2 yr old scared! Now what???

[djblu883]

the name says not so scary....go for it...she is going to have fun...just avoid the haunted mansion...she will see so mnay kids there having a good time she will forget to be scared...and she can trick or treat in safety!!!!

 

[Manda]

My son (3 now, 2 for last trip) goes back and forth daily with being scared and not wanting to go and being excited and wanting to go NOW. I'm 100% certain that the scared response is mostly just because he figured out that if he says he's scared and doesn't want to go, it gets a reaction from Mommy and Daddy.

Sometimes, he does seem legitimately bothered about something, but we can usually talk through and eventually figure out what is bothering him about it. The other day he decided we weren't going to fly on the airplane to Disney and we needed to walk instead. The airplane has always been a very exciting part of the trip for him. We finally talked through it and figured out that, for some unknown reason, he had got it into his head that airplanes didn't have doors. I don't know why he thought this or what was going through his head, but once I reassured him that airplanes have doors, he was already go to again.

 

[alicenwonder99]

When my ds was 2 1/2 years old, we went to DL. He was scared of everything there!! The only attraction that didn't make him scream was It's a Small World. So, we all took turns taking him on that. He must have went on that ride 30 times during our trip! lol.

He even screamed terror on Winnie the Pooh!! lol. Of course I can laugh at it now, but at the time it was pretty awful.

Good luck. Stay away from anything that is even remotely scary. Maybe you can ease your dd into some of the attractions. Start with playing at Poohs Playful Spot. Then see if she wants to ride the carousel.

I also agree with another poster: just change the name of WDW, and tell her you are going to Magic Kingdom. Then just drop it. Don't show her any pics of it, or talk about it again.

Let us know how it goes!!

Mary

 

[Chester's Mum]

When my dd was 2 she was also quite timid. The characters really scared her at first. My husband had to hug mickey before she would even look at him. Then we had to just let her approach, and touch the costume lightly. It took about 2 days but from then on we had to peel her off the characters, "Okay, honey Mickey has to say hi to the rest of the kids now, say bye bye." I think its a great idea to tell her, you'll just go to magic kingdom instead. Kids perceive differently from adults. For years my ds thought the Magic Kingdom was Florida in its entirety, we couldn't convince him we were still in Florida while at the beach.

 

[QueenGoblin]

Isn't it funny how different kids are? My DD was timid around the characters at 2 but not SCARED. She loved the Nightmare before Christmas (and still does) and gets so excited with anything that she associates with Halloween, even things I would think might be a bit scary. But when Joe replaced Steve on Blues Clues she would run out of the room whenever Joe came on the screen the first few times she watched it. She loves him now, and I have no idea why she was freaked out about him at first, other than he was "different" and Blues Clues was something she thought she could predict. So your DD may have just been surprised by the change in atmosphere of something she thought she understood. I agree that you should probably drop it for a while and then slowly start reintroducing the positive things about Disney. Sneak Cinderella onto the tv in the background while she is not paying attention, etc. Have a great trip. DD loved everything in Fantasyland, Buzz's Spaceranger Spin, the Living Seas at EPCOT, and the petting area at AK when we took her at 2.
ETA: Forgot MGM, she loved Playhouse Disney and the muppets there!

 

[slo]

Do not cancel your trip!!!!

My youngest gets scared very easily, and she also gets over things easily.

I would not mention the vacation again for awhile to let her clear her head. Then when you feel you can again, try and say you are going to Mickey World. This is what we have always called it because children don't know Walt Disney, but they do know Mickey. Saying Mickey World, to me, sounds a little more exciting, especially if they love Mickey Mouse.

She will definitly get over this
Especially if you don't discuss if for awhile. Forcing the videos on her, may just make her not like it even more. If you let it go, so will she

Good luck!!!

 

[Jennasis]

She may get over it in time...and she may not. My particular story:

When I was about her age, my parents took my sister and I to see Snow White and teh Seven Dwarfs live at Radio City Music Hall. Long story short, the wicked witch terrified me. It was so intense a fear that I would not even look at MERCHANDISE that had any Snow Wite references on it because it brought the fear back. A particularly unpleasant cousin delighted in chasing me around the house with a Snow WHite picture book that had the witch on the back cover. For almost 20 years I couldn't even look at the Radio City Music Hall SIGN without getting a knot in my stomach and even now (at 30) I have anxiety attacks when I see the witch's face anywhere.

So let your kid dictate what she needs. Because if you're not careful, you may sour her on Disney forever. Steer clear of the Haunted Mansion and MNSSHP. There will be some decorations arount MK that reference the party so be aware. If she starts freaking out, then head back to the resort.

PS...i STILL have nightmares that the witch is coming for me...

 

[DebIreland]

At 2, I'd be surprised if she has any real concept of exactly what Disney World is or any concept of time either. I think it's scary for toddlers sometimes because they're not babies but nor are they old enough to rationalise and figure out the whats, wheres and whens of a situation. I have a two year old girl too. We're 6 weeks away from our WDW trip but she really doesn't understand anything about the notion of us going on a holiday, let alone the specifics of Disney World, you know? Now she loves Mickey from seeing him on T.V. and she loves looking at our photos from Chef Mickeys - she can't get enough of hearing about Snow White and Cinderella - every single night she wants a "princess story"

So basically I keep any mention of our upcoming trip very simple. A few days ago, after telling her the Cinderella story yet again (!!) I told her we'll be going on a plane in a few weeks to meet Cinderella. For a couple of hours afterwards she was saying "come on Mom, we go plane now, meet princess, c'mon, now'. Then she totally forgot about it!

So, after that long-winded message I just wanted to say (what others have said too) to keep it simple - just maybe focus on one character and the day of your trip tell her you're going to see where Minnie (or whoever!) lives!

Good luck! Cancel? No way!!

 

[aztecgoods]

If worse comes to worse, you can trick her and say we are going to go to a "happier" park and go to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, that way all you would have to do is cancel the park tickets, or sell them. Not that U is "happier" than Dis for they are similarly situation for kids. Once there she would love U as much or more as Dis. Plus you adults would probably get into U more especially if you've never been, I love both but U is my personal favorite. That's one way to go.

 

[kribit]

I think all toddlers go through this stage. It's probably just a phase...next week she'll love it. Although, I would stop showing videos, etc...she's probably too little to "understand." When she gets there, she'll probably be fine.

I certainly wouldn't cancel though. There are plenty of things (non-Halloween) to do.

Have a wonderful trip.