I'm Getting Nervous!! Please Calm Me Down! (LONGish)

[TinkOhio]

I agree with the above posters. Your little ones are too little to be in control of bags, especially if you are also bringing strollers. I would suggest a sturdy duffle with enough snacks, small toys, books, etc. to keep them entertained at the airports and on the plane. We keep ours under the seats of the people in front of us. You will need to put yours away for takeoff and landing, too. Crayola wonder pen sets and "magic ink" books, available at Bob Evans, AAA, and hobbie shops are worth their wight in gold for kids your children's ages. Don't forget chewy candy and "Earplanes" to help them with takeoff and landing. A special blanket or lovie is also a must at this age...great for travelling and tired times in the stroller/parks.

If you can dress your children in easy to slip on shoes, like crocs, it will also help to cut down on the craziness at the airport.

Have a great time! Your children are a wonderful age for this trip!

 

[OntFamily]

3) I am renting a car at MCO while DH takes the girls on DME (and DME gets all the luggage ) so we'll need car seats. DD2 will be strapped into hers on the plane but I am trying to figure out the best way to accomodate DD4. She uses one of those HUGE convertible boosters at home, but the thought of lugging 2 full-size car seats by myself through the airport is not appealing. Even if I check DD4's seat in its box, we'd still have to deal with that enormous box for the entire trip. I know my mother has one of those booster seats without a back. If we can find a box to fit it in, I am thinking maybe checking that will be the best way to go.

Baggage Check the car seat. Most airlines have large plastic bags in which they put bulky items -- your car seat will fit nicely in this plastic bag (based on personal experience),

Since your girls will be taking DME, you won't need the car seat until after they arrive at WDW, so having DME handle the car seat will work nicely.

 

[hsmamato2]

...everything Willcad said.....I second the idea of checking the car seat and backless booster with the BIG luggage-just put them in a big trash bag,it's shredded by the time you get there,but basically keeps it decent-I've seen so many parents struggling with big carseats in the airport,don't bother, just buckle your little ones in the plane belt,it's not the same safety wise as car rides......
If there's no room for your 2nd stroller,they'll let you know when you board,and take care of it for you-
Plus, for security,I still do this,and my kids are bigger- easy off shoes,keep ourselves calm and cool, I go through first, then littler guy,then bigger guy,then Dh goes after the kids are through,all the time keeping a sharp eye (in a friendly way) on how security treats/touches my kids and their stuff We've never had an issue,except for DH,who always forgets some dumb thing in his pocket and gets wanded (which is why he gets to go through last )
Leave the cute luggage home, let your oldest carry her little pink backpack,and use a larger case- try to check as much as you can

 

[laughinplace199]

I agree with a lot of previous posters that the kids don't need 2 bags each as carryons. Actually, I wouldn't even have a carryon for the 2 y/o. We have 3 kids and we've been flying with them since they were infants. You really want to minimize the amount of stuff that you have to carry on and off the plane and through security. Your 4 y/o could have a backpack with snacks, books, toys, etc., but I would put the 2 y/o's stuff in your carryon and eliminate a bag right there. There is so much to keep track of when you have kids, car seats, bags, etc.

Going through secuity can be a bit chaotic, so just be prepared. Everyone has to take their shoes off, so for the kids, I would recommend shoes that don't have to be tied if that's possible. I remember my first time going through security with 3 kids, a car seat, stroller, medicine and formula to be declared...It was a bit stressful, but the TSA agents were super nice and helpful.

Also, if your DH takes ME and you get the rental car, you will be the only one who can drive the car. If that's ok with you, then it's probably a good plan. DH and I like to both be on the rental car agreement so that if one of us was sick or something, the other could do the driving.

I would gate check both strollers and the booster seat (whether you bring your reg one or buy a smaller one for travel). I would be worried that they would get damaged if checked with the luggage.

Have a fun trip!

 

[kristenrice]

THANK YOU!!!

Everyone here has been SOOO helpful! I have taken everyone's comments into consideration and my plans have been ammended (again)...

Here's some of my updates...

First, I forgot that our luggage set has a HUGE rolling duffel made of ballistic nylon that will easily hold the girls' suitcases and probably their duffels too. So, that's what I will use to check their luggage for transit. You must understand, DD4 MUST have her own suitcase, and whatever DD4 has, DD2 must have also... That's why it is imperative that their precious luggage travel with them and that they each have their own. They will only have their backpacks on the plane, though. If only one duffel will fit with the suitcases in our monster duffel, then DD4 will bring her duffel with her on board.

Second, DD4 and I went to the airport today to look around. I think I needed it more than she did. They are building a new parking ramp and the construction has the place in shambles. It is so confusing. There are signs that say "Short Term Parking Closed- Hourly Parking Open"---What the heck does that mean? It took me 15 minutes and 3 laps around the place to figure out where the parking area was! Once I figured it out, it was simple enough. We went inside and I showed her the counter where we'll check our bags. She liked the baggage claim carousel. Next, we walked up to the gate area and saw some planes out on the tarmac (getting de-iced). I pointed out all the young children in the terminal sitting quietly and watching their DVD players. Then, we walked over to the security checkpoint. The very nice TSA agent asked her if she was going on a trip soon. She said she was going to Disney World in a few weeks. He let us stand by and observe for a few minutes and he explained what was going on with the X-ray, metal detector and the "magic wand". My daughter was fascinated. Now, she can't wait to go through it herself. Whew! I feel better....I figured she was going to freak out.

My emotional rollercoaster is back on the upswing! I'm back into the excited phase again...."I'm too excited to sleep"....

 

[bavaria]

I told you that the TSA at GRR are bizarrely pleasant! CLT and GRR seem to do something to their TSA agents - perhaps they spike their coffee, but there is definitely something about those two airports and TSA.

At most airports you wouldn't even be able to get that close to the screening area, let alone stand around and watch for any amount of time.

Small airports like GRR do make it easy for the infrequent traveller

 

[WillCAD]

Sounds good Kristen. Just keep one thing in mind - if you HUGE rolling duffel weighs more than 50 pounds, some airlines will charge you extra, others will make you take stuff out of it.

 

[Chrissie-riel]

So glad I saw this little thread!! (Look at my name!!) I have two little people who are now 8 and 6. We have completed our fourth Disney trip and I am anxiously waiting for hubby to "earn" a golf school trip from work in May so that we can tag along for kid's trip #5!

I know EXACTLY what you are talking about with those little luggage sets. We bought them from the Disney Store on clearance last summer - except we got the Tink and Cars ones, not the Princess set. They had to take them along on our Sept trip. We carried on the duffel and backpack and checked the roller suitcase. Duffel had toys, snacks, stuffed animals, one set of pjs, etc and backpacks had color books, paper, pencils and homework. It only worked for us because my kids are older, used to handling their own stuff and wanted the responsibility. I wouldn't have used them both when they were the ages of your two.

Also, the rolling luggage is not durable (even with the darker colors that we got). There is one large metal support ring going around the inside of the suitcase and a "sturdy" wire around the front and back panels. When we got my son's suitcase delivered to us by DME, the large support ring was dented in the center. I don't think it was a stacking issue. I think that somewhere on one of the conveyor belts a large suitcase bumped into his smaller one. It's no big deal to us though - it was only $25 for the whole set - but be prepared that even putting the smaller cases into your larger duffel, you will likely have some dents and bruises on the way.

Have a wonderful trip to the World!