4kids4me Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Kids (dd10, ds9, dd5, ds2) will miss me being gone for 14 days. I'd love to pre-write daily letters so they have something from me daily. That could be a little boring. What could I do to spice it up? I'm thinking of giving them a special gift halfway through (initialized necklace, bracelet, or something like that), also I could include a picture with the card....any ideas? Thanks! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
readwithem Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 I've done the notes thing many times (during camp, and when I'd be traveling etc.). I tried to think how the day would go - dance, piano, whatever - and incorporate that into my note. Mainly I said "I love you and can't wait to see you" over and over :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 I got your note on my blog, but thought I would answer over here. :) At first I didn't think I would be able to come up with anything, and then I couldn't stop, LOL. You asked for it. :) Could you write your note on a piece of paper and then fold it origami style? It would be fun to give them an envelope of paper for them to try their hand at folding themselves. Try this website for folding ideas. Make a treasure map (you could even burn the edges to make it look authentic!) to find a gift somewhere in your house. You could do other fun pirate-themed stuff to go along with that. Could you burn a CD? If you could put your voice on it somehow, that would be best. Or burn a special song for each of the kids, writing in the note why you chose that song for them. Like a radio dedication. :) How about marking a manila file folder 'TOP SECRET' and writing your note with invisible ink or in code. Give them their own invisible ink pens or tell them to write their own notes in code. Create your own word search (super easy!) or crossword puzzle for them to solve. Create a treasure hunt in your house, sending them from note to note with something special at the end. That's it off the top of my head. I'll post more ideas when I think of them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 I thought of a couple more things: Could you find pictures of at least the older two from when they were little and put them in their card along with a funny little memory you have of them. The 5 yo might also appreciate that. I know Levi gets a kick out of me telling him what he was like or the funny way he said certain words when he was really little. What do your kids like to do? What are they interested in? Who is taking care of them while you're gone? Do they like to bake? Maybe you could put a cookie recipe in a card and make sure all the ingredients will be on hand. For the 2 yo and maybe the 5 yo you could pick out a bedtime story book, write a bedtime note in the front of it... maybe with your picture, and give it to them for their bedtime book while you are gone. Have a wonderful time on your trip! Are you going somewhere fun? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volty Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 The weather is here, wish you were beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Dh and I went away for about that long when the three oldest kids were little. I pre-recorded story tapes for them to listen to each night. We were reading the Beatrix Potter stories then, so I picked some that were the most fun and for which I could do fun voices. (Squirrel Nutkin is a lot of fun!) I also made a little scrapbook with pictures of our family and details about where we were going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chai Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 In addition to the notes, I've made a Pennies for Prizes sheet. Dd can earn pennies by doing certain chores and schoolwork. Then she can use the pennies to buy prizes. I've wrapped up a couple of books, coloring pages, DQ coupon, etc., and given them prices, so that she should be able to get a prize every other day or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Be sure to bring some postcard stamps so you can mail postcards while on your vacation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate in Arabia Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Wow, you are all great moms! My parents when on trips when I was little, and I think we got a phone call or two but that was about it.. oh, we got to see the umpteen slides of their trips when they got home, lol. Hope you have a great time, and have you already said somewhere where you are going? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Don't put me in the great moms catagory. I just came up with the ideas. I'm not saying my kids would get all those if I went on vacation. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy in Indy Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 We went on a 10-day missions trip to Kiev when my kids were 5 and 2. To help them understand the length of time we'd be gone AND to give them something to look forward to...I bought them a "gift" for every day we were gone. Most of them were dollar store kinds of things--just little things. The day we left, I gave them a bigger gift (stuffed animal). I also helped them make a paper chain, one link for every day we were gone. Every day they took a link off the chain and opened their gift. It was a good visual way for my young children to know when Mom and Dad were coming home. They're 20 and 17 now and still talk about how it helped them get through Mom and Dad being gone. And this Christmas when ds7 asked over and over and over again...how many days till Christmas??? We made a paper chain and he loved it--couldn't wait to get up in the morning and rip off that paper strip! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4kids4me Posted February 21, 2008 Author Share Posted February 21, 2008 My MIL is taking me on a 12-day Mediterranean cruise. That plus two days of travel and I'll be gone a full two weeks! Yikes! I'll miss the kids dearly, but babysitting couldn't be better. The first three day they're home with dad. Then the girls go to a friend's home (with their best friends) and the boys go to Nana's...for four days. Then three days home with Dad. Then the boys go to another friend's home (with buddies there, too), and the girls stay with Nana. I know they'll be loved to death, but they're all mama's kids, so they'll all miss me dearly! I can't wait! I was telling Heidi on her blog (which is wonderful, if you haven't ever been there...it's called Mt. Hope Chronicles!) that my MIL originally wanted to take me and her two daughters on a cruise (this was years ago). Then my FIL broke his foot and couldn't go on a Cuba vacation my MIL had already planned....so she went with one of my sils. Then she took the other sil on an Alaskan cruise (three years ago). That left me. I honestly didn't even think that she "owed" me something...after all, I'm only married into the family. One day she handed me a Caribbean cruise brochure and told me to take a look at the different cruises and pick one. I asked if her and my FIL were going. No, it was for me! So eventually I chose one and she then said, "You DO realize that all those Caribbean cities look the same after a while, right?" Well, no, I've never been, but *I'm* not going to complain about a wonderful vacation! She then said for almost the same amount of money we could go to the Mediterranean, and would I like that? YAH!!!!!!! Of course! So here we are...getting ready to go at the end of May. Thanks so much for your posts. I'm going to start working on all of these suggestions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted February 21, 2008 Share Posted February 21, 2008 How about a piece of chewing gum in with a note? At one point, I bought a book (from Chinaberry, I believe) that had half a dozen continuing stories on each tear out page. They were actually intended for lunch boxes as I recall, but I used them while my daughter was on a trip. Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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