Christmas time is the perfect time to create lasting memories for your family. This year my husband and I decided to do a Christmas scavenger hunt for our kids.
Every year we buy the kids one "big" Christmas gift. When they were younger, they were individual gifts like play kitchens, Fisher Price tool benches, and other large gifts like those. But the older they get, their "big" gifts aren't so big anymore.
Their big gifts now are only considered big because of the price tag.
We were blessed enough to be able to buy two "big" gifts per kid this year. One being an Apple iPad and the other was the Wii U.
We decided to give the iPads last after all their gifts and wait about 2 hours after all the excitement faded away a little bit (and all the wrapping paper had faded away too!) to give the Wii U.
There was only one problem. The Wii U had been hidden in the oven and it completely slipped my mind that I had cinnamon rolls that needed to be baked for Christmas breakfast. Major mom fail.
So about an hour later we decided to do our first scavenger hunt. And it was a HUGE success.
I thought I'd share the idea with you to give you some inspiration on creating your own fun memory. I'll be including my printable clues for free at the end of this post.
I understand some people won't be able to exactly do the hunt as we did, but even using a few from the hunt will maybe give you come ideas to create your own.
Keep in mind that our kids are 8, 6, and 3 so for older kids these might not work.
Here's how the scavenger hunt went:
Clue 1: This clue was wrapped in a shirt box under the tree. It directed them to our play room.
Clue 2: This clue directed them to the shower.
Clue 3: This clue directed them to the dryer.
Clue 4: This clue directed them to the garage.
Clue 5: This clue directed them to the oven. The gift was wrapped with a note attached.
You can rearrange the order of these clues in anyway you want or even leave out a few.
Just make sure the last clue directs them to where the gift is hidden. You can also leave the gift unwrapped as well, but we chose to wrap ours.
We folded all the clues and placed them in envelopes that we're wrapped with wrapping paper.
Here's what the clues were:
Clue 1: Don't be puzzled and don't you fear for this is not your gift this year. There's something special for all of you, but to find it you must follow the clues. The clues will lead you, don't you see? Find your first clue where you play the Wii.
Clue 2: Shampoo and soap make you squeaky clean, look inside here for your next clue to be seen.
Clue 3: You're halfway there, I'm not telling a lie. Go to the place where your clothes become dry.
Clue 4: Organized people park their car in here. but ours is all junk not once inch is clear.
Clue 5: This fun filled game we hope you're lovin, go find your next clue it's right in the _____.
Note attached to the gift: You've reached the end, now go open it and play. And we hope you always remember the magic of today.
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You can download all the clues here:
*There are two clues per page, except for the first one and the last one.
Just cut them out, place them in envelopes or boxes and you're ready to go!
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I wish I had taken more pictures of the scavenger hunt (and had better quality pictures) but I was actually recording it on video while my husband snapped some pictures with his phone.
Judging by the excitement on their little faces, I'd say they were pretty happy with their unexpected gift.
They spent the next few hours cozy on the couch in their christmas pajamas playing together and having a blast.
They got the gift they really wanted. And those smiles and the happiness they felt was just the gift I had asked for. We all win.
