Disney Babies:Let's compile our best tips for the under 1 set!!!

[lissawynn]

I just returned from my trip w/ my 6 mo. old son. He loved WDW and was so easy to travel with at this age. I basically threw the schedule out the window. Jimmy ate when he wanted, drank when he wanted, and napped when he wanted. I introduced him to water (with a touch of juice) on this trip, and he loved it. I also took a clean washcloth with me each day. I would wet it with cold water and place it on DS's head to keep him cool. He really enjoyed that.
I used the baby care centers at the MK and MGM to buy a forgotten bottle and some extra baby food. The center at MK was much nicer and more organized.
Before leaving, I bought the Kidopottamus(sp?) UV shade and used it the entire trip. DS stayed in the shade and never got sun burned.
I loved my Maclaren stroller! It was easy to manuever in the parks, lightweight, and folded up quickly. It also came in handy when my nephew crashed on our last night in MK. It held his 4 yo. self and got him to the boat and back to VWL. I don't know how people manage with those huge travel system stollers.

 

[Alysa]

I was in an 'emergency landing' situation when DS was 5 mos old and found out that you are FORCED to place all lap children on the floor between your legs while you assume crash position - never again !! If I had known that in advance I would have found a way to afford to secure my baby safely when flying !!

What?!?!? How awful!!!!

 

[pewing]

What?!?!? How awful!!!!

Actually it's not that bad (besides the whole situation is awful ) If you assume the 'crash position' which is the safest thing for you (to avoid being hit with flying debris)...you have to put your head down between your knees. Thus...you have no lap. If your infant is in the floor you can 'hold on' with your knees/feet and hands...while you are face to face. Again...awful situation to even think of, but no sense in being stubborn and insisting on sitting up with your child in your arms and risking both of you being seriously injured by flying objects or losing grip on your child.

I have flown twice with my youngest. Once I got a seat and once I flew with her in my lap. The later trip was our whole family. The later was a Thanksgiving trip to see my brother and his family. We had to buy four tickets, rent a car, and stay in a hotel. We would pay any price to insure our child's safety, but in reality...we did not feel like she would be any safer in a seat. Just IMHO.

Just defending anyone else who makes that decision.

 

[NotUrsula]

If you assume the 'crash position' which is the safest thing for you (to avoid being hit with flying debris)...you have to put your head down between your knees. Thus...you have no lap.

Unless you are well under 5 ft. tall, or travelling in Business or First, your head would not be between your knees; there isn't that much pitch in a Coach seat. These days, the crash position in Coach is with your head resting on your folded arms, leaning on the back of the seat in front of you. In this position, even if you had your hands down, they probably would not reach to hold onto a child on the floor, and if you tried it, you would probably end up with a heck of a head injury as your head hit the seat without your arms to break the impact.

The reason for putting a lap-baby on the floor in an emergency landing situation has absolutely nothing to do with protecting the child. You are instructed to put them on the floor because that position is the safest for everyone else around you, as it prevents the baby's body from becoming a hazardous airborne missile.

 

[anditoo72]

My best advice is to take a white towel. My stroller is navy blue and I would use the white towel to drape over the blue canopy. It made my baby so much cooler. When she fell asleep I would use the towel to shade her from the sun. Its also handy if there is a mess you need to clean up quickly. The best part is all the mess bleaches away!!!

 

[pezheadval]

Great tips everyone!

My dd was 6 months old when we first brought her. We have a trip planned for this comming December and I just found out that I am pregnant, so looks like we'll be bringing a 3 month old down on our next trip.

Here are some of my tips.

We brought our own stroller and a rain shield. The stroller was great for naps, snacking, diaper changes etc and the rain shield was great. We covered our stroller before going onto some attractions and it saved us a couple of times. One time we came out of Country Bears and everyone else had a soggy stroller...but we covered ours so we were good to go!

If you bring your own stroller, mark it in some way. Many people have the same strollers and its easy to mix them up. Tie a balloon or wrap ribbon on the handle, attached a luggage tag or address label. Something to help you easily ID your stroller.

We fastened toy links to the stroller and brought toys that could be clipped on. That way we didn't loose any toys.

The baby centers had filtered water on tap for mixing with formula.

Disposable bibs and table toppers were lifesavers.

