If you could, would you leave 1 year old home?

[crystaldawn]

I haven't read all the responses either... but I'd take my one year old. In fact I've taken three out of four of my kids when they were between 10 mo to 14 mos and loved each of those trips. None of my kids were difficult at that age and frankly I never had any one volunteering to take them lol.

My oldest is going to be a Sophomore in high school next year and he doesn't want to come with us because he would have to miss school and it makes me so sad to think that our family vacations could be changing. He's made a good case for staying home with a family member. This mama's heart is still hurting

 

[TJDisneymama]

I'd do it. Last year I took ODS and left YDD (4.5 at the time) behind. YDD doesn't go on ANY of the big rides which ODS loves so that would have meant me staying off with DD while DS went on alone..... not to mention, YDD is *very* high maintenance and monopolizes pretty much all my time/attention. We had a blast. It's one of my favorite vacations ever and special because DS and I got to have special alone time which has been hard to come by since YDD came along........ in the next year or so I will take her alone for a special Mommy-daughter trip and we will do lots of princess-y stuff, and it will be super fun and just as special as the trip with DS.

 

[Marsheliz]

I dont think I would do it but its up to you... We took our boys last fall and the youngest turned 1 the week after we got back.. I enjoyed watching his face at all the lights, sounds etc and could not imagine leaving him behind.. To me, family vacations are just that. Family vacations and no one gets left behind... But only you know what is best for your family.

 

[mad madam mim78]

I would and have left kids out of family vacations. I left my twin girls home with my mom while we took a Florida trip with my son. It was awesome getting to be with just him.

DH and I often leave all the kids home when we go to disney. My kids are all sticks in the mud and DH and I like to have fun!! Leave your baby with grandma. Go have a great time. It's ok to remove our heads from our kids butts once in awhile!!!

 

[runsandjumps]

I would make the decision on a case-by-case basis.

I probably would not leave one child behind while taking all the others.
I would do a mother-son/daughter trip with each of my children individually, if the opportunity arose.
I would absolutely leave ALL the children behind and go with just DH.
I would leave them all behind and go with other people entirely.
It depends entirely on the reason for the vacation.
I will not feel guilty.

This is how I feel as well. I think traveling with a baby is one of the easiest things. I also wouldn't leave a child that age myself, but different strokes I suppose. I can't relate to the feeling if being bogged down by taking my child with me to Disney. But I am pretty high energy and my kids were all easy babies.
Now that they are older....not so much.

They complain about the food options, they ask for a zillion things, they are hungry all the time, they whine more. Compared to this age, a one year old is a piece if cake!

 

[LuvGoofy6]

We left our 15 month old with my in-laws and took our 5 year old by herself. I understand that every family is different but for us it was and still is one of our biggest regrets. He didn't seem to understand where his family went for a week and was fussy the entire time we were away. If we could do it over again we would take him. My 5 year old dearly missed her brother and often wondered how he was doing.

 

[quagmire0]

Haven't read the previous posts, but I can tell you our experience. We last visited in 2011 when DD was 4 and DS was 18mo. Honestly, he had a great time was pretty good about being in the stroller a lot of the time. We're going in June and will be bringing our 13mo with. Would we leave her with Grandma if she offered? That's a tough question. Honestly, if you're looking for re-assurance, I wouldn't fault you if you did.

Pros: You and the older kids have a little more freedom to move about, ride more rides, skip naps, stay out late, etc.

Cons: You're gonna miss your kid and it may end up putting a damper on your trip a little bit. Also, keep in mind that with a 1 year old, you can get the child swap pass, which will let an adult and two kids walk onto a ride. We did that with our 18mo and were able to walk on most of the rides and our 4yo would get to ride once with each of us. So, there is that.

 

[anl]

I would do it! I took my oldest at 11months and he did great. Took youngest at 14months and it was difficult and made it harder for the older two to do the things they wanted. But he is more difficult in general, was walking (running) and didn't want to be in stroller. Do what's best for your family. I'm all about special time with one child.

 

[Lady V]

My now 22 month old has been many times. The first was when she was 13 months--it was awesome watching her face look at the fireworks!! And she had no fear of the characters and we got amazing shots of her looking at them in wonder nose to nose. We have done many single day trips just me and her to the water parks and parks while the older were in school while I was living there for 6 months. This last month we went for a week and it was again great. We are going again a week from today and I am so excited to see her reaction to the animals from our balcony!! And she loved seeing Jake. When we passed him she kept saying 'Jake! Jake!'
Keep in mind I have kids that are 12 and 13 and they never were upset to have her along. They actually said it was cool to watch her experience it.
I think you will miss your baby a lot. I'd take the baby.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

No I wouldn't leave a one year old at home. My dd went at 6 months and again at 18 months and she had so much fun. She really loved the bus rides lol. DS 4 has gone yearly since he was 6 moths.every trip is a joy for me, seeing how they react differently to the same ride because they are a different age or hearing about what is their favorite thing.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[birthygirl]

We are taking our boys (will be almost 7 and almost 5) in June and leaving our 3 1/2 year old daughter with my parents. I do feel bad, because she LOVES princesses right now. However, she isn't tall enough to do a lot of rides the boys will want to do and with her temperament will not understand why she can't. We have decided to take another trip in about 18 months and she will go with us then.

 

[sk!mom]

I would leave a baby under two. I would not leave a child over two.

 

[Cappy81]

This. Seems like a lot of people are flaming the OP for considering leaving the baby at home to make her life easier, but sometimes I think it is so nice for the older children to have their parent's full attention again. It happens so rarely when there are little ones around, especially babies, and they deserve special time with their parents too! OP, if you plan to go again in the future when your DD is older, I wouldn't think twice about leaving her home with a loving grandparent...there's a lot to be said for the special bonding they will get to do too! My friends did this just last year and she felt it was the best thing they could have done for their older daughter (alone time with mom and dad at WDW), and they know they will go back when their son is older.

