Items to put into a basket to surprise the kids?

[Cape Breton Grl]

I am making up a basket to surprise the kids with a trip to Disney....so far the items I have are an autograph book and a Mickey & Minnie Mouse towel...can anyone suggest somthing else to put into the basket??? :xmas:

 

[Nemo14]

I am making up a basket to surprise the kids with a trip to Disney....so far the items I have are an autograph book and a Mickey & Minnie Mouse towel...can anyone suggest somthing else to put into the basket??? :xmas:

What ages are the kids?

 

[HouCuseChickie]

please also give gender info as some of the neat surprise stuff is gender specific.

 

[Cape Breton Grl]

What ages are the kids?

Sorry about that....the ages are 11 and 4....boy and girl

 

[ml123_9]

How about having a personalized shirt made for each one and personalized mouse ears

 

[Nemo14]

Disney PJ's or swimsuits? Do you have the planning DVD? - Maybe the 11 year-old would get a kick out of that, and the 4 year old a new Disney movie? The 11-year-old might appreciate a Disney gift card, or even a guide book. Check your local grocery store for Disney character-shaped snacks. I've found a lot of inexpensive Disney stuff at WalMart and Dollar Tree around here, but I'm not sure that you have those up there.

 

[slappy magoo]

Is it the basket that's a surprise? Or the whole trip? I'm assuming the latter, in which case, this would be more for the 11 year old than the 4, but get a map, circle roughly where your town is, with "You Are Here." And another mark where WDW is (and then maybe draw a castle and Mickey Mouse ears, in case it's too small to see WDW on the map) and write "You WILL BE HERE." Include the dates of the trip, and a dotted line between "there" and "here" with a drawing of your mode of transportation, be it car or plane or train or bus or whatever...

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Disney Silly Bandz (I think they're actually made by a different company). I've seen Mickey & Friends, Toy Story, Princess, Fairies, and Cars.

There are a few companies that make kids planning books/guides that your 11 yr old might enjoy. We have an old one back from the mid 90s where the kids do the reviews of all of the rides, food, parades, etc.

I agree that Walmart and dollar stores often have some inexpensive Disney goods that would be nice things to add... just saw some $5 princess music sets the other day. Depending on when you are planning on doing this - Disney Store may have some decent after Christmas sales.

If you're looking for a Disney movie...a dual DVD with both Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 is coming out of the vault on Nov 30th. Of course, it's probably going to be the censored version of Fantasia, but I doubt the kids will care and some people prefer it.

My personal fave- Disney music. The box sets and the greatest volumes have some awesome music. One of ours has Baroque Hoedown- so the kids are ready for MSEP.

And finally- you might consider getting a Disney cookie cutter set and make Disney character shaped cookies...maybe even turn it into sort of a cookie bouquet.

 

[DisneyPrincess5]

Aww what a great idea!

I bet they'll love Minnie and Mickey mouse ears-then they an wear them in the park!

Have a great trip!

 

[Tiggerfanatic]

Clicky Sharpies for the autograph books, lanyards and some pins to start trading (you can get these fairly cheaply on E-Bay); drawstring Disney backpacks (again, E-Bay), Disney gift cards, the Birnbaum's Disney Guide for Kids, Disney stickers, coloring/puzzle books for the trip.

 

[DisneyChik17]

I agree with all of the above:

• Ears
• Autograph Books
• Park Maps
• Planning guides
• T-shirts
• Pins
• Silly Bandz
• A countdown of some sort

Anything that they can touch and is associated with Disney is good. The trip is so intangible, that giving them the tangibles will really make it real for them.

 

[SAV]

A small Mickey or Minnie stuffed animal.

Disney Markers or crayons for the coloring books.

Check your local Dollar Store...they seem to have quite a bit of Disney stuff.

 

[NiarrNDisney]

As a few others have mentioned deffinetley check out your local Dollar Tree, they have many disney themed items but here are a few more i didnt see mentioned

Kroger Grocery - In my town they are called King Soopers but they are owned my the Kroger grocer brand so you may want to check for you local Kroger brand carrier. Anyway I have found a bunch of Disney food, from Cool aid to ice cream and even Mickey and Pooh shaped raviolis.

Target - Check out the $1 bins toward the front of the store, I have found charecter themed socks, toys, markers and notebooks et. al. You may find some great finds!

Party City - They have a few areas devoted to Disney kid themed party supplies so give them a look over. I have also noticed that they sell ears, Disney costumes, and other Pixar and Disney franchise merch.

Hope this helps! :wave:

 

[GOT2SAMMIES]

You didn't say when you are going but how about a Disney Beach Towel? If you are going to give them some spending money then how about a Disney gift card? I always make a "good" jar....doing chores and things around the house (other than what is expected) and then I put some dollars in the jar. When the trip comes he has all the spending money he earned:wave:

 

[todpatcam]

Our 9 yr old son loves pin trading; you can get really good deals on Ebay for both.

Zipper pulls are cool for thier backpacks.

Maybe postcards whihc can be ready to be filled out for when you arrive at WDW.

Have a great trip!!!

 

[GenerationX]

Shiny pennies and a roll of quarters. Alternatively, you could give them a stack of dirty pennies and clean them together at home. Either way, they'll have fun smooshing the pennies while on your trip, and they'll have cool souvenirs to bring home.

 

[becanya]

My recommendation would be to get them a starter set of pins they will love, and a bag of throwaway ones they could trade (by throwaway I mean not their favorite characters. Make sure you get a lanyard. Also...what about a book where they can keep track of hidden mickey's?

 

[ddbowdoin]

is it the basket that's a surprise? Or the whole trip? I'm assuming the latter, in which case, this would be more for the 11 year old than the 4, but get a map, circle roughly where your town is, with "you are here." and another mark where wdw is (and then maybe draw a castle and mickey mouse ears, in case it's too small to see wdw on the map) and write "you will be here." include the dates of the trip, and a dotted line between "there" and "here" with a drawing of your mode of transportation, be it car or plane or train or bus or whatever...

that's a wicked idea!

 

[mycatspot]

We are planning to do this, too, for a Christmas family trip. Leaving December 18th, we are going to surprise them on the night before with a basket from Mickey Mouse. My kids are 10 and 11, so I would love to see ideas for pre-teens who might not want a t-shirt. I've ordered Gift Cards with personal notes to each child from Mickey Mouse. Any other ideas for older kids?

 

[Thumbelina]

Everyone has all the right idea. Maybe some hats and sunglasses or hoodies depending on what time you go!

If its a surprise trip gotta make sure to video tape your kids when you tell them. I been watching Disney surprise trips on youtube all week and its so much fun to watch the reactions from the kids.