Any Suggestions with a 13MO

[DisneyMommy2005]

My husband and I are planning a trip in January 07 with our 13mo (he will be at the time). Any suggestions on how all of us can enjoy ourselves? I have to admit my husband feels we will be limited...

 

[CEDmom]

There's lots of entertainment at Epcot that he'd probably love, Toontown in Magic Kindgom would be a good place to let him wander a bit, Playhouse Disney in MGM is lots of fun and finally what child doesn't love Animals so AK would be great for all of you. Just plan lots of down time and go at your DS's pace. If he's a good stroller napper that'll make things easier for the 2 of you go around the parks and take turns enjoying things.

 

[In Luv with Disney]

You will NOT be limited!!! Well, the only thing you guys can't do is ride all the thrill rides TOGETHER. But if it doesn't bother you to ride solo and use baby swap, you'll be able to do EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!

You'd be surprised...your 13 month old can do more than you think!!!!! I would just relax, go with the flow and definitely go back to the hotel for an afternoon nap. If the baby gets fussy, you adjust your plans accordingly. I will be taking my DD on her 2nd trip in December...she will be 18 months old. I took her on her first trip when she was 4 1/2 months old. My soon to be 5 year old DS has been 6 times already.

Does your 13 month old like Disney Characters? What about a character meal? My kids LOVE them!!!! My favorite breakfast is Chef Mickey's. It's lots of fun, and great food, too!!!

Let your 13 month old set the tone for the trip and you will be FINE. There is so much to see and do at WDW for ALL of you, so no worries. It will be a MAGICAL trip!!

 

[2poohbears]

Also, keep in mind that time of year is generally pretty low as far as crowds, so you won't have to stand in line and wait that often.

We brought 2 1/2 y/o twins this year at the end of JAN/beginning of FEB and it was very easy for us to "switch off" to ride the stuff the boys weren't old enough for...there really is a lot that your child will be able to go on though...especially at MK.

 

[SnowWitch]

Our daughter was 14 months old this summer. We took it easy and let her moods dictate touring. She enjoyed all of the rides she could go on which were most.

What I found interesting was the first 2 days she was hard to get down for a nap. Overstimulation, I suppose. But, by day 3 until day 12, she was ready for her nap and she took a 3 hour one every day. She did suprisingly well for the entire vacation. She even managed to make it through a sit down meal every night. I always told the server for the enjoyment of the meal for us, the staff, and those around us we wanted things to come at a swift pace. All servers did this and did it well. Most sitdown meals never exceded 1 hr 15 minutes which really was about her limit in the evenings.

We learned to take time to enjoy little things, she was just mastering walking so we would let her toddle around in uncrowded areas. She enjoyed smelling flowers and of course touching everything. (Gotta love diaper wipes). Our other 2 children are teenage boys, who went on their own 50% of the time. We had always done commando touring with them but with her we just took time to smell the roses so to speak.

One other thing, characters. We thought for sure she would be terrified of them. Wrong. She loved them. So we sceduled a dinner at Crystal Palace. Although she enjoyed it, she didn't understand other children wanted to see the characters also. So when one would come into sight she would get all excited and then they would arrive at our table and she would be all excited. Then they would leave and she would SCREAM until she saw another one coming!! Although mildly amusing, others around us probably found it painful to listen to. Thank god, the characters made very quick rounds that night and we were in and out in 45 minutes!

 

[KristiKelly]

We just got back on Saturday with our 3 kids, DS9, DD6 & DD14 mo. old. We had a great time. DD rode everything that didn't have a height restriction. I don't ride roller coasters and such but the few things I did ride with a height restriction, we did baby swap and it worked great. She loved the characters, all excep Mr. Incredible. We did 3 character meals, 1) breakfast @ Cinderella's Royal Table (more for DD6), 2) lunch @ Crystal Palace 3) breakfast @ Cape May Cafe she loved the characters at all 3 but preferred the cartoon characters (Minnie, Chip, Dale, Pooh, etc.) to the "real people" characters. I think to her they were just people, she did like the Fairy Godmothers costume. It was really hot last week 90°+ everyday so I had to remember to give her extra milk & water throughout the day. I think you will have a great time.

