![\"Surprise](\"https:\/\/cdn.whatsgabycooking.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/surprise_vacay.jpg\")
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For those of you who are new here \u2013 let\u2019s start at the beginning. Surprise vacation\u00a0has been a longstanding Dalkin family tradition since we were kids. It started when I was 9, my sister was 6, and\u00a0my parents would throw us birthday parties. Now that I\u2019ve thrown a party or two, I know how much work they can be, PLUS add in some screaming and crying children, ummmmm NO.\u00a0So my parents decided to do away with\u00a0the birthday parties and instead they\u2019d plan a surprise vacation for us each year.<\/p>\n
So what\u2019s a surprise vacation you ask? IT\u2019S A SURPRISE. And it\u2019s basically the highlight of my year. I even like it more than my birthday\/birth month which is really saying a lot. I\u2019m obsessed. They plan a vacation for us and we get somewhere in the realm of 8-10 clues each year and we have to figure out where we are going. Some years we\u2019ve figured it out, others we\u2019re totally surprised. One thing is always certain\u2026. I\u2019m always wrong. My sister sometimes figures it out, my husband has been known to do the same\u2026 but I\u2019m always, without fail, 100% wrong. I think it\u2019s because I have this burning desire to go on safari in Africa and no matter what clues my parents send over I somehow make them fit into an African safari. BUT… that will soon be resolved because we are going on safari next spring. So it’s safe to safe we can rule out Africa for this years surprise.<\/p>\n
ANYWAYS\u2026 since we were kids, we\u2019ve been getting everyone involved. My tennis coach, friends of friends, parents, professors, you guys!! I mean, it\u2019s basically a puzzle for anyone I know. So I\u2019ll be sharing the clues here as they roll in (roughly one a week) and I\u2019ll just continue to update this post so you don\u2019t have to search high and low for the latest clues. Ready\u2026 Clue\u2019s are officially rolling in:<\/p>\n
Clue #1<\/strong> Getting There, Getting Where?: Flying always has a cost; maybe I can get it waived.<\/p>\n Clue #2<\/strong>\u00a0The second half of an abbreviated Very Wise Night, thus short but sweet.<\/p>\n Clue #3<\/strong>\u00a0Yea, Yea, Yea, Blah, Blah, Blah; go fetch. Always a great day.<\/p>\n Clue #4<\/strong> He wasn’t totally wrong, nor one of the pair, but he integrated well.<\/p>\n Clue #5\u00a0<\/strong>Ex Top Dog TJ’s and the Jim’s neighbors, down the hill amongst the trees; and arriving ahead of schedule. Always a good time!<\/p>\n Clue #6<\/strong> \u00a0A city, town, village, municipality or other? I don’t know but : It makes watching grass grow more exciting, especially looking down at it from the hills.<\/p>\n Clue #7<\/strong>\u00a0Next to Peter’s Pointer, then all together something like “You’ve Got Mail”<\/p>\n Clue #8<\/strong>\u00a0After the winter thaw, they come outside to enjoy the sun and warming weather. More than a dozen of them, frolicking and playing, a wonderful spectacle for all who want to enjoy.<\/p>\n Clue #9<\/strong> We cannot have a Christmas-time Surprise Vacation without a Christmas clue: The three Magi, on the back of their mounts, following the star above the mountains, into Bethlehem to see the babe.<\/p>\n A bit of inside scoop:<\/p>\n We’re going over winter break for about 7 days. That includes travel time.<\/p>\n Here are our surprise\u00a0trips from the past so we can cross those off the list as we think of ways to decipher the clues.<\/p>\n 2015 – Costa Rica\u00a0–\u00a0(click on over to see clues and my parents\u00a0clues<\/a> and\u00a0commentary<\/a> on this trip!) 2016 here we come!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s my most favorite time of the year!! SURPRISE VACATION is a few weeks away and it\u2019s time to put on your detective hats! […]<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n2014 – Orcas Island + Vancouver + Whistler<\/a>\u00a0(click on over to see clues and my parents\u00a0clues and\u00a0commentary on this trip!)
\n2013 – Nat Geo Cruise through\u00a0Alaska<\/a>\u00a0(click on over to see clues and my parents\u00a0clues and\u00a0commentary on this trip!)
\n2012 – Road Trip through\u00a0France<\/a>\u00a0(click on over to see clues and my parents\u00a0clues and\u00a0commentary on this trip!)
\n2011 – Bahamas
\n2010 – Skipped a year and went to Berlin, Prague, Budapest and Vienna but it wasn’t a surprise
\n2009 – Banff, Canada
\n2008 – none of us can remember where we went this year! whoops \ud83d\ude42
\n2007 – Italy
\n2006 – Turkey
\n2005 – Greece
\n2004 – England + Scotland
\n2003 – Cancun, Mexico
\n2002 – Hawaii (Big Island)
\n2001 – Napa \/ Sonoma
\n2000 – Los Angeles
\n1999 – New York
\n1998 – Washington DC
\n1997 – Las Vegas
\n1996 – Texas
\n1995 – Disney World<\/p>\n