Thinking of surprising my OH

[Guest]

Hiya all,

Thinking of surprising my OH with a 3 day trip to DLP in March, we have been before and she loves it

Having been a few times with her I am planning on being very brave and doing all the kids packing/ her packing for her and just in the morning waking her up early and telling her we are going now

My question is ( to the females on the forum ), would that fill you with dread or excitement? I dont mean the actual surprise as I am 100% she would love the idea of going but that me ( her husband ) has done all the packing etc

Wondering if I am being too brave in springing it as a complete surprise

[Guest]

What a lovely idea, however the thought of my OH packing for my daughter and me would fill me with horror.

When he planned a similar trip (Weekend in Paris) he told we were going somewhere but not where. He picked out the clothes that he thought I would need and I then did all the bits that he had forgotten.
I still got a surprise when we got to the airport and found out the destination but was not worrying about what by OH had or had not packed.

But then again I am a control freak

[duchy]

I think I'd pretend we were going somewhere else for the weekend (Not somewhere they'd get excited about ... MILs maybe )

I absolutely hate it when my OH packs for me. I'm a do it the night before and travel light type ... he should be the Dibber as he'll have cases out two weeks before if I let him ! Something always gets forgotten with him putting stuff in cases and me taking it all out to redo it ("I'm away for a week not a month Dear")

Nice thought but maybe a reveal the day before might be just as good a surprise ?

[sammykitten]

Do you know where all your wife's lotions and potions are? Do you know what she uses every day? What about the kids' toiletries etc?

Much as I love the idea of springing the surprise to your wife the day you're going, I agree that maybe the day before might be better - a great surprise and gives her a chance to pack her own bits and pieces. My husband wouldn't have a clue what to pack for me for example (I don't pack for him either).

[archibald]

It's a lovely thing to do. You know your wife better than asking randoms for opinions on here- does she pack light and leave? Or do you take a full size suitcase for a weekend away and need to have hair/nails etc done first and the right hair straighteners?

Won't she notice you catching up with laundry, clearing the calendar of kids activities, etc?

And surely she'll notice that her toiletries are missing and that you're packing cases? Or are you planning on packing very quietly in the night/early morning?

[Joosebug1987]

I think this is a wonderful idea... has she got a Bessie you could enlist the help of in terms of her outfits and lotions and potions as above? Most women know favourite outfits, appropriate footwear, cosmetics etc etc...

If not then I would drop a surprise with enough time to pack but make sure you've done all the must haves.
Lucky lady!x

[Elodie]

I wouldn't be keen on dh packing for me - I have to admit, I think he would probably get most of the things I'd want, but I'm also certain he wouldn't get everything. The same when it came to packing for the girls - he would definitely forget the glitter spray for a start! I don't think I'd be keen on packing for a mystery holiday either - I'd pack totally different things for a camping trip in Scotland, or a caravan in a Norfolk holiday park, or a holiday to DLP, so I wouldn't know what to take at all.

It's still a huge and lovely surprise if you tell her the day before and give her the chance to pack her own things. I would absolutely love that!

[littlelish0544]

Make sure all the washing and ironing is done, and that you've been shopping and all essentials are in the house (thinking mainly toiletries) then tell her the day before, say I've done all I can to make sure we have everything we need ready to be packed, but tell.me if you need something and I'll go and sort it right now. Or pack, and tell her, then she has time to amend if needed..(my dh isn't even allowed to pack the shopping bags at the supermarket I'm such a control freak. He would never be able to pack for me-but I would appreciate the gesture,as long as I had time to turf it all out and start again!)but it's a very lovely idea. I would be absolutely gobsmacked if this was a surprise for me..I'd love it.

[RM2016]

What a brilliant idea! and a lovely surprise. Wouldn't bother me in the slightest if OH packed everything, its not exactly rocket science for a short trip. I'm sure you are more than capable of packing a few outfits and toiletries! Just adds to the excitement and suspense!

[Guest]

Thanks for all the advice ( forgot to reply )

I should say that we have been a number of times before and she is a lister so I have our old packing list and going to go with that

It is a risk but you only live once :-)

Will let you know how it goes