This year was my daughter 13th birthday.
She came up with the idea for a scavenger hunt at the mall. I usually spend several weeks planning her birthday party but this one came together in a day. It was a huge success. First I bought two packs of clues, blank paper with a finger print and the word clue# at the local party store. Then I went to the mall and decided on the places I would send the special agents and what they would have to retrieve. Then came the challenging part, coming up with the clues. It was tough at first but the more I wrote the easier it became. We had 10 people show up on two days notice, 6 girls and 4 boys. At the mall, I divided them into teams, boys and girls. Each team had a young adult captain. As captains, my nephew and his girl friend did a wonderful job keeping it fun, while keeping it safe. I wouldn't consider letting children walk around the mall alone. Each team was given a bag with 21 clues and enough money to ride the carousel. Each team also had a digital camera. The winner would be the first team to complete the clues or receive the most points. Each clue was assigned a point value on the back. Both teams had the same clues but in different order. . Some of the clues were more challenging than others. Clue examples: need a credit card application : THINK PATRIOTIC BIRD (American Eagle) Think the birthstone of the 7th month on the third day of the week: I need an employment application from here. (Ruby Tuesday's) Ride the horse of course. Take a picture of your team on this great adventure. (Our mall has a carousel) Take a team picture with a Hollister Manikin. Not a quarters, dimes, or nickels but ____________. Count the number of stairs on the escalator. Espresso, Tea, and Coffee you know where to go twinkle, twinkle, little_______lets you know. I need a straw from here. Buy 1 cookie from the Great American Cookie and everyone on the team has to take a bite. My favorite clue required a purchase ahead of time. Find the place where hugs are worth a thousands words And where best friends are made. Find the box just for you and you will know what to do. This is of course is Build a Bear. I had purchased the skin and the voice box and had them Marked for both teams. The girls team built a bear and the boys team built a bear. Each team's bear had a voice recorder that recorded them singing happy birthday to my daughter. She loved these. It something she could keep as a souviner from the party. Everyone had a great time.
