Dining with 3 month old

[Disney mom12]

We leave for Disney in two weeks!!! I'm really struggling with whether or not to bring the infant car seat. My main concern is table service restaurants. I have seen that there are infant seats, does anyone know if they are available at all TS? I'm just worried about where he will sit while we eat since strollers aren't allowed and he's too small for a high chair. I could always sit him on my lap, we plan on doing one TS a day (for dinner). So should I lug the car seat through the airport too or do you think we can get by without it?

 

[chelseabun76]

I had my 5 month old in his umbrella stroller that I took right into all of the ts restaurants in DL. A few times I was asked if I wanted a high chair and I said that he wasn't sitting on his own yet and they were fine with me keeping the stroller, but it wasn't a big one that took up a lot of space, it was very compact and wasn't in the way at all.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

I would bring your infant seat. When we were there in April with our 8 month old only certain places had the infant high chairs.

 

[bostonminnie]

We just got back from a week at Disney with our 2 month old and we brought our infant car seat to every restaurant. Chef Mickey's had a seat that we could fit the infant seat into, in the other restaurants we would just put her on the booth in the infant seat between us. We did end up holding her a lot during meals since she wanted out of the seat, but for the few times she was sleeping I was glad that we had the infant seat with us. I think either way you'll be fine.

 

[Disney mom12]

We just got back from a week at Disney with our 2 month old and we brought our infant car seat to every restaurant. Chef Mickey's had a seat that we could fit the infant seat into, in the other restaurants we would just put her on the booth in the infant seat between us. We did end up holding her a lot during meals since she wanted out of the seat, but for the few times she was sleeping I was glad that we had the infant seat with us. I think either way you'll be fine.

Thanks! Was it a pain to bring on the busses? I'm worried about that, especially because they can get crowded at night sometimes.

 

[Gracie09]

I would bring an ergo or wrap and use that. The carrier is bulky, hot, not really good for babies to be in for hours on end. An ergo or other carrier will give you both arms free and keep the baby safe and you can wear the baby throughout the say

 

[Disney mom12]

I would bring an ergo or wrap and use that. The carrier is bulky, hot, not really good for babies to be in for hours on end. An ergo or other carrier will give you both arms free and keep the baby safe and you can wear the baby throughout the say

I plan on using the ergo and stroller during the day, I'm just worried about dinner and eating at TS at night and where he would sit if we didn't have the car seat then.

 

[suzymouse724]

We took my dd at 3 months last year. A couple of the character meals had infant high chairs, but none of the regular restaurants did. We had our infant seat, and while a pain on the busses we were glad we had. Where are your TS meals? In general, I found the hotel restaurants happy to let us a bring in the stroller, but restaurants in the parks would not.

 

[Disney mom12]

We took my dd at 3 months last year. A couple of the character meals had infant high chairs, but none of the regular restaurants did. We had our infant seat, and while a pain on the busses we were glad we had. Where are your TS meals? In general, I found the hotel restaurants happy to let us a bring in the stroller, but restaurants in the parks would not.

Thanks! I think I'm going to bring it, it may be a pain at night but I think he will be more comfortable in it, plus he usually goes to bed around 7 so that way he can be comfortable and go to sleep while we do night time entertainment with our oldest who will be 6. We are eating at Hollywood derby, boma, cape may, bog, whispering canyon cafe, California grill, and raglan road.

 

[bostonminnie]

Thanks! Was it a pain to bring on the busses? I'm worried about that, especially because they can get crowded at night sometimes.

Are you going to just have the car seat or the stroller it snaps into as well? We had the stroller too and some restaurants let us roll her right in and the other places we just folded up the stroller part and carried her in the infant seat.. The bus was annoying with the car seat but not awful. We never had problems with crowds on the bus, and I'm glad we had the seat for her to sleep in. I did use the ergo during the day too, but she wants out as soon as I try to sit down in it

 

[Disney mom12]

Are you going to just have the car seat or the stroller it snaps into as well? We had the stroller too and some restaurants let us roll her right in and the other places we just folded up the stroller part and carried her in the infant seat.. The bus was annoying with the car seat but not awful. We never had problems with crowds on the bus, and I'm glad we had the seat for her to sleep in. I did use the ergo during the day too, but she wants out as soon as I try to sit down in it

We will have both, I figured the bus may be annoying but I guess I'm willing to sacrifice a 20min ride for a night of eating and a sleeping baby! Lol he doesn't like the ergo much either yet, I mainly just use it to feed him in and then he wants out.