Do what feels right for you and your family!

Agree completely! Very well said! This is one of those things that really have no right or wrong answer. Some people would rather wait until their little ones are a bit older to take them to WDW! Absolutely nothing wrong with that! Have a wonderful trip with your boys!

 

[pocomom]

I feel like a week is too long without mom for a 1 year old, if you can avoid it. I also really enjoyed the time I went with dd as a baby. And the pictures are priceless. She says she remembers parts of that visit and she definitely had a great time. She was very mellow easy going girl though, slept easily in the stroller when she needed it, loved the rides, and was happy just watching everyone and everything, not sure if it would have been as fun with my more difficult older dd, or ds at that age. I guess I might have done a special trip with one kid if I could, if the others weren't that little, but I would feel I need to do it with all of them at some point, and that's not feasible for us.

 

[4kids4karen]

I feel like a week is too long without mom for a 1 year old, if you can avoid it. I also really enjoyed the time I went with dd as a baby. And the pictures are priceless. She says she remembers parts of that visit and she definitely had a great time. She was very mellow easy going girl though, slept easily in the stroller when she needed it, loved the rides, and was happy just watching everyone and everything, not sure if it would have been as fun with my more difficult older dd, or ds at that age. I guess I might have done a special trip with one kid if I could, if the others weren't that little, but I would feel I need to do it with all of them at some point, and that's not feasible for us.

I don't get how a week is too long? Many parents whose work requires to travel have to leave their kids for longer periods. My second son will be 19 in 2 days. The first time I left him he was 9 months old. I didn't see him for three months... because I was in Air Force basic training and tech school. Missed his first birthday. Since that time I have missed many birthdays and holidays related to the military. For some leaving kids is not a choice, however, a choice or voluntary, the kid is not going to suffer or have long-term issues because of a week without his mom. I am sure the grandparents extra doses of attention and affection.

 

[tantoria2]

There are pros and cons to both Go with your gut We have left which ever child was the youngest at the time, many times for different vacations. As I get older I like being away from my kids less and less,lol, but TOTALLY see the up side of leaving the lil one.

 

[3BoysRDisneyFreaks]

I would never ever leave one child home and take the other. Ever. We have however left all 4 kids home and gone on an adult trip to WDW.

#4 was 8 weeks at his first trip. He has been every year since and each year it is different and better. He hated the characters at 10 months old, but loved them at almost 2.
#3 went for his first trip at 11 months and had a blast. I have those pictures as a slide show for my screensaver at home. Looking at them brings back so many memories.

Take all of your kids. You won't regret it. Just be ready to call it quits one day if the baby is too tired or crabby. It won't kill you. Everyone needs a break now and then.

Sarah

 

[rharper1496]

Can I start by saying I'm incredibly jealous of the parents of these easy, go with the flow, nap anywhere you put them babies?

My DD was a very high needs baby, to put it lightly. Disney at 15 months was a nightmare. She screamed almost the entire way there. She was over the parks within an hour of getting there and she made it known. Every park day was cut short because of this. She was very, very attached to her crib and getting her to sleep in the crib in the condo was a 2 hour ordeal every. single. night. Luckily we were sharing with my mom, her DH and my sister and BIL so there were other adults around to help out but it was stressful for everyone. I knew she might need a bit of time to adjust to being off her schedule but no one realized just how bad it would be for her. Honestly, if there had been anyone here to leave her with I would have done it and I wouldn't regret it for a second. We all would have enjoyed ourselves more, her included. She's the youngest of 4 grandkids, a week with Grandma where she has her full undivided attention would have been a dream for her. She has improved a lot over the last year which is the only reason we're planing to go next year, I want to get past the 2-3 year hump first.

Look at it this way, I assume you're not going to stop taking family vacations once your oldest goes off to college right? Even if he can't come with you? So there will be plenty of times you'll go with 3 all kids, or just 2 or even just your youngest once the older 2 leave home. Do what works for your family.

 

[sk!mom]

Can I start by saying I'm incredibly jealous of the parents of these easy, go with the flow, nap anywhere you put them babies?

My DD was a very high needs baby, to put it lightly. Disney at 15 months was a nightmare. She screamed almost the entire way there. She was over the parks within an hour of getting there and she made it known. Every park day was cut short because of this. She was very, very attached to her crib and getting her to sleep in the crib in the condo was a 2 hour ordeal every. single. night. Luckily we were sharing with my mom, her DH and my sister and BIL so there were other adults around to help out but it was stressful for everyone. I knew she might need a bit of time to adjust to being off her schedule but no one realized just how bad it would be for her. Honestly, if there had been anyone here to leave her with I would have done it and I wouldn't regret it for a second. We all would have enjoyed ourselves more, her included. She's the youngest of 4 grandkids, a week with Grandma where she has her full undivided attention would have been a dream for her. She has improved a lot over the last year which is the only reason we're planing to go next year, I want to get past the 2-3 year hump first.

Look at it this way, I assume you're not going to stop taking family vacations once your oldest goes off to college right? Even if he can't come with you? So there will be plenty of times you'll go with 3 all kids, or just 2 or even just your youngest once the older 2 leave home. Do what works for your family.

Excellent post! You described my DD perfectly- high needs. By 2.5 she was such a fun, easy little girl but boy it was a needy couple of years to get there. In the first 1.5 years we took one week long vacation and grandma (who was DD's daily caregiver while I worked) came to our house to watch her so that DD would be in her own bed at night. We were able to focus attention on our DS who was 11 and DD was much happier at home.

 

[luvmesometigger]

Never. O'Hana means family. No one gets left behind.