There's something that's been quite the fancy around our house the last couple weeks.
Treasure hunts.
I love this activity because a) supplies are minimal; b) it doesn't take me too much time to set up; c) all three kids can work together... (or, more accurately, the boys work together and Sophie tags along behind them repeating whatever she heard them say....but it works), and d) everyone has a blast.
The other day, Travis begged most of the evening for one more treasure hunt. I told him we could do one last one before bed, but that they would have to go brush their teeth first, because as soon as the treasure hunt was over, it was straight to bed for them.
He reluctantly agreed, and the kids headed to the upstairs bathroom.
Oh no!! Their toothbrushes were missing!! And in their place, this note.....
....from the evil Captain Hook. (The boys have been watching a Disney Neverland show and like to pretend to be Neverland pirates quite frequently.) Captain Hook had stolen their toothbrushes, and it was up to them to follow the clues to find them before the toothbrushes were destroyed FOREVER !!!! (duh duh duuuuuuuuuuuuuuhn)
The first clue led them to a toy mailbox, where a second clue waited inside.
(My goal was to try to snap the pictures of the actual clues, but the kids were too excited and too speedy for that to happen. You'll just have to trust me that a clue was there.)
Next, downstairs to the ottoman, where we store all the Wii crap.
This clue instructed them to find an Elmo toy on the bookshelf and look inside.
Next, to a candle in front of the TV.
The dog food bowl!! (The dog was safely caged during this adventure.)
Hidden inside the Toy Story couch!
The next clue was at the dining room window. Can YOU find it?
This clue was their favorite. Track down your dad, and check his pockets!
Hmmmmm.... I think I saw Captain Hook getting a juice pouch right after he stole your toothbrushes!
And, he got a cup from the 'kids cup' drawer!
Maybe the toothbrushes are hidden in the stuffed animal tote!
Nope, just another clue that led them to a pretend movie theater!
Nope, how about try the pretend garage? (Oh yes, my house is STOCKED with old school Little People stuff. I'm not a fan of the new-fangled Little People. But the vintage stuff - LOVE it.)
The next clue led them to one of their pajama drawers.
No toothbrushes yet. Try the toy box.
The clues now led them to Sophie's room. Perhaps Elmo knows where the toothbrushes are.
Elmo instructed them to check the play refrigerator in Sophie's kitchen set.
What do you know??
The toothbrushes were there!!
BUT....no toothpaste.
Not to worry.
Toothpaste located in the oven.
One of my favorite things about the treasure hunts is watching Travis figure out how to set up his own. He's done quite a few, and is getting quite good. Here's a snapshot of some of his creativity at work:
"Captain Hook has stolen a glue stick, soon he is going to destroy it."
"X marks the spot"
"Captain Hook likes freezer pops" (clue hidden in freezer)
"He likes lab notebooks"
"Look in the front room"
"He likes the word up. Look up." (clue hidden on top of the piano)
"The refrigerator has milk. He likes milk."
"Look under here"
Ben says I'm likely turning him into some freakish mystery nut, a la the super-corny Mystery Team movie we watched on Netflix last night.
Which one of these is Travis, again?
Once again you prove to be a great mom.Love mimi
ReplyDelete