Advice for a family of 5.......

[WDWCPAlumni]

We are not quite yet a family of 5.....my boys are 3 and 6 and I have one on the way.
We are part of the DVC so the room is not the issue.
Part of my hormones are causing me to do a freak out about going family of 4 to family of 5.
So.......I want to hear from all you families of 5, tell me how it goes at Disney World.
Right now we go about once a year.....that will probably need to slow down a little but what else??
Right now it is nice to do most rides all together, now we will have to change that right??? Clue me in would you
Thanks.

 

[DisneyBugs]

First of all -- Congratulations!!
I know you are looking for replies from fam-5's, although I'm a fam-4 I wanted to send a reminder of few things: 1) kids under 3 are free -- so try and take advantage of that while you can. 2) Don't forget to scope out locations of the baby centers in each park prior to going. 3) If the youngest is too small for a particular ride, use the baby swap!

 

[PrincessasMommy]

We are a family of 5 (soon to be 6 ) and we LOVE WDW!

We travel twice a year with all the kids, 1 road trip - usually Montreal or Niagara Falls - something within Canada and once on a tropical location on a plane - Mexico, Florida, Cuba, etc.

Despite the 2 carseats, double stroller, playpen and 6 suitcases and the look of everyone's faces at the check-in counter when we approach with all the baggage and kids we do just fine!!

I think as long as in raising your kids you are consistent with your rules and they have been taught to be respectful then no matter how many you have or where you are you'll be great!

We did WDW with our 3 in 2005 and it worked out fabulous! Hubby took the older one on the rides she could do while I stayed with the double stroller and the 2 little ones. For most rides we fit perfectly in 2 rows in front and behind each other so we experienced everything together.

We had the BEST time of our lives in WDW!!! We actually much prefer WDW to any beach/island vacation with the kids because they are sooo entertained at WDW. We did a few character meals too and they were a HUGE hit!!

In fact, we so enjoyed it that we are going soon after this baby is born....with 4 kids....3 under 4!!!

Many people think we are nuts but we don't see our kids as work, we do it at home every day.........it's all in your perspective!!! You're going to have a blast!!!!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

There are 5 of us and our kids range from 1 to 15. We are DVC owners also and let me tell you, if anything, we go more often...not less! As another poster said...baby swap! That is an invaluable thing to utilize for the rides that would cause an awkward split in your group or cause someone to ride alone. I wouldn't dread it so much. You may have to carry a few more things around, but all in all, it really is not a hassle at all.

 

[SmallWorld71]

Well, this is just my opinion but here goes: It was quite a change going from no kids to one and then one to two, but 2 to 3 was not really a big deal. You're already an expert at traveling with kids.
As far as the rides go, most of the ones that the little ones go on, you can fit at least 3 in a row so no one has to sit alone. As far as the thrill rides go, either the boys will sit together and an adult will sit alone behind them or the 11 year old will sit alone. Either way they are just happy to be going on the rides. We "group" in different ways depending on the situation. I.E. Someone takes "the boys" on Space Mountain or we take the 2 "younger ones" to meet the characters or ride Dumbo. Don't stress - if you can travel happily with 2, you'll be just fine with 3.

 

[LJRJR]

We are a family of 5. My children are DS 3, DS 5 and DD 6, and we just got back from WDW last night. Traveling with five is pretty easy, we rent the double stroller and I bring a single stroller. This trip the child swap really saved us, it was great. Basically, when my husband went on the rides with the two older ones, we would just ask the cast member at the beginning of the ride for a child swap ticket (which is just like a fast pass ticket) and when my husband finished riding that ride, he could watch my youngest and I would go in the fast pass line to see the attraction. Some of my biggest problems with having three so close in age are #1 fighiting - it can be horrible at times, but my oldest son never sits still so he can be bothersome at times to either his sister or baby brother, and sitting at a restaurant can "feel" uneven, because it is mostly the "big round table" in the corner or a table for six. Mostly it is just my husband and I with the children, when we were at WDW I noticed quite often how many people have other family members with them on vacation (like grandparents) which I think may help to keep things more under control. Other than that it is wonderful, many people have told me it is easier to have four than three, but I will just take their word for it.

 

[jenrein]

We are a family of 5 that works out perfect. They are girl-11, boy-8, girl 6. When we went there in April my husband and my little sister did all the big rides with the 2 older kids. My 11 yr old usually will sit by herself in the rides to sacrifice for her brother but this past time we had a little help. My youngest and me gt to hang out and ride the smaller rides.

