In Park Snack Tips for Toddler?

[WDWfeelslikehome]

We are making our first trip to WDW as a family this summer and I am well into the planning, now I have a question about snacks as I get ready to do my grocery delivery order. DW and I are adopting, and hopefully we will be able to bring DS home within two months. When we are in WDW this summer he will be 2 1/2. I already have purchased a McClaren Quest Sport, as I read up on the rave reviews by fellow dis'ers. Any suggestions as to what type of snack foods have worked well for you with a child in this age range while in the parks? Also any snack foods or CS foods that you have boought in the parks that have been a hit with your children? Now that I finally got the tickets from SW yesterday, I am trying to check off the rest of the to do list. I think that the planning is what gets us through to the next vacation.

 

[chip007]

First off: CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I adopted a little girl 2 years ago. She's 4 now. It is the greatest, and I wish you all the best.

Second: I think you may be jumping the gun a little bit. I'd wait and find out what your child likes first, and then do the shopping. For us, it's salads and fruits and vegetables. Her favorite snack while grocery shopping is a bag of string beans, which I never would have predicted. So, I'd say, relax and enjoy. There's plenty of time to worry about the details later.

Again, congratulations

 

[dlstc]

DDs are 8 and 6. DS is one. We last went in May 2004 when DDs were nearly 5 and 2 1/2. I wouldn't worry too much about snacks, especially in the summer. The heat really seems to curb my kids' appetites. That being said, I like to bring cracker packs (with cheese or peanut butter), sesame sticks, nuts and dried fruit. The girls like dried apricots and pineapple (a little sticky though). I avoid trail mixes. They tend to have chocolate chips or M&M's which get messy, plus the kids eat the chocolate and avoid the rest, except maybe the peanuts. I don't usually like suckers or ring pops, but they last and do keep the kids' mouths busy, especially while standing in line. Also, I am planning a little extra in the food budget for Mickey bars, popcorn, etc. It's vacation. I want my kids to live a little, too.

By the way, a good tip about Mickey bars, popsicles, etc: get a soda lid and put the stick through the straw hole. The lid catches the drips.

Have fun!
Diana

 

[sl_underwood]

Congrats on the adoption!! We have adopted all of our kids, our youngest is 4 and though his adoption is not final yet, it should be over the next few months. For snacks, it will really depend on what your child likes. I have found that none of my kids like the same foods. My youngest loves fruit of any kind, my middle thinks spinach leaves topped with mandarin oranges is the best afternoon snack, and the oldest likes raw asparagus. I would have never thought these items would be favorites among my kids. If you are adopting from another country, remember their food options are different than ours and your child might like some things you have never tried before. My friend who adopted 3 daughters from asia always reminds those adopting that american food will often upset their tummies for a short while and they may not enjoy the strange flavors. For my son, who came from a home with no food, he had a hard time digesting for several weeks just because his body wasnt used to being fed regularly. Due to this, he now has extreme issues with food, we must maintain scheduled meal and snack times and provide him with a very consistent food schedule. My friends daughters are the same way. These are just some things to think about when planning your trip.

 

[mousescrapper]

Congrats too on your soon adoption!

Snacks: I agree with many of the other posters, don't fret too much on it. But once you have an idea of what your new son or daughter likes bring that.

In 05 my youngest then was 2 1/2. She then loved goldfish crackers. So I brought those from home as well for her and my older kids I brought from home, dried fruit, fruit snacks, muffin bars, and the cystal light single serving packets. Each of my 3 then kids had cups on a string with a twistable top to reveal a straw. We'd fill up with water at fountians or in CS restaurants then add the powdered drink. It gave a little flavor and cut down on buying drinks constantly.

At the parks, my DD mainly shared meals with her siblings. One of the best deals was in AK at Restaurantsarus. We got the chicken finger/nugget (9 piece) and split btwn the 3 of them.

I mainly made sure she drank alot and got some fresh fruit and 1 decent meal a day. If that meant the other part of the day she ate her goldfish crackers it was OK.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[katiesmom2]

My son just turned 3. I also have an almost-5 year old daughter.

We always bring a few snacks with us to the parks, like small boxes of raisins,
teddy grahams, goldfish crackers, little packs of the cheese and breadsticks, etc. At home, we prefer them to have grapes, yogurt, string cheese, veggies but those things aren't transportable in the parks.

We always bring water (our kids rarely get juice). Until he can drink out of a straw, it's good to bring several sippy cups that can be filled with drinks.

We try to limit the sugar they have. They dont' get a lot of sugary stuff at home, so when they do get sugar, it tends to make them pretty hyper. They get the odd treat at DW, but they tend not to need too much since we have our main meals and they aren't too hungry between meals. Normally, the snacks are used more as a backup in case we are kept waiting to eat. You may find that you don't need a lot of snacks.

You might want some things for your room for breakfast, like cereal bars (the Nutrigrain ones are good and fairly nutritious), yogurt, bottled water, little muffins, cereals with or without milk like Cheerios or the reduced sugar Fruit Loops, that kind of thing. I just picked up some strawberry Special K snacks that are in a little pack and are more like little cookies than cereal.

As you get to know your son, I'm sure his favorites will become pretty apparent. Until then, these things are a pretty safe bet.

Congrats on your adoption. Your little boy is VERY lucky!

 

[Belle72]

I have two adopted children so I know the joy you are (and will be) experiencing!

Mine are 5 and 1 but when my dd was 2 1/2 we took her on her first trip to WDW and had snacks delivered because she was a picky eater. I was worried about getting her to eat. We had string cheese sticks, yogurt, graham crackers and goldfish crackers, juice boxes and water bottles, applesauce cups and milk. We even made instant oatmeal with the coffee maker's hot water.

You may want to add these to your order once you know is likes/dislikes as others have suggested.

 

[WDWfeelslikehome]

Thanks for all of the tips and shared experiences. I think that you have given me a good idea, but that I should wait until DS is home so that I know for sure what he prefers. I just chuckled at myself a little, even if he likes it, ther's still a good chance he won't wnt it on a hot summer day in WDW.
Thanks again.

 

[hoosiergirl7]

Congrats on your soon to be adoption. We adopted our DS 4 at birth and are currently waiting for a referral from China for a DD.

We take snacks in with us for several reasons: A) It's cheaper to go to the store and pick up several boxes of easily portable snacks. B) I know I can buy snacks that are a little bit more on the "healthy" side. Don't get me wrong, we always go for some Mickey ice cream, but my son loves crackers and cereal bars, nut mixes (good for energy and high in protein), etc.

Thanks to the poster who mentioned using soda lids to catch drips. I'll have to write that down on my tips list. The last time we got ice cream, DS was just shy of 3 and got it EVERYWHERE and it was a pain to clean up!!!