I'm terrified - HUGE UPDATE

[Bethminor]

UPDATE RIGHT HERE:

Well, turns out Hubby's boss can't find us a room anywhere in Disney during Easter break, gee what a surprise. Soooooo.....I told him to see if he can get us there sometime in December BEFORE Xmas break. We'll see what happens.

So that basically changes a lot. Kids will be 6, 4, and 1 by that time and if he lets me know within a reasonable amount of time I should have like 6 months to plan everything.

So, what do you all think now? LOL


ORIGINAL MESSAGE:

We are going to WDW in about a month. The more I think about it the more terrified I become....Let me explain...

I am 36 yrs old...I LOVE Disney and have been trying to get my hubby (of 5 yrs this August) to take me since we got married (I really wanted a Disney honeymoon). He will be 30 this year and he has never been to Disney. We have one adopted son age 6 and two foster children ages 3 and will be 5 months when we go.

The ONLY reason we are getting to go is because my husband's boss is paying for our trip. If it wasn't for him we would not be going.

My husband does not seem excited at all to go and truthfully neither does my 6 yr old. I'm nervous about the 3 yr old because he is developmentally delayed and is just now starting to potty train. I'm also afraid to bring the baby to the parks because it will probably mean I'll miss out on a lot of rides.

My DH, DS and I have been on vacations to theme parks before (they both LOVE Hershey Park) but most of the rides there I can not ride on so I spent a lot of time alone while they rode rides. However having been to Disney, Epcot and MGM before (AK wasn't built yet the last time I was there) I KNOW there are a ton of rides I want to go on, but having the baby will limit me.

I just don't know what to do, I want to go and have a good time and not have to sit alone with the baby. Yes I know about baby swap but I'm not sure my hubby would be willing to do that. Especially since some of the rides I want to go on will probably be ones the kids won't be able to go on because of height restrictions.

UGH!! Someone reassure me.

Oh and PS...the trip is supposed to be April 14 to the 23rd and his boss has not confirmed any details with me yet. I don't know when we are leaving, how we are getting there, where we will be staying, what types of tickets were bought or anything, so I can't make ADR's or plan anything! HELP!!

 

[**pixiedust**]

OK. First of all, you need to find out what the details of your trip are. Can you call your husband's boss and politely ask for some information so that you can start doing some planning? In your situation, planning is going to be key, or I can see your whole family standing in the middle of the Magic Kingdom with the tension about to boil over. I'm not trying to scare you...I just am concerned and I can tell that you really want to be excited, and I want you to have a wonderful trip!!!!

If you can get the information from the boss, start planning out some ADRs and some of your theme park strategies. It will be so much easier and calming for you if you know some of what you are going to do. Everyone here can help...there are alot of friendly people with a wealth of knowledge. Take a deep breath and go make that phone call, and then come back and we can start your planning! Don't worry....you are going to have a MAGICAL trip!!!

 

[Bethminor]

I left a message on the bosses machine last week. Hubby says boss is away and should be back later this week.

I also forgot to mention that I am the only one who has ever flown and I HATE HATE HATE flying!!!

I am definately going to have to get a harness for the three year old at least...he tends to wander and will call anyone "mommy" and he has almost no speech.

Oh yeah this should be fun!

 

[la79al]

To begin with, your 6 year old may not be excited because he has no concept of Disney World. We told DD4 and DS8 last year on the way to the airport and they were both like oh, ok. So disappointing! Now they walk around the house chanting Disney World. My two even watched the planning video and had no ccncept.
Your DH may be feeling iffy about the trip because his boss is paying for it. Or maybe he is not looking forward to taking the baby to a park either and is just not expressing it. Hopefully once he gets there he will not be able to resist having fun. Or he could be like mine and worry about work the entire time and then be upset because he didn't enjoy it.
This is going to sound horrible and that's not my intention but have you considered leaving the baby at home (respite, etc)? The baby will obviously not remember one way or the other and the other two kids will end up having more fun because they have the full attention of two parents.

 

[KristinU]

While I've never been to Hershey Park, I'm guessing they have a lot of thrill rides that you sit out on and that the smoother, tamer rides at WDW are what you're talking about when you say you're able to ride them...if that's the case you'll be able to take the baby on them as well! As long as there is no height restriction you can take the baby on with you We went when DS was 9 months and the only ride I felt like I had made an error in judgement on was the Great Movie Ride, just because the volume was so loud in the final part of the ride (the movie clips). DS rode Pirates, Spaceship Earth, Small World (of course!) and several others. So no worries that you'll be "benched" with the baby!

