HELP PLEASE! Two month old at Disney - need advice!

[Alysa]

A friend of mine has been planning a trip to Disney for over a year now and just found out that she is pregnant - her baby will be two months old when they go. She has real concerns about whether they will be able to manage it. Can I get as many suggestions and tips as possible from those great DIS moms who have done this?
Note - we have been with 15 month old and have already advised her to
1. Take her bijorn
2. Rent a crib if she can't get one from the hotel (we were stuck with a pack and play which wasn't as easy). And take the baby's linens.
3. Skip fireworks
4. Take the baby back to the room to nap during the hotter hours of the day.
5. Stay at a DVC resort with a kitchen.
6. Drink LOTS of water.
She also had two other children so any suggestions on how to make this fun for the whole family would be great. Thank you!!

 

[Beca]

Take time out during the day (while the rest of the group is watching the parade is a perfect time) to go to the "baby care centers" and rest up. I was bf'ing my dd when we went. I didn't get to see any parades that year, but I was able to go feed my dd in private rooms, with the lights out, where it was VERY quiet. She would go right to sleep (and, usually so would I). I also brought my pump with me and would make her bottles for later in the day.

Of course, my dd was 11 months old, and not 2 months...but, I have actually heard that the smaller they are, the better they are.

I LOVED the baby care station at AK!! But, the other ones aren't bad either.

Tell her to just "take it easy" and enjoy the "different" experience of being there with her baby. I had a wonderful time!!



Beca

 

[the kabuki]

It is actually easier when they're that little. They'll be sleeping a majority of the time and loud noises never bothered my babies at that age, son slept through the circus once at that age. And having two other kids will surely get the baby used to noise.

Once tip-tell her not to expect too much out of this vacation. When you go with high unrealistic expectations is usually where the stress starts. Take it easy and slow and let Dad take the other two sometimes , while Mom and baby rest in the room

 

[Inside Ball]

Hi i have a similar problem we have booked to go to my sisters wedding in Orlando in october. But I have since found out i'm pregnant and the baby will be about 3mnths. we are still undecided whether or not to go (flight to consider from the uk aswell) but i was wondering what rides would be suitable for such a small baby i.e can you take a small baby on Peter Pan etc.... Thanks The only advice I can think of is to take a stroller and carrier the carrier will be handy whilst queing for rides or letting brother or sister have a rest.

 

[Alysa]

Congratulations Inside Ball! A baby - how wonderful!

 

[BevS97]

we took our dd last year when she was 12 weeks old - we had a great trip, and I would take a small baby again.

Someone suggested staying at a DVC resort - while that would be lovely, it is very pricey. We decided to rent a villa offsite so that we would have kitchen and laundry facilities, but to be honest, I am not sure that we really needed them. If you are breastfeeding then you won't need a kitchen at all, and if you are using bottles then it's quite easy to make up the bottles with water and add formula as needed. our only issue was with sterilising, we used a microwave steriliser, but it is possible to do chemical sterilisation in a sink, or to bring an electric steriliser to plug in (and I have a feeling americans don't sterilise very long anyway, so even less of an issue).

we used a stroller and a baby bjorn - both were very useful, also the carseat on the stroller is handy in restaurants, but I don't like to leave the baby in the carseat all day as it's against the advice we are given over here.

You can take the baby on lots of rides, things like peter pan etc are all fine.
I do recommend a Baby Bjorn for on rides, things like peter pan are actually quite high - i felt happier knowing she was strapped to me.

bev

 

[becky7953]

The baby care centers were great! Find out where they are in each park! At that age babies sleep alot anyway. If she is going with a husband then one can take care of the baby and the other can do things with the other kids.

 

[Colinsmom]

She might want to consider a sling over a Bjorn. There is a lot of debate about the pressure that the Bjorn puts on baby's spine, and I don't know if I'd be comfortable using one for that many hours, that many days. Plus, she may be able to nurse in the sling, allowing her to keep up with the family. A great site for slings and other carriers is www.thebabywearer.com

 

[java]

Holy smokes Colinsmom that site has TONS of info. But which one should I buy. I am having my baby next Friday- we will go to Disney this summer. I am loving the idea of a sling instead of my Bjorn for the whole breastfeeding ease. Are there any that you prefer?

