Trevor asked us to make a scavenger/treasure hunt this year.
I’m thinking this is because last year there was a particular present he was expecting, but he didn’t get it. I had actually stuffed it (unwrapped) so deep into the tree that he couldn’t see it.
This was his expression when he finally saw it:
I guess he wanted to relive the experience and be surprised again. But how do you surprise someone when they are expecting it?
Hmmmm.
Trevor and Riley were both getting iPhones for Christmas this year, and they KNEW they were getting iPhones. In fact, they had gone to the store and purchased protective cases for their iPhones.
I think they expected the phones to just be handed to them on Christmas morning. Or open them in a giftbox or something.
Instead, I took the iPhones out of the packaging and put the new cases on them and put them in a secret storage spot until Christmas morning. I took the empty packaging/boxes and put them into a gift box, face down, so that they would open the box and think “yay! my phone and case!” and then be disappointed when they realize the packaging is empty. Bwah ha ha ha ha. I also made this package wrapped extra fancy, with a tag that said, “Open Last”. This way they would KNOW it’s their iPhone and be EXTRA disappointed to find empty boxes. [insert evil laugh here]
And they totally fell for it!
At first, Trevor was stunned and didn’t look past the empty packaging. Riley was the first to rip apart the box to see what else was in there.
At the very bottom of the box I taped a note:
CLUE #1:
Empty box? Don’t be sad!
Your gift is just hiding! There’s fun to be had!In this Christmas challenge you must work together,
solving these clues as sister and brother.Clue number one? It’s skinny and green.
It’s a Christmas tradition just waiting to be seen!
It’s the Christmas pickle!
First off, we have two fully decorated trees in our house, so after spending several minutes on the tree in the front room, I finally told them that it was on the tree in the Family Room.
I didn’t follow them in there- I knew it would be really hard to find. It’s a fake tree, so I managed to bend several of the branches inward to make a “nest” of sorts and conceal the pickle very well. It took them a long time to find it!
See the pickle? I had wrapped the clue into a small bead-shape and tied it around the string.
Riley also read the clue:
CLUE #2:
Hoping a stranger breaks into your house would normally be quite weird.
Except at Christmas when you want a visit from this old man with a beard!
This was another tricky clue, as we have several “Santa’s” throughout our home!
I felt bad about that, so in each “wrong” Santa’s beard, I tucked a note that simply said, “Wrong one, try another!”. I could have played this better, though. I put that clue in the same spot on each Santa, including on the “right” one. I should have made it harder to find.
I guess that didn’t matter anyway, because they searched him all over anyway!
CLUE #3:
If you’ve always wished that you could fly, you’ll be jealous of these things.
They are beautiful creatures from God and they have a set of wings!
Well, that one was easy. The kids split up and each tackled a tree:
I thought this next clue was funny….
CLUE #4:
Looking under a skirt is never fine, but it was OK for you to look under mine!
Now look under another, but not up high. This one is much lower, give the floor a try.
Did you figure it out? This one was REALLY confusing to them and took them forever. We had to keep telling them to re-read the last sentence. FINALLY, Riley figured it out!
CLUE #5:
This famous gathering is there for all to see.
With parents, shepherds, kings, animals and a baby.
Oh that was too easy. I had rolled up the clue into a tiny bead again and stuffed it into the opening underneath the ‘crown’. It almost got stuck! (Sadly, no picture of the manger.)
This kids read their next clue:
CLUE #6:
I’ll give you a break, this couldn’t be clearer, find the next clue attached to a mirror.
Apparently we are a vain family. We have FIFTEEN mirrors in our house! Once again I rolled the clue up into a tiny bead, and I taped this one to the full-length mirror in our bedroom, way high at the top. I had actually hung it several days earlier.
CLUE #7:
That was too easy! Now you must use your ears.
Try dialing your phone number to find your Christmas Cheer!
Yep- they had to call their own phone and listen for the ring! Neither kid knew what their ringtone would be, which made it extra fun.
I hid Riley’s phone behind one of the curtains in the family room and I hid Trevor’s phone behind the library books. Again, this was something that needed to be hidden before Christmas morning so the kids wouldn’t see me hiding them.
Best. Christmas. Ever.
Here’s a recap of all the clues I used:
Clue #1 (in the gift box):
Empty box? Don’t be sad!
Your gift is just hiding! There’s fun to be had!
In this Christmas challenge you must work together,
solving these clues as sister and brother.
Clue number one? It’s skinny and green.
It’s a Christmas tradition just waiting to be seen!
Clue #2 (hiding with the Christmas Pickle):
Hoping a stranger breaks into your house would normally be quite weird.
Except at Christmas when you want a visit from this old man with a beard!
Clue #3 (hiding on a Santa Claus):
If you’ve always wished that you could fly, you’ll be jealous of these things.
They are beautiful creatures from God and they have a set of wings!
Clue #4 (hiding under the angel’s dress):
Looking under a skirt is never fine, but it was OK for you to look under mine!
Now look under another, but not up high. This one is much lower, give the floor a try.
Clue #5 (hiding under the tree skirt):
This famous gathering is there for all to see.
With parents, shepherds, kings, animals and a baby.
Clue #6 (hiding in the manger scene):
I’ll give you a break, this couldn’t be clearer, find the next clue attached to a mirror.
Clue #7 (taped to a mirror):
That was too easy! Now you must use your ears.
Try dialing your phone number to find your Christmas Cheer!
Aaaaand…they dial their number!
Elisa's Ramblings 