Take a deep breath and enjoy the planning of a great trip.

 

[Bethminor]

While I've never been to Hershey Park, I'm guessing they have a lot of thrill rides that you sit out on and that the smoother, tamer rides at WDW are what you're talking about when you say you're able to ride them...if that's the case you'll be able to take the baby on them as well!

There are a few "height restricted" rides that I want to go on that I don't think any of my children would be able to go on. That being said, I can pretty much guarentee that my hubby will NOT want to wait in line to go on a ride the kids won't be able to go on. I'll have to miss out on some of my favorites. About as "thrill ride" as I get is Big Thunder Mountain.

 

[WantToGoNow]

I agree that your child may not seem excited because he doesn’t know what it’s about. I almost guarantee he’ll be excited after he arrives. As far as the baby goes, it will be ok. I have taken babies twice (one at 6 months, one turning 1). They can go with you on most rides and sit through almost every show. My babies were very easy to care for there – they were so interested in looking around at everything. The only attractions they cannot participate are those with height restrictions and on those you and your dh can do a child-swap – one of you rides with the older children while the other waits, then you switch places using a fast-pass like ticket the CM will give you – you won’t need to stand in line twice. My dh doesn’t fly – he’s afraid of heights – so we always drive. We leave at night and drive overnight or early in the morning, drive until we are tired and then stop for the night.

 

[stacy6552]

GO!!!!!!

There is no comparison! Hersey park will forever be ruined for you. Disney is in an entirely other league.

Bring the baby. You will be suprised how much he can do. And anything the little ones can't do, you can kidswitch out with DH . Disney wont make you stand in line twice and they wont make you ride alone, so the 6 yr old can ride everything twice, once with each of you.

Take it slow. If you are starting to melt down, take a break. Try to potty every time you see a bathroom. Also bring a change of clothes.

You have to go!

 

[Snow Brite]

Maybe you could get a sitter for one night? You and hubby could go alone and ride some of the rides that you want to go on and the kids/baby do not.

Or you could send them off to see a show and you could go stand in line and ride a ride without them. You and hubby could swap off doing this. Then he could go do something he wanted to do for an hour while you and the kids had lunch. Not as "family" but would satisfy everyones needs.

As for the little one with limited speech...put a card on him with your name, phone number, his name, age and medical condition/medications taken. A laminated card on a string around his neck but tucked into his shirt would work. Or I have a friend that puts a small one on her son's shoelace. This will give you peace of mind should he somehow get separated.

 

[CleveRocks]

Maybe if you go online to get the WDW Planning DVD you'll get it in time to show to the kids over and over so they can see what they're missing right now! My then-5 year old watched almost nothing BUT that DVD for weeks, and by the time we got there he was telling us what parks and restaurants he wanted to do, and which parks they were in.

Even if your husband doesn't love the parks, remind him he'll be in warm Florida instead of early-spring NY, and maybe sitting by the pool for a few hours on the first day of your trip will warm him up, if you know what I mean.

You can even start off slow, like don't go to any parks the first day, and let your husband ease into things (in addition to lounging in the warm air by the pool) by going to a character meal, walking around Downtown Disney, visiting another resort, etc.

GOOD LUCK!

 

[tjmw2727]

Relax and don't worry, even if you don't ride much remember your on vacation and if nothing else you can chiill at the pool, have fun with your kids and have someone else doing the cooking and cleaning.

Ok - on to the parks. 99% of WDW is designed for familiies to enjoy together. You can bring the baby and the 3yo on almost every ride - anything without a height restriction. You can use fast pass for the rides and eliminate the hour waits and with parent/gardian swap you can enjoy the height restricted rides without waiting twice. If he is tall enough the 6yo can ride with each parent while the other takes a turn with the 3yo and the baby.

Bring a stroller from home for the baby and if you have a nice double stroller consider brining that as well. Especially if it has a nice sunshade and a full recline so baby can nap. I also used a clip on umbrella and a clip on stroller fan when my dd's were little.

For your 6yo - try the DisneyLand Fun, available at amazon on dvd and probably on vhs at your library. Also don't worry if he isn't excited, he will be when he gets there. How about meeting buz lightyear and riding his ride or seeing star tours or indiana jones?

