6 yr old depressed about Disney trip not here yet

[lisaost]

My 6 yr old told us tonight that she does not want to talk about our Disney trip anymore because it makes her sad that it's so far away. I felt so bad!! We really aren't saturating her with it, but we talk about how it's getting closer and how much fun it's going to be and about the rides every once in a while.

I don't know if she's just playing head games with us or if we have really been over the top about this!!

For the record, we promised her she could go to Disney when she was 5 yrs old sometime around when she was a little over 4 yrs old. Then the twins came so we asked if she could be patient until after the twins were born. She has been waiting a LONG time for this trip.

How do I make her understand it's not that far away?? We have already tried a countdown calendar but she's not really interested. I was thinking of something akin to an advent calendar for the two weeks before we go.

I know she'll be ok once we go, it's just the waiting that is hard on her. What do you all do to help kids pass the time waiting? I have the Disboards!!

 

[CK1]

...because our 7 yr old was getting disenchanted with the subject for the same given reason! (Our 6 yr old just stays excited all the time.... ) ANYWAY -- we have made paper links for the days left, but with an added twist -- each link is a small job (like pick up shoes around house and return to proper closet, or dust off furniture in room, or sweep front porch -- etc.) Each job earns them "disney dollars" that they can spend on their trip. Each strip also has a "fun" thing -- like a bonus "trivia question" to "double their money", or a simple joke, or a request (Sing "Tigger Song" and bounce!) They have to do the "fun" thing before they can move on to the next loop! (And their 2 yr old sister will definitely join right in with them...)

We start "ripping loops" this wkend (it took a while to make it, and I didn't want them to tire of it by introducing it too soon...We have 21 days to go as of this Sunday!) I am hoping it will get them excited... I know I am!

Cindy

 

[ChiTownZee]

I feel your pain! I have an almost 5 DD who asks to go EVERYday. How about making a paper chain for your 28 days? We do that for trips and holidays, it shows her better how close it's getting as the chain gets shorter.

 

[BethC]

My kids get like that too. Sometimes when the trip is really far away my 9 year old daughter will ask that we stop talking about it because she's so excited and she knows its still a long way to go. A lot of times we'll focus on the smaller events that will be happening between now and the trip. For example we tell them something like this - it's only a few weeks until Easter, and then a couple of weeks later it will be your birthday, before you know it school will be out and then we can make the chain. It helps for them to have these milestones as a benchmark.

When it gets closer, though, we always make a paper chain and hang it in the living room where everyone can see it. The kids just love to watch the chain get smaller and smaller (and it's getting pretty short now!) and they take turns taking off the links.

Also my 7 year old son likes to watch the calendar. I'll show him which day is today and which day we are leaving (which is of course circled on the calendar) and he likes to count the days that way as well. We have a lot of fun with it because he'll come up and say to me "only 21 days until we leave for WDW", and I'll act all shocked and say I'll never be ready in time and we better get packing. This always sends him into fits of giggles.

Good luck, the trip will be here before you know it!

 

[Chance's Mom]

My DS will turn 6 on July 28 and is having a dinosaur party. He is so excited about that (we are doing the paper chain) that he has not really asked about disney. We will be leaving Aug. 11, so we'll only have about 2 weeks of trip anticipation. I didn't plan it like this, but it really has worked out well.
We usually do Disney in Jan. It can be so depressing when Christmas is over, having that Disney trip to look forward to is a very fun thing in the dreary Ohio winter!

 

[Jordan's MOM]

Let her see in a concret way that the trip is getting closer. Share all the little jobs that have to be done with her. You could put this into a chain or calander. Try things such as:

Go buy sunscreen
Try on your summer clothes to see what you need for the trip.
Buy special snacks for the trip.
Charge the video camara
Make a trip to the Disney store for disney dollars

you get the idea.

Have fun with it.

Jordan' s mom

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

We'd originally planned to go in December 2001, but had to reschedule for August. A month or so ago, we made up cards with each ride and show on them, and each of the kids (DD 7, DS 4) put the cards in the order that they wanted - and then we drew up our touring plans. They loved doing that - not only did they realize we really were going this time, but they also had a say in our intinerary (it also forestalls arguments over whose choice is first and so on).

I also bought a graphics program (Disney's Magic Artist Classic) and made iron-on transfers for customized t-shirts for the family. DD chose the design for one day, and DS another.

At the 60-day mark I started making PS's and reporting back to the kids. My DD burst into (happy!) tears when we landed CRT, but ever since has sort of tuned out of the planning. I think we are pretty saturated at this point, though - the simple countdown is about all we can handle!

Lori
BTW, 37 days to go...