 

[kamgen]

These tips are wonderful. We leave tomorrow and we are so excited to be taking our son who is a little over 4mths.
We are still unsure on what rides we can take him on and how that works. If anyone has tips, we would appreciate it.
We have two character breakfasts planned and are staying at OKW.
Thanks again to everyone for sharing your experiences!

 

[JessetheCowgirl]

Sorry if these are repeats, but the best things we did for DD (10 mos at the time) was to:

1. Bring her comfy stroller from home (I can't imagine carrying her all the way to and from resort room)

2. Buy her own airplane ticket and bring her carseat (She was way to wiggly to be held for the flight)

3. Stay at a Deluxe Resort (can't beat the monorail transportation!)

4. Rent a full-size crib from ABBF.com (I am not a pack-n-play fan for long trips---that mattress is so thin!!!)

5. Pack a crib sheet/blanket from home. (we've always used the T-shirt knit sheets, so I wanted her to have what she is used to)

6. Bring a hip carrier for waiting in lines

7. Planning a character meal daily. (This was her favorite part of the trip!)

8. Disposable bibs, placemats, and changing pads.

9. Lugging around the camcorder AND digital camera. (Even though it was a pain, the video is so sweet!! I am so glad we captured her reactions on film!)

Those are the first few that came to mind.

 

[TravelinGal]

We haven't traveled with a child yet, but I saw someone posted about buying a tub (or plastic wash pan) when you get there - Why not just get one of the inflatable tubs like they sell at babies r us? When DS was still too small (not sitting up well) for a full size tub, this is what we used at home for every bath anyway! And I did take it to Mexico for him. Very small when deflated- easy to inflate.

Thanks for all the great tips so far!

 

[BlueFairy]

This thread is awesome!!

Let's see, I know I have questions. Oh yes . . .what is your best tip for sharing your room with a napping 10 month old? We will have a hotel room with nothing between her and us during naptime and she goes to bed early. I'm thinking of going with the flow on napping in the stroller, but definitely taking a break anyway to give her little brain a rest.
Also for an early to bed baby - do you think we can handle being out for fireworks? Is Fantasmic too intense? I remember my very outgoing 2 yo cousin being overwhelmed by the dark movies, fireworks and some loud rides, so I'm fearing the worst here. Is a tiny little one that much more tolerant? She isn't a fearful kid. Pretty much the only thing she's wary of is the vacuum cleaner.
Other than that you all have helped tremendously. Now I know I'm not crazy for going.

 

[nucpharm29]

We went last year with our DD who was 16 months. She didn't really "get" Fanstasmic--she liked the effects and all though. As for a napping child in the same room, we had a balcony room (AKL) and went out there during her naptime. She also did nap in the stroller lots. We stayed out late at the parks and she just slept in the stroller. The hardest thing about that was getting her out of the stroller to get on the bus and then carrying her back to the room. Other than that stroller sleeping was great for us. Hope you have a great trip!

 

[BlueFairy]

yeah, I'm sure she won't "get" a lot of it. I was just curious about all the villains, spookiness and really loud stuff in Fantasmic being overwhelming.

THanks for the input. We won't have a guaranteed balcony at the Dolphin.

 

[pigget74]

Thanks for all the advice. Can't wait to take my little guy in May. My kids will be 11, 8, and 4mths. The older two cannot wait until they get to take little guy and show hime to Mickey and Pooh.

 

[In Luv with Disney]

BUMPING this up. Another poster was looking for a list of things to pack for an 8 month old. I thought this thread was perfect for her!!!

 

[dsneygirl]

Great thread. We are planning on taking a 3 month old in Oct and then again in Dec with our 1 year old neice so I love all these tips.

 

[pezheadval]

Has anyone had any trouble bringing baby food into the parks? Someone said they saw Disney Security tell a woman she couldn't bring in baby food because it was in glass jars.

 

[pigget74]

If that is the case about the baby food being in glass jars--I will be sure toi bring the gerber in the plastic container. I believe they come in a 2 pack. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[mlg32]

Thanks for all of the great tips----

 

[J&D]

 

[KaterBell]

I love this thread. So many good ideas. We brought our son in Oct. 05 - then 4 1/2 months... and we're bringing him back for his 1st bday in May.

I LOVE the ziploc bag with the bibs,spoons, mats, etc. We'll absolutely do that. Great tip about A Baby's Best Friend, too. I'm gonna look into the crib idea.