Surprising Kids with WDW Trip!?!?!

[jaredkari]

Ok here is the deal....my wife and I are taking her sister's family to WDW in early January. The two girls (7 and 4) do not know anything about the trip. On Christmas morning we are going to tell them. We were planning on having them unwrap something but we still haven't figured out what? We thought about maybe just little stuffed Mickey's with a note or maybe a big box with a Mickey balloon that would float out of the box with a note attached. I was wondering if anyone else had any ideas or suggestions??
Thanks

[cal5755]

How about making a homemade movie.... I was thinking of doing this when I surprise my kids DEC. 09. You could have them unwrap it and then watch it all together. If that is what I do I am going to put it in the DVD player as we leave the driveway. Or a handmade book with a story of how Auntie and Uncle wanted to take a special trip... and include the names of the family with the ending being all of you going and the date you are leaving.

I like the idea of the balloon with a note floating out of the box too.

[disneymom15]

I also like the balloon idea. How about putting the balloon inside a piece of luggage.

[Donald]

I wrapped a balloon in a box for my nephew's birthday: he said it was like a party in a box!

No matter how you decide to surprise your nieces, it is going to be the best surprise ever!!

Have fun with it!

[Disneyfun]

I surprised both my wife and our best friends children last Christmas. This is how I did it:

The kiddos - We were staying on property so I arranged to have Mickey call on Christmas Day. They have a prerecorded message from the big cheese where he wishes a merry Christmas and talks about how he is so excited to have you there! It was great! The looks on their faces (4 & 2) were priceless when they heard his voice! Granted, we had to explain what it really meant, but it was fun!

For DW - I secretly arranged for an extra day staying at our favorite resort WL in the villas!!! After the call from Mickey, I gave her her Christmas card and inside I had arranged a series of photos that I had on file leading from the entrance of the resort, through the lobby, down the walkway to the villas, and eventually the Welcome Home sign! She liked her gift... a lot! She screamed when she figured it out!

[wdw_bound]

We surprised DD for her 8th birthday (trip was a few weeks away). She received a hat box (got it at Target) full of paper easter basket grass. At the very bottom was a note telling her to go to another location in the house. At that location was a small gift, and a note sending her to another location, and on the back of the not was part of a word. All of the notes put together spelled out You are going to Disney World in three weeks. The gifts were all fairly cheap, and related somehow to WDW (a kite representing Soarin, a plastic animal figurine representing AK, etc.). It took her about an hour to track down all the clues and then put the words together. It was great fun, especially at the end, when she refused to believe that what the clues spelled out could be true.

What a great Aunt and Uncle you are! Hope you have a great trip!

[Grumpy's Daughter]

We are surprising our kids on Christmas morning as well! We have 3 DS's- ages 10, 7, and 3. My game plan is to have them each open a box- in order:

DS10- "You are going on vacation"

DS7- "Tomorrow"

DS3- in his box is a Pal Mickey (already purchased).

I think that they'll get the idea!

I just hope that we can keep the secret for another 2 months- we've kept it a secret for the past 5....

[Momof2boys]

We surprised our boys twice - it was pretty easy. Once we videotaped them on our way to the airport and told them. The other time we wrote them a poem.

They love to plan as well, so now our planning is a family affair.

[Ropachs]

Your balloon idea is awesome! Just make sure the box is opened in a room with lower ceilings or that the balloon has a long string.
We've kept our secret 6 months now, we leave Wednesday and are telling DS that morning, but still haven't figured out exactly how! (I've bought Mickey things but am still trying to figure out something else...nothing like the last minute!!)

[jonsmom]

We are leaving on Dec 18th. As soon as my DS gets off the school bus, we are headed for the airport. I think/hope he will be surprised.

A couple of years ago, we surprised him again....we had a video of wishes playing on the computer monitor. That didnt really connect with him.

[jaredkari]

Thanks for all the tips... I think I am going to go with the balloon idea, BUT I am going to have a scavenger hunt. The balloon might be the first clue then hide gifts throughout the house. And I like the idea of a video at the end. Actually I have a program where I can superimpose pictures of the kids in with pictures and video from WDW hopefully they will get the idea. Thanks

[cal5755]

you have to let us know how it goes. I am planning a surprise trip in 14 months and am eager to see how this works for you!

[senderella]

I surprised my youngest DS (7 at the time) with a trip to the first Pirates and Princess Party. I had his bag packed and car loaded. I picked him up from school and showed him a plastic bottle "I had found". In the bottle was a treasure note with a series of clues that suggested we were going to WDW right then. He was so surprised he didn't believe me that we were leaving in a few minutes. My mom and I actually had to take him out to the car and show him it was packed. The video is priceless.
I think any surprise is going to be great. The look on your nieces faces will be magic!
Have fun