How young is too young for a baby? *Update*

[annie1995]

My husband and I are trying for a baby. With that being said, we have a scheduled trip for August of 2011. The baby would be around 5-6 weeks old. Am I crazy for even considering it?



Well, plans have changed as I found out I am pregnant and due August 5. We are just going to hold off going until August of 2012 I think, and then the baby will be old enough to enjoy it a bit!! We did Disney when my other DS was 14 months, and it was a breeze!! Thanks for all of the imput, I really appreciate it!!

 

[Lstar311]

I'd definitely wait until 6 weeks because of germs and if the baby gets a fever its bad. The advantages of taking a baby that young is that it sleeps all day long and anywhere so its very easy to travel with a young baby. The disadvantage is that you will be up at night and may be too tired for a lot in the parks. Also if you have a C section I'm not sure if you'll be able to go on a lot of rides and might not be up to all the walking.

We just went with my 7 month old and she did not nap well in her stroller at all so I wish she would have been younger.

 

[2girlsR2good]

First baby? yes

This is the stage where women wear their pj's way past noon, have spit up in their hair at the grocery store and snarl at husbands who ask "what did you do all day?" 5 week old babies are too young to even go to daycare yet. Add in August heat in Fl and I think you would be spending all your time in the hotel room. You can't have an infant out in 100+ degrees for hours.

Good luck! Disney's not going anywhere.

 

[Scurvy]

I would not take a baby that young at that time of year, if for no other reason than the fact that it is still miserably hot and humid in August. At a cooler, less crowded time of year I might consider it. I've been there with an 8 week old baby and it was fun, but the crowds were light and the weather was perfect. We were able to rest when we wanted to and still get everything done, and we were able to stay out as long as we wanted without worrying about the heat. You definitely can't do that in August.

 

[crisi]

First baby? yes

This is the stage where women wear their pj's way past noon, have spit up in their hair at the grocery store and snarl at husbands who ask "what did you do all day?" 5 week old babies are too young to even go to daycare yet. Add in August heat in Fl and I think you would be spending all your time in the hotel room. You can't have an infant out in 100+ degrees for hours.

Good luck! Disney's not going anywhere.

That was the stage I was just starting to get to and from Target without episitomy pain. My cousin, who had significant tears, took a few more MONTHS before she could walk any distance.

On the other hand, you said trying. I tried for three years, then adopted. Then had an unplanned for surprise. Don't put your life on hold for a baby that hasn't been conceived yet, much less carried to term. You can always cancel the trip. I wouldn't buy non-refundable airfare if I was trying - at least, not until 90 days out when I knew as best as I could.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

No way on earth would I take a baby that young and I am far from a first time Mom. Way too many germs. It is simply not worth the risk imo. Mind you I am not a germaphobe but WDW is full of people. The baby won't be touching anything but people cough, sneeze etc. and the germs are airborn. Imagine waiting online and the person next to you is coughing up a storm. Then of course you will be touching everything and unless you are constantly washing your hands before, after, and during every ride you will be touching your baby with those germs. Of course the heat is a whole other ballgame. Babies that little cannot regulate their temperature well. You cannot spend all day in the heat with a child that young. They also cannot wear sunblock so you have you make sure they are 100% in the shade at all times. I am sure you will have plenty of people on here who will say it is fine etc. but imo I don't think it is worth the risk. WDW will not be going anywhere.

 

[LuLuO]

IMHO, yes that is too young, especially in August. Babies can't regulate their body temperature very well and the Florida heat can be tough on everyone. There is no way I would take a baby out in that kind of heat. Much too dangerous. I always worried about the temperature of my kids' rooms, I'd be a wreck worrying about them in the summer Florida sun and SIDS and all that stuff.

Plus, you'll still be recovering from the birth, maybe even still bleeding heavily and you probably won't even have had your recheck. If you have a c-section you may not be able to drive for up to 6 weeks (depending on the doctor) so I doubt that there will be many rides you'd be able to go on. Plus there's the sleepless nights and being exhausted all of the time.

If I were you, I'd plan the vacation because you never know how long it may take you to get pregnant but like PP said, make sure everything is refundable. But if you do get pregnant quickly, I would say to cancel the trip and stay home. Enjoy your newborn because they grow so quickly. Take time to recover. Sleep whenever you can. And, wait until the baby is about 6 months old to visit WDW.

 

[epcotprincess]

Yes, I think the August heat would be just too much for a little one of that age.

That said, I took our then 7 month old in August and we had a simply wonderful time!

You never know how long it will take or what you may experience when trying for a baby, so I would say wait until you know better, and then plan.

(I also went at 14 weeks pregnant and throwing up atrociously, but still managed to have a simply beautiful anniversary trip!)

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

Much too young for the heat of FL in August! It is absolutely sweltering outside and the parks are packed which means long lines standing outside in the heat and humidity. The baby would be miserable and so would you.

Honestly you have no idea how you are going to feel that soon after giving birth so I would wait. You could be recovering from a c-section or episiotomies and the last thing you will want to do is walk around in hot, sweaty clothes that still don't fit right.

I took DD12 to the parks in November when she was about 2 months old. I had an easy delivery with her and the weather was very cool. She was so easy! She nursed in the dark rides or slept. I have some great photos of Cinderella holding her at the MVMCP.

Why not wait until the Fall or Winter to go?

