WDW in the spring with an infant?

[MamaOfTheOhana]

Said infant has not made an appearance yet, thus my uncertainty!

We have three children already (5, 3, 2) and are expecting #4 in late November/early December.

DH (and of course the kids) would love to go to WDW again next year. The current baby celebrated his first birthday on our first trip, so I've never dealt with the "infant" stage at WDW. Leaving the baby would not be an option for me though.

Would it be better to go in February? Low prices and crowds, great temperature ... but baby 8 - 12 weeks old? March? A little warmer and a little more expensive, but baby 12 - 16 weeks old? Or maybe May? Older baby around 5 months old (squirmy? this is when my others started to crawl a bit!), Flower & Garden Fest, more expensive but of course more time to save?

And besides the baby, I'm not positive how I'll feel myself. I tend to recover and be up and around quickly, but I've never done WDW 2 or 3 months postpartum either! I want to say I could do it. With the cost difference we could stay longer or maybe have a second quickie trip later in the year, maybe late September. On the other hand, I do want to see the F&G Fest sometime. Should it be now?

 

[CourtneyL]

We took DD for the first time at 4 months. She was content to be held and look around. She wasn't scared of the fireworks or any rides. I wore her a bunch and we also had a stroller.

I don't think I'd want to take an infant younger than 3 months, and I wouldn't want to go when it's very hot out. Maybe early March would work for you.

The hardest part of the trip at 4 months was all the stuff we had. We usually had 3 or 4 bottles, a few burp cloths, a change of clothes, blanket, the diaper changing kit, toys, and the baby carrier.

 

[ah1126]

FYI- We went in March 2012 with DD. There is a building with stuff set up for the Flower & Garden Festival in Epcot, and you were not able to take strollers inside. I was going to walk through it while DH rode Mission Space, but I didn't want to take an almost 2 year old without the stroller.

 

[Samandmom]

I took my DS when he was 4.5 months old on his first trip. We only had him at the time. That trip I spent a lot of time at the baby centers breastfeeding him. He wasn't on baby food yet. DH would either come in and watch TV at the centers or sit outside on a bench. It was a laid back and relaxing trip. This was also at Xmas time so lots for DS to see.
For my DD's first trip she was 3 months old. DH did not go. It was me, DS, DD, sister in law and her sister with 2 kids and my niece. I was VERY stressed on that trip. I was breastfeeding DD every 2-3 hrs. Sister in law was very helpful with my DS who at the time was 2.5. Even though she helped I felt I was being a neusence to her since I was leaving them every 2-3 hrs to feed DD. plus my DD was a little harder as a baby then DS (he was easy). She cried a lot. I walked out of Bugs life because she wouldn't stop. But both of my kids fell asleep on its a small world on their first trips.
I think I would say wait your baby is 5 months old. Can you take another family member with? You will have 4 kids 5 and under with you and you could use another hand.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I had originally thought about making a trip to WDW when DD was 3 months old or so, but it didn't work out for various reasons. I'm glad it didn't. While I was ready, physically, at that point, I wasn't really mentally ready. That may be different for you, since you already have kids, but DD's my first and we were still in major adjusting phase at that point.

We took her at 8 months, with my parents and my brother/his family. It was a much more enjoyable trip at 8 months than it would have been at 3. She was sleeping through the night (something to think about if you're going to have all kids in one room, or close), she was extremely interested in the world around her - but not yet crawling or fearful. It was a great age.

In your position, I'd probably go closer to 5 months.

 

[MamaOfTheOhana]

Thanks all. Not being able to take a stroller into the F&G exhibit building won't be a problem, but thanks for the heads up. Another relative would be a great idea; I wish we had someone suitable! Some are just impossible to vacation with and others wouldn't want their kids to miss school.

DH is leaning toward the week of April 27.