 

[Inside Ball]

Thanks for all the tips and advice. BevS97 how did you find the flight. I think that is our main concern and how much the sleep deprivation will affect our energy for the other two children.

 

[estherhead]

Once with my eldest and again with my second. It really gave me something to look forward to while pregnant. "If I can just make it to the 2 month mark- VACATION!" I did the Baby Bjorn and a double stroller (eldest kid was under two.) We sometimes went home for naps, although they both took two naps at WDW so we did do two days where we stayed until 7pm and then left for the day. I would wear the 2 month old and do all the rides allowed. No problems. They are too little at that age to be scared and I woud just pop my hands over her ears if it got too loud. And I am one of those moms that nurses anywhere (blanket & discreet, of course.) Sorry to everyone who hates that. I have a photo of me sitting on the floor in a corner while my family waits in line in Mickey's Tent to meet Mickey. I fed her while they waited and then popped back into line and we have great Mickey photos! She even smiled she was so content. I didn't miss out on anything. Those first two trips to WDW sure were a lot easier on me than the last one where they were 2 & 3. Tell her to go and ENJOY! It will be a vacation for her, as the next few trips she makes will be a vacation for everyone but her.

Esther

 

[BevS97]

we didn't find the flight too bad - we flew with Virgin when she was tiny (and have since flown with Airtours), and they were both ok. The baby got upset on the descent, but other than that she was fine.
She was bottle fed, so we carried bottles of water and sachets of powder and just made bottles up as needed. I brought ALOT of bottles, way more than we needed, just in case.
Virgin gave us bulkhead seats and a skycot and she was either in that, or in a sling (I use both a Baby Bjorn and a pouch sling, the pouch was fab on the plane as I could cuddle her handsfree). I couldn't carry my dd in a pouch all day, and could definitely use the Baby Bjorn for longer, but the pouch was great for sleeping, it's a much more natural sleeping position for them to be in.

My biggest suggestoin would be to take the earliest flight you can find, so that you get there at a reasonable hour. Last year we flew from London at 12noonish and landed after 5 Florida time, then had to do teh airport/carhire/find the villa thing and by the time we got to the villa we were all exhausted and the kids were asleep in the car, my eldest could barely walk through the airport.

This year, we flew from Newcastle (Much more conveninet for us), it was an 8am flight, we landed at Sanford around noon, and were at Port Orleans by about 2pm. We had a swim and went to the Magic Kingdom that evening - the difference in our days was amazing - I will take the early flight every time!

 

[disneygoof]

There's a thread going for just this issue right now. I haven't read it but it might be helpful...

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=718912

 

[Colinsmom]

Holy smokes Colinsmom that site has TONS of info. But which one should I buy. I am having my baby next Friday- we will go to Disney this summer. I am loving the idea of a sling instead of my Bjorn for the whole breastfeeding ease. Are there any that you prefer?

Java - I'm particularly fond of the adjustable pouches at www.kangarookorner.com, the ring slings at www.zolowear.com, the ring slings at www.sleepingbaby.net and the mei tai carriers at www.kozycarrier.com. I know that is still a long list, but different carriers are good at different ages - seems like new moms really rave about the adjustable pouches and stretchy wraps (which I haven't tried with my toddler) for the newborns. The mei tai carriers are similar to the Bjorn but remove the pressure from the spine, so they look a little more "mainstream" - not too practical for nursing though. A ring sling is the most practical for nursing (the tail makes a great cover up) but probably has the steepest learning curve. Though I don't think that they are hard for most people to use. HTH, and good luck with your upcoming delivery!

 

[annabelle]

Colins Mom...

I think I recognize you from the Baby Bargains boards... if you're the same person I'm thinkin about, you'll be a great asset to all the moms who need info about carseats, strollers and slings!

I've visited those BB boards for a few years now... I remember talking about getting an Aria a while back and you mentioned something about the skimpy padding plus Colin never liked his, etc. etc.