 

[mrsnj91]

Well being a newbie to Disney I can't offer much advise there but we go to Hershey and do the beach resorts all the time and we have 5. Hershey last year was the 1st time we went with Delaney being old enough to do something. I thought it was going to be horrible. I have two older ones (9 and 14) and I thought they would complain that Delaney was bringing down the fun. But what we did was to just take it easy. Delaney took joy in just looking at the water fountains and playing with other toddlers so DH and I would split. He would take the older ones on the zippie rides and I would wait with Delaney doing something "fun" down below and then I would take the kids on the next ride and Todd would take Delaney. This gave the adult a chance to still have fun. Sometimes if Delaney would get whinny we would just sit in the shade and have a snack break. Last year I was lucky and my middle one was just at the boarderline on height and could go either way on rides. SO she did a few kiddie rides with Delaney and then did the big kid rides too. This year we won't have that luxery LOL! But Delaney doesn't seem to thrilled with most rides and is more content with the visual aspect of it all!

This year, going to Disney, I plan to take full advantage of child swap! And I noted all the shows which we plan to see. She will LOVE them. Stunt shows for the big kids and Playhouse and Lion King, etc for her. And DH and I have talked about maybe having to split up with him taking the older kids back to the park and me having to do a naptime with Delaney and visa versa. Now you have all rather younger kids so you might not have that problem.

I don't really find that having one more is a bother. Sometimes I freak due to the age span thinking the older kids will baulk but we work it out somehow.

 

[dis-happy]

We're also a family of 5, soon to be 6. All I can say about child no. 3 is that he just goes along with the flow. It really is easier, you'll be such an experienced mom by then. A couple times during the trip my dh would take the older two with him while I let the youngest one chill back at the resort. Other than that, he learned to take his naps in the stroller while we all forged on through the parks. FP and Child Swap are definite musts, so is a sling carrier for when you are all standing in line together. Keep snacks and drinks handy in the stroller.

One important piece of advice: if one child has to go to the bathroom, make EVERYONE go at the same time. You'll save a lot of time, as well as that awkward moment of running out of line right before you board the ride because your 3 yr. old has to go "right now!"

Have fun!

 

[tripletots]

Don't freak out about going from a family of 4 to a family of 5! We went from a family of 4 to a family of 7 when our triplets were born!

Sorry I can't help with the family of 5 thing. But since you already have two I think you'll do just fine. Good luck and enjoy your children while they are young. My oldest is 15 and I feel like time is flying by.

 

[dman11]

Congrats!!

We are also a family of 5. DS13, DD12 and DD4. Be sure to get to WDW before your latest addition is 3. They're free until they turn 3. We made it to WDW about a month and 1/2 before our youngest turned 3 and that was perfect. She was old enough to enjoy it while still being free. The cost has gone up big time for this trip since she now counts and we had to pay for a larger room, more tickets and another DDP.

We used child swap a lot during our last trip which worked out great. Be sure to take advantage of that. Some of my best memories from our last trip was just spending time with my youngest while DW and the older kids went on rides. There weren't many rides/shows that DD2(at the time) could go on that wouldn't accomodate all the family. She's going to be able to ride most rides this trip and is brave enough to go on all them so it will be different this trip because there's only going to be a few rides where child swap will be necessary.

Don't shy away from going before your newest is 3 then let your finances dictate what you do after that. Since you have DVC the room price jump isn't going to affect you so it's just the additional food and ticket you'll have to budget for. Enjoy and congrats again!

 

[Pembo]

Another mom of 3 here, we made the trip when youngest was 2 and 11 months, the second was 6, and the oldest was 9. That was the cheap year. It was a great trip. With our boys we always waited until they were 5 yo, but taking a little one was so great and the boys loved watching her get so excited. FF to this year, dd is almost 5, boys are 8 & 11...it sure costs more! Riding was fine. The oldest two rode some things together and Dad rode alone. My second one is not the bravest so he is happy to hang back with his sister for some rides.

I love having 3 kids, it's more chaos and more fun. A friend told me when I was pg with #3 that three kids makes you feel like a family. I didn't really understand that until #3 arrived. It will be great!

Oh wait, our favorite moment from our trip when they were 2, 6, & 9....the kids rode in the front of the monorail with the driver and Dad & I lounged in the first car. That was a nice break. LOL