 

[Danibelle]

IMHO, yes that is too young, especially in August. Babies can't regulate their body temperature very well and the Florida heat can be tough on everyone. There is no way I would take a baby out in that kind of heat. Much too dangerous. I always worried about the temperature of my kids' rooms, I'd be a wreck worrying about them in the summer Florida sun and SIDS and all that stuff.

Plus, you'll still be recovering from the birth, maybe even still bleeding heavily and you probably won't even have had your recheck. If you have a c-section you may not be able to drive for up to 6 weeks (depending on the doctor) so I doubt that there will be many rides you'd be able to go on. Plus there's the sleepless nights and being exhausted all of the time.

If I were you, I'd plan the vacation because you never know how long it may take you to get pregnant but like PP said, make sure everything is refundable. But if you do get pregnant quickly, I would say to cancel the trip and stay home. Enjoy your newborn because they grow so quickly. Take time to recover. Sleep whenever you can. And, wait until the baby is about 6 months old to visit WDW.

There is plenty of time to visit WDW when your child is a little older!

 

[Sarah_Rose]

Oh wow, no.

I have a 10 week old and there is no way we could have handled WDW at 5 weeks. DS was still eating every hour, day and night, and would have a 7-11 pm "cluster feed" where he would do nothing but eat and scream unconsolably - all I could do was sit helplessly on the couch with remote in hand and ride it out. Our pediatrician said that 6 weeks is the peak of fussiness... it was definitely true for DS.

I had an easy delivery and was walking around Target by 6 days and ran a 4 mile race at one month.... but WDW would have been way too much. We're going in early January with a 5 month old and I'm confident that DS will handle it pretty well by then.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I think that's too young. Aside from the heat and the recovery from childbirth, I don't think it's a good idea to expose a newborn to so many people and places for leisure. I don't know if this is the norm, but my sister's pediatrician would order a spinal tap if an infant under 12 weeks gets a fever.

 

[Teacher03]

I think it is too young. Not only for the baby, but you probably won't enjoy yourself and feel 100% yet. As others have said, Disney will always be there.

 

[deegack]

Too young. We were told to limit exposure to groups of people the first eight weeks(dd was premature). At that age if the baby gets even a low fever (100.5 ) it will mean hospitalization. Not fun

 

[Disney_Girls]

DH and I discussed this a lot when I was pregnanat with twin girls, now age 2. We decided that their 1st trip was going to be when they were 8 mths old, but quickly learned this was not the best age, because they loved their new found freedom of crawling and standing on things, that they hated being trapped in a stroller all day. Therefore, it probably would of been perfect to go with them probably around 5-6 months.

5 weeks is too young for me. They are not sleeping through the night, the weather in August is just too hot, there immune system is not build up enough to handle the crowds being more suspectible to viruses and infections. I would at least wait until they are at least 12 weeks old.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Personally, I wouldn't take a child who wasn't potty trained (or close) to Disney. But that's just me.

 

[laughinplace199]

I agree with the other posters who said 5-6 weeks is too young. You have no idea how you will feel after delivery and that age is peak fussiness time for most babies.

Not to mention that you will be up every 2-3 hours around the clock to feed the baby. If you're breastfeeding, sometimes that doesn't go smoothly at first (I needed the help of a lactation consultant with my 3rd, but not with my first two ). I also needed my Boppy pillow, nursing stool, etc every time I fed the baby - not stuff I'd want to have to lug to WDW.

Also, you don't know if you will deliver on time or if you'll have any complications with delivery. My 3rd baby was 10 days late and ended up being an emergency c-section. If you deliver late, you could have a 3-5 week old at the time of your trip. Way too little, IMO.

 

[laughinplace199]

First baby? yes

This is the stage where women wear their pj's way past noon, have spit up in their hair at the grocery store and snarl at husbands who ask "what did you do all day?" 5 week old babies are too young to even go to daycare yet. Add in August heat in Fl and I think you would be spending all your time in the hotel room. You can't have an infant out in 100+ degrees for hours.

Good luck! Disney's not going anywhere.

Somtimes I still feel like this - and my youngest is 3!!

 

[uwtigger]

Way too young! But you are just trying... never know when it'll happen! If it doesn't happen right away, you could be 8 months pregnant and that's no good either! Don't put your life on hold... just don't book anything that's nonrefundable.

As far as taking a baby, we took my son when he was 5 months old and it was a great trip! He was easily entertained watching all the people and playing with a water bottle, and he napped well in his stroller.

Good luck trying!!

amy

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

Personally, my first thought (and I know this may sound like a selfish mom, I can assure you I am anything but...) But my first thought is you. What if you need a c-section? I was 19 when I had DD. I was in great shape, did water aerobics up till just before she was born, but my 10lb4oz baby girl got stuck during delivery and there I was having an emergency c-section. Because of the way I had to be cut (horizontal outside, vertical inside) I was not allowed to do a thing, not even vaccum for 8 weeks (even with he next 2 beter circumstances c-sections it was nothing for 6 weeks.) You just don't know what could happen and I'll tell you even with my best delivery, 5 weeks out I was just too tired to even think about a vacation. We traveled with all 3 girls at 8 weeks to take them to meet the family and that, going to stay with family was enough with all the packing and everything.

I'd say postpone it a bit or bump it up, whatever sounds better for you. I went to Disney pregnant, as long as you hydrate and take it a bit slower it is fine. And we have taken our kids at 9 and 10 months and they did amazing and had a great time.

So 5 weeks, that is rough for a newborn (heat, germs, up all night) and would IMO be kind of miserable for you too. Especially if this is a first baby (not sure if you said it was.)