In addition to here at the Dis a great resource for traveling with kids can be found here at allearsnet. This is a link to traveling to WDW with an infant or toddler:
http://allearsnet.com/pl/infant.htm
On the same site you can find traveling with a preschooler and even the menus to all the restaurants.

If you know your dates you can make ADR's if you have a rough plan even if you don't know the details yet. If necessary you can change or cancel all but those with a cc'd deposit.

I have traveled as the solo adult to WDW with my kids since they were babies/toddlers so if you have specific question or concerns please post.

Hope this helps.
TJ

 

[rie'smom]

Since your husband's boss is paying for you all to go, could you pay for someone to go with you? Maybe grandma or cousin,aunt,niece,nephew,etc.

 

[Wickedmom75]

As a previous poster has pointed out you know the dates so you can at least plan what parks what days and then plan out your adr's. Even if the tickets aren't for the full length of the trip you can either upgrade or plan around it. I would definitely at least ask the boss what kind of tickets they are to help out with the planning. Good luck and have fun.

 

[MARY-IN-OH]

My husband was not thrilled about going to Disney, but he realized that it was something more for the kids (and me!) - so he decided to have fun and enjoy himself. He did silly things like yelling and pretending to be scared on rides and stuff to get a rise out of people, and he enjoyed hanging out at the pool every evening with a cold beer.
You will all have wonderful memories that will last a lifetime, My kids haven't been to WDW since 98 and they will still sit with me from time to time and watch the video we taped and look at the disney world picture album. (I know that we all had a couple of meltdown moments on our last trip, but the kids don't remember them, and I don't remember much about them either!) I am looking forward to hearing about your trip when you return, and hope that you will let us know how it went!! Hope you have a magical experience!
mary

 

[robsmom]

There are a few "height restricted" rides that I want to go on that I don't think any of my children would be able to go on. That being said, I can pretty much guarentee that my hubby will NOT want to wait in line to go on a ride the kids won't be able to go on. I'll have to miss out on some of my favorites. About as "thrill ride" as I get is Big Thunder Mountain.

You can do the ones you really want without lines. Just takes planning and using fast pass. Here is what we did - In the morning we would hit the park early, I would take DS and head to something tame that didn't interest my DH. For example you could go to It's a small world in Fantasy Lane. DH would power walk with our tickets to the fast pass machine for whatever ride we wanted. Normally the tickets he got were for 2 hrs later. He would then come find us at the designated area and we would do some things. At the appointed time we used the fast passes one at a time. be sure to tell the people at the ride so a) it is ok if your time expires while waiting for DH and b) sometimes the baby swap thing lets you skip even the fast pass lane. After that ride we could sometimes get another fast pass for one of the big rides later in the day, sometimes not if we want to go back to the hotel. Time will the other spouse is riding is ride is good for a) bathroom breaks b)snack stops c)checking out the shops around that ride.

 

[Bethminor]

Bump because apparently editing doesn't make the topic show as new. See update in my first post.

 

[spiceycat]

go for the first two weeks in Dec - less people will be in the parks.

if you can!

rides - there are a bunch you can do - Haunted Mansion, TTA, Peter Pan (try to ride with a fass pass or during an parade), Winnie the pooh, etc

 

[MARY-IN-OH]

We are planning to go just before the school break. heard the first part of december may be (pop warner) cheerleaders and football players etc. at some of the value resorts.
I'm taking my kids Dec 10 - 17th. I am so relieved for you! Was hoping that you could visit when crowds are way way down! Keep us posted !!!

 

[Bethminor]

Well...after half a year the plans have finally been made. We are going Dec 16-22nd. We have a 4 day park hopper pass (so we won't be at a park everyday). So we JUST got confirmation that the hotel and airplanes are set, haven't gotten our park ticket info yet, don't really see anyway I'm gonna be able to plan anything. So we'll be there with the three boys ages 6, 4, and 1. I'm hoping to get a first visit pin for them and my hubby. Is there anything happening in December that I should definately plan on or try and get reservations for?

Please help!

 

[momx2]

Have you figured out what parks you'll visit each day? Is it a hopper ticket? Do you have any ADRs. With the dining plan, table service places usually need them. You still have time. Check out the theme park times on this site and decide which park which days. This will help with the ADRs planning. Take it slow, do a nap mid-day if you can. This will be harder being offsite. What hotel are you staying at. Do they have transportation or do you need a rental car? These are just some thoughts off the top of my head. Also, you may want to do the Christmas party at MK, but with a 1 year old, I would probably pass. Good luck!