Am I losing my mind, or are you the same person I'm thinking about?

 

[Colinsmom]

Colins Mom...

I think I recognize you from the Baby Bargains boards...

Mmm, yep, you probably do! After our trip to Disney in December (Colin's first) I'm hooked and ready to plan our second trip!

 

[justhat]

We took my daughter at 13 weeks and she was in her Bjorn almost all day, everyday. She did not like her stroller too much at that age (still not a huge fan, but at least she'll use it) so the only time she really stayed in the stroller was while she was napping in Epcot, as there wasn't as much that she needed to get out for there. In the other parks, she mostly stayed in the Bjorn and slept in there when she got tired. At that age, they sleep so much that you can't really go back to the room to nap cause you'd be there all day! My daughter was used to napping in the Bjorn at home (hated, and still hates, her crib) so I guess it wasn't any different on vacation. I kept a sunhat on her (brim and neckflap), draped a very lightweight, white, receiving blanket over the back, which covered her arms and legs from the sun, so she was totally shaded all day. She was actually cooler in the Bjorn than when she was in her stroller, and she was shaded there too and had a clip-on fan on the stroller.

Colinsmom, I really wanted to get a sling with my daughter as she was a very high-need infant and needed to be held all day for the first 3+ months. We had just gotten the Bjorn Active (much easier on the back than the regular) so I had a hard time justifying the cost of a sling as well, so we kept putting it off and well, now she's 11 months and I don't really need one. But anyway, I definitely want to get one for the next baby. Which one would you think is great to start using with a newborn? I have heard great things about the Maya Wrap sling, and that was what I was going to purchase a year ago, but now with all these others mentioned I'll have to investigate them more. We don't plan on having #2 for another 2 years, but I'm kinda interested anyway.

 

[tammie33]

Tell your friend she will have a wonderful time. We took DD to Disneyworld at 8 weeks in December 2003. We scheduled a family trip with my parents, sis and her two kids and then we decided to have a baby.

It was a wonderful time. My DD did very well. We had her in her stroller most of the time, but also used the baby bjorn for rides and for some face out time. DD loved it. She's always been a people watcher. She was in awe of the fireworks - not scared at all. I have video footage of her face and it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

I did nurse in public at Disney, but honestly I enjoyed slipping away from the group every once in awhile to go to the Baby Centers. The one at Animal Kingdom was my favorite. Very spacious and new. It was nice to change her and just relax in a rocking chair to nurse her.

One word of caution - if you have a time zone difference, don't expect the little one to adjust at first. DD has always been a night owl and was up until 3 AM our first night there, which made for one tired momma.

 

[TinkerbellMama]

I actually have a 3 month old now and we just took him to Downtown Disney earlier this week...we didn't plan the parks for so early in his life because we didn't know what his temperament/routine would be beforehand, and we visit several times a year in Orlando because my parents live there, so it's no biggie to skip WDW a time or two (I know, I know, sacrilege!! Hee hee!!). In his case, his temperament is PERFECT for Disney! Loves people, loves crowds, doesn't mind noise, watches lights (fireworks included) VERY intently and just eats it up!! I think the hardest part for your friend would be guessing what the baby's personality will be like. If she gets an "easy", social baby like we did, well she's in luck! Mine just totally loved DD and we have video to prove it! If the baby is fussier, that's more of a challenge, but I think she can manage it. In our case, we do EC which is basically taking the baby to the potty when he signals he has to go, and we did 6 hours at DD/RFC with no wet or dirty dipes, so if we could pull THAT off and not have it detract from our fun, she could certainly have a good time with even a fussy infant who needs "extra" attention. I would just have the general plans in place and then finalize a few details after the baby is born and she gets to know him/her a little bit. Good luck to her and congratulations!

 

[justhat]

In our case, we do EC which is basically taking the baby to the potty when he signals he has to go, and we did 6 hours at DD/RFC with no wet or dirty dipes, so if we could pull THAT off and not have it detract from our fun, she could certainly have a good time with even a fussy infant who needs "extra" attention.

What is EC?