 

[Shutterfox]

I have not taken my daughter to any of the Disney parks while she was still a baby, but I agree with several PPs about bringing your car seat. I can completely understand that it would be a bit cumbersome and make your park touring just a little inefficient, but I have a feeling that it would be worse (and even more inconvenient) to not have the car seat with you. Your youngest son would be more comfortable and able to easily take naps (plus go to sleep at night) while the rest of you can carry on with your day.

It would be even better if your car seat snaps into your stroller; I used the car seat/stroller combo all the time with my daughter when she was younger and it makes things so much easier! That way, you're not lugging the infant car seat around everywhere in addition to the ergo and stroller. For places (restaurants or otherwise) that won't allow you to bring the stroller inside, I would think that the transition would go much more smoothly to just carry your son right on inside while he's in his infant car seat. Plus, he will have a place to sit while you all enjoy your meals. The (possibly) awkward bus rides would really be worth it to be able to tour the parks as efficiently as you can, in my opinion.

Keep in mind, though, that you don't want to keep your son in the infant car seat all day long. As I'm sure you already know, it's not good to keep a baby in their car seat for hours on end, as Gracie09 mentioned in her response. Yes, car seats can get hot, but the weather in Orlando should be fairly mild this time of year. I'm sure you will use your good mommy common sense in that respect; your son will be just fine! You already said that you're bringing his stroller and ergo also. So between those two, the car seat, and your arms, I have no doubt that he will be very comfortable and you will all have a fantastic trip.

All that being said, it really does come down to personal preference. Some parents tour the parks with their baby in a car seat, others use a stroller/ergo/wrap, and many parents use a combination. It boils down to whatever you and your baby are most comfortable doing. Either way, with or without the car seat, I don't think you will experience very many problems. If you feel that bringing the carrier is tolerable, I would personally recommend it. But, if you think it will be too much of a pain to tow a car seat around with you, then just use the ergo and stroller. You most certainly can get by without it!

I hope you and your family have a wonderfully magical vacation at Disney!

 

[bostonminnie]

We will have both, I figured the bus may be annoying but I guess I'm willing to sacrifice a 20min ride for a night of eating and a sleeping baby! Lol he doesn't like the ergo much either yet, I mainly just use it to feed him in and then he wants out.

Yes I agree the 20 minute bus ride was worth having the seat, and everyone I encountered while awkwardly managing the seat on the bus was so nice and helpful. Have a magical trip

 

[star72232]

A ring sling!

It's small, light and portable. It will be comfy and you can use a decent one right from newborn through toddlerhood, so it's a good option to have anyway. I love Sleeping Baby Productions slings - they are a bit hard to get new (she's so busy!), but if you are willing to get used, there are FB sway pages and www.thebabywearer.com has a FSOT page for slings. You can find tons of her slings there for great prices.

 

[ptlohmysoul]

We leave for Disney in two weeks!!! I'm really struggling with whether or not to bring the infant car seat. My main concern is table service restaurants. I have seen that there are infant seats, does anyone know if they are available at all TS? I'm just worried about where he will sit while we eat since strollers aren't allowed and he's too small for a high chair. I could always sit him on my lap, we plan on doing one TS a day (for dinner). So should I lug the car seat through the airport too or do you think we can get by without it?

While strollers are not typically permitted, we were always permitted to bring our stroller in if our child was napping in it. Even at CRT, where there is not much room at all for such things. Another tip to go with that - they let us take our pic w/ Cinderella after lunch instead of the normal before lunch (dd woke up in time to see all the princesses).

 

[catherine]

We took our 3 month old Granddaughter for 3 weeks, so ate a lots of TS restaurants and we were able to take her in, in her stroller. Most of the restaurants asked us if we wanted a high chair but when we explained that she was only 3 months old they said to go ahead and leave her in the stroller!