Mickey standing on the deck of the ship. He will get it right away. Hopefully I have the camera ready to capture the look on his face!

 

[BLBCB]

We are planning on taking our kids to WDW, and my husband really wanted to try a cruise. We decided to surprise our kids, DD 13, DD 11, DS 9 (at time of cruise in Jan). This whole trip will be a surprise Christmas present. I have been planning how I can wrap everything up, starting with the plane tickets first. They will see where they are going, but not notice the date right away probably. Next I will have a package filled with Universal stuff, then one with WDW, and finally the cruise. We come from the far north of Manitoba, Canada, and it is about a 13 hour or so drive to the nearest international airport, so any trip is quite an adventure! As far as they know, we are going to be going down to visit with family for Christmas. I work at their school, so I will make arrangements for them to be away, but not let on why. It's a small town, everybody knows everybody, and I so I can't tell anyone or the secret will be out. Because of how isolated we are, it isn't that odd for people to take their kids out of school for trips. Anyway, the kids will open their "presents", and we will leave for the drive to Winnipeg that night or the next morning. We went to WDW before, and they said they wished they hadn't known about it so far ahead (3 months), because it was just too hard to wait. I don't think that will be a problem this time! What will be a problem is trying to keep the secret for another 8 months!!!!!

 

[*Huey*]

I live in Melbourne. Used to live on Merritt Island and would see the Magic & Wonder as I crossed the 528 causeway everyday after work. . .

It's been about a month since we've been to jetty park. We've spent the last few weekends camping and going to a lake in Orlando (I think it will be too hard to keep it a secret if I can't remain composed when the Magic passes by!) The first time we went after I officially booked, I zoomed the video camera on "our" porthole on deck 7 and my daughter really questioned me. My argument was that if we do go, we're going in a room with a view! Too close...

I think I will probably tell her we're going to stay a whole week in Orlando (we usually stay in Kissimmee on Sat. night when we go on our weekend jaunts to the parks.) I do think that she might be a little taken off guard if she doesn't get to plan for a weeklong trip. She might get bent out of shape if we go for what she thinks is only a day and it turns into a week away. I would not like it . . . afterall!

I'm secretly reading my new passporter and doing mini happy dances! I'm going to get busted if I don't watch it!