OK… so my 5 year old has been asking for a drum kit for over a year and a half now. My wife decided that he has shown enough interest and bought a used 7 piece set for him for Christmas. (I know, I know… crazy… but I play guitar and alot of music so she’s kinda used to it but I don’t think she realizes how loud they really are!)
Anyway, we’ve decided they can’t be under the tree because they are too big and will be a distraction from everything else, so we will reveal them last. They will be set up in the basement and we are trying to come up with how we can get him to go down there.
I was thinking of some kind of clue or a gag gift that would clue him in to go down there. I’m drawing a blank right now. I could wrap a set of sticks or the bass drum pedal but I was hoping to come up with something more fun.
Anybody got any ideas?
Put a card in a small box that says look down stairs. You could put the drum sticks in the box too, but then he may not find the note. In this case the disappointment factor kicks in because he thinks he only got drum sticks. I would just put a large note in the box.
…except he’s 5 years old, he can’t read yet!
Don’t they make greeting cards now on which you can record a message? Maybe get a Santa type voice to tell your son to look in the basement? Ho ho ho!
What fun! I wish I still had a Santa believer. Not to hijack but I just came across to/froms from years ago, I had a neighbor write to ‘finally son’ from ‘finally’ because the stinker would have recognized my writing from about age 3.
Make a picture scavenger hunt. The box he opens has a picture of coats in a closet. In the closet there is an envelope with a picture of the fridge. In the fridge …
Eventually, he gets down to the basement.
This. When the nephews were little we sent them on a scavenger hunt for their presents (one received a trumpet, the other a trombone). We had clues in a box of oatmeal, in a birdhouse in the backyard, tied around the cats’ collar… I think there was a total of 8 places the needed to go to until they were directed to where their presents were. IIRC, we did stash little presents along the way - Silly Putty, Matchbox cars.
Maybe not so many stops, and using pics for a nonreader should work well.
However you chose to do the big reveal, make sure you video it!
Do you have a second kid you could get in on it? My mother used to announce that she had “forgotten” one of my brother’s presents somewhere and would send me to go get it on the porch or front closet. It would turn out to be the box for my new bike or a dollhouse or something. It happened vice versa a couple times, too. It requires you letting the other kid in on it so they aren’t disappointed the surprise wasn’t for them.
I also like the picture scavenger hunt. Or could you get a little toy drum with a ribbon leading to the basement door?