 

[Sooze]

The biggest thing that helps me whenever I visit with kids of any age is to keep the right frame of mind. Follow the lead of your kids. If they're cranky and exhausted, don't continue to drag them around the parks. Let them rest if they need to. If they'd rather spend the afternoon at the pool of the resort, do it and enjoy it (even if you'd rather be swapping and riding a thrill ride). Of course, it also helps that DH and I return to WDW ALONE once a year, so we can concentrate on what we want to do.. but I digress...

Our DD went as a 6 month old and really got more out of it than I thought she would!

I'd love to hear more about TODDLERS, though and what people do to make sure they have a great time. DD will be 18 months the next time we go. I'm sure our trip will be vastly different!

 

[sdoll]

We just returned from our vacation with our 14 mo. old. He did great. We did try to come back to the room after lunch and give him some down time. I was a little concerned that we would not enjoy that but I have to admit it was really nice and relaxing for us too. I often decided that I needed a nap too. Or else I would go to the pool and my husband would stay in the room. It was really nice to get a little mommy time. We also asked the server to bring out our food a quickly as possible. Once you have a child gone are the days of the long drag out meals. So that was no different than home. One day we hired www.kidsniteout.com for 5 hours so that my husband and I could get some alone time. I can't say enough for how great they were. I know it is not for everyone but I felt just fine using them. It was the 2nd trip we have used them and will probably use them again in the future. But the best thing I can say is that kids are smart if Mommy is happy baby is happy. Just give her a break if she needs one. The heat should not play to big of a factor in her comfort either which should help. Have fun I wish it was us again.

 

[stacy6552]

Things to bring:

fully reclining stroller with baslet and cup holders.

Stroller rain cover

Table Toppers (presterlized stickey mats for finger foods)

shoes! I saw a littl e girl once in bare feet rolling a cigerette butt between her toes....

baby carrier, not a backpack. There are loads of places the stroller cant go and you cant wear a backpack on a ride like you can the front carrier.

an extra large changing pad, for emergency locations.

 

[surfer_ed]

DD first trip was 12 months and she had a blast. There is always the deabte that they are too young to remember but to me the younger ages are special since the magic is REAL.

>Set realistic expectations
>Do the baby swap on the rides
>Becareful of getting too close to the Characters if your 13 mo doesn't like them.
>The baby care centres and the 100 Acre Woods are great spots for downtime. DD played in the 100 AW and my wife and I took turns riding Space Mountain.

Also we really enjoyed Typhoon Lagoon for a day. We split our time between the a nice shaded area by the wave pool and the kiddie area taking turns going off and riding the big water slides.

 

[mecllap]

I think you've picked a really good time to go with a toddler. My memory from our 2000 trip with 13mo DGS is that WDW is actually not very toddler-friendly. Lots of places it's hard to maneuver the stroller, and lots of places you have to leave it parked a lot sooner than I would have liked to (that might not be such a problem with the reduced crowds you'll have). DGS is one of those fearless, quick wanderer types, so we used a leash fairly often -- some people give you strange looks about those, but the extra peace of mind is worth it. There are tons of distractions at WDW. We ended up using the car most of the time, to save the hassle of getting on and off busses with the stroller. Ease the young one into character encounters -- don't force them, let her set the pace. The TTA in MK is great, sometimes you can ride it around several times, with napping baby.
Too bad it will probably be too cool for Typhoon Lagoon -- that was great. I went around Lazy River 3-4 times with DGS napping on my lap in the tube.
Prepare for all your creature comforts -- ponchos, stroller cover, first aid, diapers, drinks, etc. Don't expect to do it all; take it easy and enjoy.

 

[FourBoysMom]

My husband and I are planning a trip in January 07 with our 13mo (he will be at the time). Any suggestions on how all of us can enjoy ourselves? I have to admit my husband feels we will be limited...

One thing we did in 04 with 3rd son (who was 14 months at the time) and will be doing with 4th son (who will be 18 months at the time) is take them for a haircut at Magic Kingdom. We let their hair grow a little long b4 we go....and they give them a Mickey ears hat embroidered with the words 'first haircut'. They also gave us a certificate and pieces of his hair mixed with 'pixie dust'.

The best video we have from that trip was of Johnny falling asleep during his hair cut, while being serenaded by the barber shop quartet. When they realized he was falling asleep, they began singing lullabies....absolutely precious and worth the wait (it's first come, first served).

Other than the big thrill rides, there isn't much the little one's can't do....you'll be fine!

Best wishes....

Trixie