Crawling babies at Disney???

[rluey29]

We're leaving for Disney in 2 weeks. We'll be there for over a week. We're excited and all but last night I got concerned. We have two children DS8 and DS1. Our youngest son cannot walk and loves to crawl around and explore. He will tolerate being in a stroller for awhile, but probably not all day. Concrete and pavement will be rough on his little knees and it's too hot to wear pants. I know there will be a kids area or sidewalk fountain or SOMETHING that he will want to interact with. What do all of you who have "crawling" babies do???

Do they have baby kneepads for summer somewhere that I'm unaware of? If not, someone should really invent them.

Any advice?

 

[Ashlander]

Pooh's playful spot and Donald's Boat at MK and the kid's play area near the Dinosaur ride at AK all have a soft surface that I think would be good for a crawling baby. I'm not sure how hot it gets, but it would be easy on the knees.

 

[rluey29]

Ashlander- that is great to hear! I'm thinking about making him some kneepads. I just have to figure out how!

 

[mommytoe]

We're leaving for Disney in 2 weeks. We'll be there for over a week. We're excited and all but last night I got concerned. We have two children DS8 and DS1. Our youngest son cannot walk and loves to crawl around and explore. He will tolerate being in a stroller for awhile, but probably not all day. Concrete and pavement will be rough on his little knees and it's too hot to wear pants. I know there will be a kids area or sidewalk fountain or SOMETHING that he will want to interact with. What do all of you who have "crawling" babies do???

Do they have baby kneepads for summer somewhere that I'm unaware of? If not, someone should really invent them.

Any advice?

Not sure about crawling and WDW, but One Step Ahead does sell knee pads for crawling.

 

[livndisney]

Pooh's playful spot and Donald's Boat at MK and the kid's play area near the Dinosaur ride at AK all have a soft surface that I think would be good for a crawling baby. I'm not sure how hot it gets, but it would be easy on the knees.

While I will agree Donalds boat and Poohs spot have soft surfaces. I don't think I would put a baby on the ground there.

Donalds boat is a splash area with larger, older children running around. There is a small playground near Donalds boat. But I would be very careful with a little one. http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/mk/donald.htm This playground is open to kids up to 40 inches tall.


Here is a link to Pooh's play ground. http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/mk/pps.htm

The sign says for ages 2-5. Again, water squirts from the ground and lots of children running around.

The baby care centers have colorful "play" rooms (No running children and I would think the floor to be cleaner) that are also air conditioned. The one in Ak is the largest and quite nice.

The Boneyard at AK is for children 4 and over. http://www.allearsnet.com/tp/ak/ak_by.htm

 

[MegandNatesMommy]

I feel your pain. We are going for the weekend on the 30th and my son will be 13months. He is a mega Crawler and I wonder how he'll be all day at MK.

Good luck !

 

[rk5798]

We are in the same situation as my son who just turned 1 a month ago is also not walking yet. I was wondering if anyone uses a front carrier with a 1 year old while standing in lines? I know it will be hot, but I also know our arms will get so tired from holding him since when he is standing he usually squats down after a minute to take of crawling. So would a front carrier(like a baby bjorn) be a good idea or just an extra thing that we don't need? We have one but I haven't used it since December(just no need for it during the winter months).

 

[Wendybird55]

They do make baby knee pads. I got a pair for my son - I think at Babies R Us or Target because we have hard wood floors and he was crawling in summertime when he was wearing shorts. He really didn't use them much - I think they were more uncomfortable to wear than anything. Plus he would pull them off. But they didn't cost much and you can try them if you want.

But I agree with others, it may not be a good idea to let your son crawl around areas with other kids playing as someone may fall on or over him or accidently bump into him.

The marketplace by DTD has some ares for kinds and is not as crowded as the parks. Maybe one of those backpacks you can carry him around in will help. This way he can see everthing from a higher perspective.

Chances are he will get most of his crawl time in when you're at the resort in your room.

But who knows you still have 2 weeks and he can start walking. My son was crawling all over and he could pull himself to a standing position (did that before he crawled) He wasn't taking many steps however. Then a week before he first birthday he was sitting on the kitchen floor and just got up and began to walk all on his own. So you never know...

 

[katied]

I'm in the same boat - leaving Saturday with a 13 mo old who is really close to walking, but just not more than 1 - 2 steps, and wobbly at best. I know it will be hot, but am taking a hip carrier to help out in the lines. Since it will just be DS and I, I'm sure my arm will be tired, and it will help him be more comfortable. It will also help on busses, etc., if I need to stand, so I know he is secure as I'm standing, holding on to the stroller, diaper bag, etc.

With that said, I will let him in the kiddy areas just a bit, if only to get wet/cool off with his older cousin.

Our plan is to be at the parks around 9 - 1 or so each day, and the naps and pool. So, while he may be bored of the stroller/being carried, it won't be the whole day. He'll have pool time/beach time (we're at BCV) to crawl all he wants each day.

 

[camlace]

On a similar note, make sure you bring "shoes" for your crawler. My daughter was a 13 month non-walker for her first trip. Any time I put her little toes down without shoes on to help her "walk" a CM would come running over and say she needed shoes on. This happened many times and in many places around the world. So I made sure I had water shoes for places like Donald's Playland and she wore her Robeez when "walking" around hard/dry surfaces.

 

[stacy6552]

There are plenty of places to put the baby down, like toon town and the boneyard. I recommend that you bring a front baby carrier, too. There are plenty of places that your tot can go that the stroller cant. In a front carrier the baby can stay right where he is while on rides and in shows. And bring baby wipes to clean hands and knees after crawling, yuck.

 

[las3888]

We didn't let DS crawl around in the parks, but we did only spend the AM and evenings in the park...afternoons were spent napping and then swimming if we had time. DS did really well with that plan...now with an 8 y/o that might be difficult. I know friends of our often split up...Dad or Mom stays in the park with the older one while the other goes back to the room for nap. OR you could take the 8 y/o to the pool while the other parent stays in the room.

DS was 8.5 mos there and just started crawling right in our room. Fun times!!!

 

[bartleby1]

When my little ones were just learning to walk, I made my own kneepads out of DH's old sweat socks. I just cut the top part of the sock off so it was a circular tube and slipped one over each leg so it covered their knees. It really helped protect their knees from all of the falls in the summertime. This would probably help protect them when they are crawling too.