 

[duck_adoo]

Hi,We went last year w/our twin then 5 dd's. We did the paper chain also. On the back of random days we would stick a note like "go look behind the little couch" and we had a little gift for them to take w/them. One day is was the mister fans, another day, hats,etc... I think it would espeically great for the 6 yr old, that way she feels like it 's something special just for her.
Good Luck.
Duck

 

[lisaost]

Thank you all for the suggestions! I will try the paper chain! Thanks!

 

[travelitis]

I did the paper chain and had it glued to a picture of the castle. I love the idea of jobs on each link! I've also done M&M jars along with the chain. Each day they eat an M&M and pull a link.
We are going to have a family meeting to pick restaurants for PS.

Your daughter will come around. It sounds like she just doesn't want to get her hopes up because she doesn't want to be disappointed. How about letting her pick a character meal or go to the Wonderland Tea Party in honor of "Big Sister Day" since she waited for the twins? I know, going to WDW should be special enough, but being the sibling of twins is no easy job.

 

[catwho]

Another vote for paper loops to rip! I did that for my dd (and now I do it for me LOL!) I will add to the loops things that are going to happen the next day such as "Daddy leaves for his business trip" "Daddy comes home from his business trip" "Daddy's Birthday" "Go to Disney Store to get **** Movie" "Wash clothes for trip" "Pack to go" "Leave" "Get to Disney" etc. It really helped make the time pass adn she could see the "end" coming as the chain got shorter and shorter!

 

[Shoestring]

With kids that age, any build up for something that exciting is going to make a child have high expectations and make them think about the thing until it upsets them. My advice for kids that young is: make it a surprise. Don't even mention it until you get there, and that way, they have a great surprise like it's Christmas, and no expectations that it will be a fun trip, which sets everyone up for disappointment when things go wrong.

My dad took me and my brother to the circus but pretended we were going to a "Mug Collectors Convention" held in a conference room at the arena where the circus was. My brother and I passed the sight of the trapzes and the crowds and the lights and we were so sad that we had to go to the mug collector's convention. Our Dad played it off until the very last minute and oh we were so happy and I'll never forget how wonderful that night was because I didn't expect anything other than standing around bored with a bunch of adult mug collectors discussing their passion!

Don't mention WDW until you're there! Your kids will love you for it.

Cheers

 

[Shoestring]

With kids that age, any build up for something that exciting is going to make a child have high expectations and make them think about the thing until it upsets them. My advice for kids that young is: make it a surprise. Don't even mention it until you get there, and that way, they have a great surprise like it's Christmas, and no expectations that it will be a fun trip, which sets everyone up for disappointment when things go wrong.

My dad took me and my brother to the circus but pretended we were going to a "Mug Collectors Convention" held in a conference room at the arena where the circus was. My brother and I passed the sight of the trapezes and the crowds and the lights and we were so sad that we had to go to the mug collector's convention. Our Dad played it off until the very last minute and oh we were so happy and I'll never forget how wonderful that night was because I didn't expect anything other than standing around bored with a bunch of adult mug collectors discussing their passion!

Don't mention WDW until you're there! Your kids will love you for it.

Cheers

 

[Dancind]

My DH and I were talking about this tonight. Our DD, age 11, just doesn't seem terribly excited about our upcoming DCL cruise in October. We've done WDW four times now, but never cruised. But if you can possibly remember when you were that age, even two weeks seems very far away, much less two months! I think it's just not a reality to her yet, seems too far away. So I don't bring it up much. Well, we did try on formal dresses for Dad tonight. That was fun! Diana

 

[dznyfan40]

Know what you mean re: little girl getting depressed cause the trip is so far away...my 7 yo (and me, too, to be honest) have felt that way too in the past. A couple of things we do to lighten the load:

on the 10 days till WDW mark, we plan a kickoff countdown party...for instance, this year we're staying at the Polynesian, so we had a Polynesian style dinner, with music, and little gifts for each child to open (Disney tshirts).

we try to fill our pre Disney calendar up with non-Disney things to look forward to: this way we're not just focusing on our trip, but looking forward to other fun stuff too, like camping, or going on a whale watch, or taking a day at the beach...whatever the kids really like to do. We count down to those closer events, and with the focus being on them, the WDW trip comes quickly.

we also do the paper chain, and we took an plastic water jug & decorated with Disney clipart, and fill it with spare change, pocket $. The kids have enjoyed seeing the money pile grow.

Good luck with the looong wait (you'll be there before you know it!)

 

[Kevs mom]

Well after reading all of your posts I am even more excited that I have decided to keep our next trip a secret - I have already made all the plans (including talking to my husband's boss about the vacation time) and not one of them has any clue that we are going in January - I have a DS (11), DD (8), and DS (4) and I think I am going to surprise them all with the news on Christmas Day that way they only have a month to wait! It has been hard keeping it to myself especially when they ask when we can go to WDW again but at least I am the only one that has to wait 6 more months!!!!