For those with babies..

[Jackie0824]

For those with babies who are breastfed at Diseny.. How easy was it to go to the childcare center? Sorry Im not sure the name of it. Iknow there is a place at each park where you can go with baby to nurse, or whatever? Is this also where the first aid stuff is? Ive been to disney 10 times, never with a nursing baby. My youngest will be 10 months when we go in a couple of weeks. We are not planning on going to AK. I know where it is at MK, not at the other parks. I do NOT nurse in public, its not an option for me at all. But,my baby is still nursing 6-7 times a day. So I find that I need to find where they are located at each park, and how easy it is to get in and out? Are they crowded in there? Anybody use them?Thanks

 

[castlegazer]

We found it easy in MK and not so easy in the other parks. But if you make it a priority, you will get there just fine - just sometimes you may be across the park and need to get over to it if its a priority for you. AK is the worst for that.

I nurse in public if need be, so that is what I did - but I also wasn't with a baby who needed that many feedings.

The Baby Care Centers are AWESOME inside. Not crowded at all. Wonderfully clean - they have attendants who can also sell you formula, diapers, wipes, anything you need. There is mini kitchens for heating food and rocking chairs for nursing and relaxing. Some have TV's playing movies for your older children.

There are many out of the way areas where you can nurse and no one will notice - believe it or not. Again, I found AK to be the most difficult for this.

Hope this helps.

 

[Jackie0824]

Castlegazer, thanks for your quick response. But, are there privite areas to nurse in these childcare centers? Yes, Im a lady with big ****s ,and Im just not comfortable breastfeeding in front of anybody(except my husband and my other kids). I do like my privicy, plus the fact the baby can be quite nosey now and gets easily distracted

 

[tbelfonti]

The one in Epcot was the one I visited.

It had a dimly lit room with a bunch of rocking chairs set up in a circle - I'm sure you could turn your rocker facing the wall so you're not exposed - is that ok?

Have a wonderful trip

 

[castlegazer]

I think one had private rooms, but the one in MK did not. It had the rocking chairs set in a circle also. People can come in and out and see this room. Men also do come in and out.

I have got to tell you, though, my thoughts are, get over your fear. I am big chested too with a baby now who likes to pull away. Its super embarassing, but no one really notices when you do it discreetly. i.e. don't look down - keep your eyes up and go about your business.

For 6-7 times per day, if this is day time feedings, which I don't think it can be - its probably more like 4 feedings during the day time, you will need to plan to be by the Baby Care centers at that time of day or else you will spend a good majority of your park touring time getting from one place to another.

You really will get ingenious about where and when you feed. It can be done discreetly. Be flexible about it or take a bottle of your milk (and yes, you can bring in coolers for this).

 

[Northern Lights]

We went about 3 weeks ago with our 4 month old and the centers were never crowded - might be different during busier times. Castlegazer's description of the centers is right on target. They are simply superb - a quentessential Disney quality service. Due to a miscommunication we had to buy formula at EPCOT (Nestle Good Start) and the price was very reasonable - maybe a couple of dollars more than what you would pay at your local store. In fact, I had gone ahead of DH and forgot that he had the money, but they let me use the formula until he got there to pay for it. I know you personally won't need to purchase formula, but others who read this may want to know.

I think MK is most accessible b/c MK is a smaller, more compact park. AK's center is close to Camp Minnie Mickey and Africa so plan on either doing FOTLK or KS before or after your time to nurse. MGM's center is near the very front of the park - kind of inconvenient unless you plan to nurse right when you get there or right when you leave. We found EPCOT to be the most difficult to find, get to, etc. but that is probably b/c EPCOT is the largest park. The center is off by itself in an ugly-ish brown building that sits generally b/w Test Track and Mexico - plan on doing TT or Mexico/starting your tour of the WS around the nursing time.

Edit for castlegazer's new post - yes, DH could (but rarely did) come into the front of the center with DD and stay in the movie watching area but was not allowed in the nursing area. The attendant will make sure only other nursing mothers are in the nursing area. If the attendant does not do her job then speak up - but the attendants we had were pretty strict in enforcing this rule so I think they have been trained to not let this particular rule slide.

 

[Jackie0824]

Thanks for everybodys replies. Yes, I do pump first thing in the morning. So I have no problem bringing a bottle of pumped milk with me. Its just that my baby normally always nurses before her naps(she still naps twice a day),she loves her babyfood. Im not worried about her not eating. Im more worried about my comfort of not being able to nurse for many hrs.. I think I can handle it and plan for it where I can nurse at least 2 times while in the park, guess I will just have to play it by ear.
PS..I have heard many big chested women say they nurse in public and its no big deal. To me it is a BIG DEAL. I can not be discreet. I need both hands for nursing, one had to put under head so I dont smother her, and the other hand to cradle.
I dont worry about what other people thing. I worry about myself, and how I feel. This is my 2nd baby Ive nursed(I have 3), and have never nursed in public, yes in my car, yes in dressing rooms at stores, but never in front of other people. This is just me.

 

[castlegazer]

I use two hands too, so I totally know where you're coming from. I can't nurse on my right in public at all.

Just know it will be tough to find a good totally private spot and you will be fine. I went down with the thought of using the Baby care centers all the time and it just didn't work out that way at all.

