3 young kids

[FreeTime]

We own at BWV and to my understanding there are no dedicated 2BR's. So I am wondering what will I do when our kids are still young (3,5&6)? I am concerned that they may try to escape out of their own door and I won't hear them. How do you handle this? Thanks

 

[LisaR]

This is one of the reasons I really love OKW. We stayed at BWV in May and I was VERY nervous that our kids might try to get out the door. I did put some things in front of the door to hopefully block it but I have to say, I didn't sleep as well there as I do at OKW. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

Lisa

 

[LisaR]

Ann,
My kids have never strolled out the door at home so I understand it may seem foolish that I would be concerned about it on vacation. However, at BWV, the door to the hallway is in the room the kids are in. If they wake at night and get a little scared because they aren't in their own room/home, I really did worry that they may head for the door thinking mom or dad would be on the other side. My son had sleep apenea and woke up at night very scared on a regular basis. He just had his tonsils out 3 weeks ago and he has already improved 90% so he should sleep through the night. That wasn't the case when we were there in May.

As for OKW, for starters, we don't shut the door to the master bedroom. Plus, we leave a few lights on in the unit. In the past, when my son has gotten up in the middle of the night at OKW, he heads out into the hallway. At that point, he can see a living room and kitchen. I think he has time to get oriented a little more. At BWV, if he picked the wrong door on the first try, there could be trouble.

Am I paranoid?! Probably! But I can say that I have NEVER liked having the second door in the kids room and I know for a fact that I am not the only mom that has ever felt that way.

Lisa

 

[AnnK]

Freetime,
We have 5 children and have stayed many times at BWV. I would suggest if you feel nervous to bring a baby monitor so you can hear what is going on in their room. Lock the door, pile some of their luggage by the door so that they cannot pull the door open.The doors are quite heavy and with the luggage placed near the door they should not be able to open it.
BTW I personally don't think the set up at OKW is any better for stopping a roaming chid. Last time I stayed there ( and it's been quite a few years) the second bedroom was located near the front door, and the master bedroom was all the way down the hall, past the laundry room. When we closed the door we could not hear any noise from the villa. A child could escape from there just as easily as from OKW except at BWV you don't have to worry that they will fall down a fllight of steps or get run over by a bus.

 

[AnnK]

Lisa,
I don't know if your paranoid or not, I don't even know you. My statement was MY GENERAL feelings on the set-up of the rooms. IN MY OPINION, a child who was going to try and leave the room as per freetime's statement " I am concerned that they may try to escape out of their own door and I won't hear them." Could just as easily escape from OKW as they could BWV. I also offered what I thought were real suggestions to ease her mind, not just a statement of why OKW is better. Got it?

 

[LisaR]

Ann,
I am not exactly sure what happened here. I received a response to this post that was posted by YOU. You make direct references in the post to me and don't understand why I thought OKW was better then BWV when it came to the extra door. When I responded, your post then disappeared and a new post by you was made. In that post, you don't make direct reference to me. Very odd.

Anyway, sorry I obviously set you off. I understand that this was just your opinion and I assumed you would understand that that was just my opinion, also. Obviously not! Isn't that the whole point of these boards? So everyone can state their OPINION?!This isn't an "I love this resort over the other." I love every single DVC resort we have stayed in. I like them all for different reasons. I stated one of the reasons I like OKW over BWV when it comes to the door issue. This isn't meant to be a debate and I won't turn it into one.

Lisa

 

[crisi]

My take on it is that when I'm snoring away in the master bedroom, its nearly as easy for the kids to stroll out through the main unit door as to stroll out their own door.

Keep the doors to the bedrooms open (at least, after you finish anything you wouldn't want the kids interupting) so if someone does go for a walk to find you in the middle of the night, they have an easier time, use the slider lock on all the doors (which should keep even the six year old from getting out without using a chair). The piling luggage idea is a good one, too, since you seem to be more concerned about taking a wrong turn during night wandering than the escape activities of young teens.

A quick google search turned up this door stop alarm if you were really concerned:

http://www.safetyessentials.com/personalalarms.html

There are others available as well. In this case you'd really be looking for something that would wake you up if the kids opened the door, not necessarily something that keeps intruders out.

 

[Chuck S]

Is there a "flip-latch" on the door, as there is at OKW? I've not been with small children to WDW, but the latch seems that it would be out of the reach of most very young children. And at worst, at least it would give the child a "pause" when s/he tried to open the door, and they would probably realize that this was not the correct door.

 

[DebbieB]

There are flip locks at BWV, they are too high for a 6 year old to reach. I would use that and deadbolt the door plus put something in front of it just to be sure. I would also make sure the front door has the flip lock over and the deadbolt, which you should do even if you don't have kids. It amazes me when I read posts where maids walked in on people. We always hit both locks when closing the door after entering.

 

[AnnK]

NO debate from me.
You posted so quickly in response to my original post , I had already begun to revise mine as to NOT offend anyone that when my post came back up it was below yours. It was late and I had no idea that you would read and answer in minutes.
My references were for Freetime,and based on her post. I cannot possible know everyone's family situation. I do know that members choose their resort on preference and family needs. Your family obviously needs OKW. It's great that you like it so then you can stay there. Freetime's family is different, and IN MY OPINION, she will be just fine with a few precautions. Once again. I did offer real suggetions, IN MY OPINION your post sounded alot like the "why I like OKW best" posts of the past.

 

[FreeTime]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I always worry about piling the luggage in front of the door because it is a fire hazard. I'll have to check on the alarm. At least I know that with DVC in a 2 br I will have several other exits. My FIL will stay with us in adjoining rooms in a regular hotel and pile all of the luggage all the way to the top of the doors (leaving only those must break windows.) All I can think of is how crazy he is!

 

[DeeDeeDis]

Two of my three son's sleep walk, on vacation when they were younger i also worried one of them may wander away. To ease my mind i'd sleep with one child and my husband slept with the other. (i slept walked when i was a kid, woke up outside more than once-so this is a valid concern). I figure peace of mind is worth a few nights away from hubby (sorry dear).

good luck, hopefully you'll find door alarms and/or the doors will have deadbolts higher than they can reach

 

[BuzzLightYear3]

We also have 3 young kids and stay in a BWV 2BR. I think the suggestions already provided are the best, but I wanted to suggest one more as an additional strategy: we make sure the entire time we're there, we only enter/exit the unit using the door which enters into the living area. We never use the door that goes into the kids room. They don't know where it goes, and they don't pay any attention to it.

Have a great trip!