First of all though... let's get right to it -
It all started last December with the blah's of winter and, well, life, actually. People always say they're going to take that dream vacation "someday," but the problem with "someday" is that it usually never happens... we get busy with life and work, sports, school, etc., and never take the time to plan the things we thought we really wanted to do. Pretty soon you're 50, and wondering where the hell time went and why the hell didn't you just DO it? So the seed was planted, and it grew, and grew, and grew... my new obsession was born. Hey, we all need a hobby, right?
The first idea was to take a cruise - I know... very original. But to somebody who's never been on one, it sounded pretty darn exciting! We had to pick a date far enough out to let us realistically save for it, and yet find a date that didn't interfere with hunting season. I know, funny, right? But it's MJK's passion, so we have to respect that! That's how we ended up at the end of November, 2010.
I'm going to skip a lot of detail here and get right to my beautiful kids, KRK and EMK - the best kids in the world, and I feel soo stinkin blessed to be their mom. We wanted to WOW them, shock them, and make this a vacation they will never ever forget. So after some discussion with MJK and well, a LOT of internet research, we decided to plan a week in Orlando at Loews Royal Pacific Resort, then jump on Carnival's newest, biggest, most luxurious cruise ship, Carnival Dream, for another week! We decided to keep the cruise a surprise for the kids! Honestly, I can't believe it's still a secret!
While we (oh who am I kidding...), no, I planned the details of the first week in Orlando, we never told the kids a thing. Yes, I am the family travel agent. MJK is happy to just show up. That's ok with me though because I bounce everything off him anyway and we actually get to do what I want. Teehee, but he'd let me know if he didn't like my ideas. He usually does, though, so it all works out.
Much thought was put into how we would tell the kids about the vacation... but it soon became clear how to spring it on 'em. MJK and EMK developed a new hobby this past summer - Geocaching - and the perfect surprise plan was born.
Geocaching (pronounced geo-cashing) is a worldwide game of hiding and seeking treasure. A geocacher can place a geocache anywhere in the world, pinpoint its location using GPS technology and then share the geocache's existence and location online. Anyone with a GPS device can then try to locate the geocache.
It's like a big scavenger hunt - and lots of fun. You never know what you'll find in the box - we've found things like trading cards, certificates for ice cream at the local parlor, sillybands, hotwheels, etc. You always sign the logbook, and the premise is that if you take something from the cache, you leave something behind as well. This past summer the boys ended up spending many an afternoon searching for local caches... good quality family bonding time, I say. MJK and EMK liked it way more than KRK and I did, but it DID provide the perfect way to surprise the kids with our vacation plans! I ended up making a card addressed to them describing our vacation (the first week only, of course) and we put it in a cache for them to find!
We went to the Hogbacks, a beautiful country wilderness area near our home, to find an elusive geocache that we hadn't been able to find earlier in the week. MJK and EMK had searched for it again on July 16 (thank god for dates on pictures...) and MJK secretly placed our vacation announcement inside it. After work that day we announced to the kids we wanted to give this geocache one last try, and the search was on! My heart was beating so fast as we approached it, and I was just ridiculously excited to tell the kids.
When the kids opened the cache, there were all kinds of other goodies in there, and it took them awhile to actually read the envelope that had their names on it. They looked at us sort of puzzled, with silly grins on their faces that said, "what are you guys up to?"
When they actually read the card, they were shocked! They didn't jump up and down and scream as I'd hoped they would, but then again, that's the sort of thing that I would do, not them. They're a bit more reserved, shall we say. I'm probably the goofball of the family. But their smiles were miles wide, and they were thrilled! As the idea sunk in, they got more and more excited about it!
That excitement kept them going for weeks, and MJK and I continued to scheme and plan for part II of our Dream vacation! Hard to believe it's almost here!