 

[tmfranlk]

Castlegazer, thanks for your quick response. But, are there privite areas to nurse in these childcare centers? Yes, Im a lady with big ****s ,and Im just not comfortable breastfeeding in front of anybody(except my husband and my other kids). I do like my privicy, plus the fact the baby can be quite nosey now and gets easily distracted

AK and MGM have a couple of private rooms. If they are in use, you may have to wait if you won't nurse around other moms. MK and Epcot have one room for nursing moms. You may be in there alone and you may not. I would say that 75% of the time I have shared the room with one other mom. Rarely was it mor ethan that and only a few times was I alone in the room. At Disneyland it was very rare to be completly alone. That said, you could turn the rocking chair so that you are positioned out of view.

Have you considered one of the nursing blankets that fasten around your neck? I have never used them, but it might help you to remain covered for public feedings while still remaining covered up. This could allow you to nurse in out of the way spots or on dark rides/shows more comfortably. I'm just thinking of a situation in which you are in the UK and have to get all the way over to the Baby Center in Epcot or other far stretches like that. Either way, good luck!

 

[justhat]

I took my daughter at 2, 3, and 6 months, when she was exclusively breastfeeding, no solids yet. So she was nursing about every 2 hours then (this changed at 6 months as she didn't want to 'waste time' nursing and would refuse to nurse unless she was absolutely starving). I went to the baby care centers a lot, in every park, mostly cause the trips were in May, June, and August and I wanted a break from the heat. The problem is though, if you're in MGM, like others said, the baby care center is at the park entrance, so pretty inconvenient if you're by the Backlot Tour. Same with Epcot, it's over by TT/Mexico, so quite a hike if you're in France or about to ride Soarin'.

My suggestion here is that maybe you could try nursing in a dark show? It's not really in public and if you know it's time to nurse you could sit in the back row and no one would really see anything. I know it's hard when they get to the stage of looking around and pulling off during their meal (Madison started that on the 6 month trip, and was just as bad at 9 months, but nursing less then so it wasn't as big a problem). I nursed Madison during just about every dark show/ride without a problem. If you still feel funny, that's fine, really, do what you need to do, but if you find yourself far from the baby care center, you might want to think about the dark attraction plan.

 

[GEM]

Hi! Another breastfeeding mom, here!

My little guy has just turned two. He's made two trips to Disney World so far, once at 12 months and once at 18 months - and we "nursed around the world" both times.

I've never used the baby care centers, though, so I can't really help you there. I've heard they are very nice, but it just seems like a huge pain to head back there every time you need to nurse.

I was going to suggest what somebody said about nursing in dark shows, etc. Then, nobody can really see you in the dim light - plus they're all focused on the show.

Also, there are lots of benches tucked out of the way in isolated little corners where nobody would see you at all. You could find a bench in a little empty corner and park the stroller right in front of you and nobody would even see! We've never had any trouble finding isolated little corners of the world when we were looking for them.

I'm not trying to convince you to do something you aren't comfortable with or anything, I'm just wondering if maybe there is some way you could work it out where you wouldn't have to head to the baby care centers multiple times a day, but would still feel comfortable.

 

[KMH1]

We've never had any trouble finding isolated little corners of the world when we were looking for them.

LOL...this reminds me of our October trip. We were in World Showcase, and I thought I found a nice isolated area to nurse, but it turned out to be an entrance/exit for cast members! Sometimes the Disney scenery is a little too convincing! So yeah, quite a few CMs walked by during those 15-20 minutes, but most just smiled at me.

Amy

 

[kimpossible]

This is a great thread with lots of info. I am due in 2 weeks and will be in the parks in October with my 5 yr old. ds and new 4 mth. old. I had no idea the stations were that nice. I might have tried to make due as if I was at the mall, but this sounds MUCH better.

Thanks for the tips!

 

[java]

Gosh Disney is my favorite place to deal with nursing because there are so many dark "private" places. I have nursed on most of the slow moving rides- and spaceship earth is a great one- because it is so dark noone sees you at all and it is a loooong ride. But I understand if you are uncomfortable. In MK there is the walkway behind Space Mountain that takes you to Toon Town. I have nursed there numerous times while the rest of my family was on the speedway and I have never seen anyone over there. It was a great place to nurse nice trees and solitude.(I don't know how big you are talking that you are that uncomfortable...I am DD/F sorry if TMI) In MGM I nursed in the Little Mermaid show- so dark and so much going on no one was looking at me-we sat in the back..and also in the Muppet Movie. I really cannot stress enough how "private" these public places can be. I just got so tired of missing all the fun looking for the nursing stations all the time..and my kids got sick of me disappearing. You will have to be very organized if you only want to use the centers. I agree with everyone else that the one in Epcot is the most annoying to get to..but they are nice rooms and they are airconditioned. Good luck and happy nursing.

 

[rt2dz]

I wasn't nursing this past trip, but the trip before it. I just didn't find going to the baby care centers all that convienent. It could have been a 20 minute walk in some circumstances; I'm not waiting 20 minutes to feed my child. I think your best bet is a nursing shawl/blanket if you are uncomfortable nursing in public and just trying to find an out of the way area/dark attraction/ride. I nursed on kilmajaro Safari, carasoul of progress, tiki birds, tomorrowland transit way thingy, little mermaid show, and many others, including secluded benches. Of course, I don't think the baby care centers are all that worth while anyhow.

 

[andriade]

I breastfed my DS on our first trip to WDW. I breastfed all over. I am very large breasted also. I DO NOT like to nurse in public. I nursed at the babycare centers on our last trip and found them to be clean and quiet. The castmembers actually ask people to remain quiet so you can nurse in peace. For some reason, I never minded nursing in front of other nursing mothers That's me though. I also nursed during dark 3D movies too. I was in between my mother and DH. The Tiki Room ws the best IMHO. So good luck!