Let the planning fun begin!!!

[misslilysmama]

Our 1st WDW trip as a family has officially been booked thanks to the free dining offer. We have a certified Disney nut on our hands (her first word behind dada and mama was "Minna") and just cannot wait for September to come!

I've already learned so much just from lurking on this board....... we had a fantastic time on our honeymoon but have much to learn about doing Disney with a toddler, so I'll be asking a lot of questions.

Let the countdown begin!!!

 

[stopher1]

WELCOME!!

Hurray! That's awesome! I hope your trip ends up being wonderfully magical!

 

[misslilysmama]

Thanks so much for the warm welcome!

 

[PEANUT1]

planning is half the fun....well maybe 1/4 the fun Enjoy!!!

 

[IggyLans]

Have fun planning! How exciting!

 

[magicaldisney]

 

[scrc2000]

Hello and Welcome! I agree planning the trip is almost half the fun!

 

[lisaanddenny]

Don't try to do everything, with Free Dining, go again another time and really try to explore things and not rush around to see everything. Take your time, relax, swim......sit down and eat............My thoughts, explore things slowly and see the whole thing rather than rush around and see things hap hazzardly, you end up missing a lot even if you did technically see it..........you can always go again. The first year we went WITH KIDS, my sister had this schedule......... Kids don't like schedules, especially their first trip, they see stuff, they go towards it, the stuff you thought they would love, they didnt, smaller kids liked different stuff than the older kids, we went FD in Sept 05, it was like 300 degrees, kids wanted TO SWIM SWIM SWIM............they didnt care how much we spent on that vacation and my sisters schedule didnt matter........... We found an afternoon swim break at the resort made all the difference..........luckily my sister lost her voice halfway through the trip and her camera card was full.... the kids actually start cheering when she screamed that her camera card was full. Don't worry she made room! The weather changes your plans too..........cant explore Animal Kingdom when its raining with lightning. You have to have a tentative plan, BUT be flexible and take breaks.............Our second trip, MUCH better, still had a schedule but it was tentative, sister took extra camera cards, took mandatory swim breaks in evenings and afternoons, visited waterparks twice (big positive in the kid's eyes)..............had the attitude, "we will be back" and enjoyed what we could without running ourselves ragged............. LESSON LEARNED..........

 

[HonnyDipp]

to DIS!!! Happy planning, its a fun time!

 

[~Jen~]

 

[mickeynut1]

First of all And second......I agree with lisaanddenny......TAKE YOUR TIME and don't try to do everything under the sun. We've gone every year for the last 7 years (not w/toddlers, but our 2 DSs were 6 & 8 first trip) and we just went with the flow. We took one day at a time and didn't have a "schedule". What the kids saw and wanted to do, we did; what they weren't interested in, we passed on (which wasn't much since it was our first trip)......but trying to MAKE kids do something or see something will only make everyone cranky and miss out on other things. We didn't plan certain parks on certain days or anything like that. We just woke up each morning and asked the kids where they wanted to go that day and we went. We now spend alot of time swimming and relaxing at the resort, but other than having ADRs (the DDP is a must for us), we don't have any other "scheduled times" to be any where.....makes for a much more relaxed vacation for us. So, with that said......have fun planning and I hope you have a magical trip

 

[yoplit]

and another warm WELCOME! you'll learn ALOT on these sites. I know I sure have.....keep the info coming people !! just as mentioned earlier before, go with the flow...to an extent. Normally i would suggest it whole heartedly, BUT since you are going during DDP I do Strogly suggest that you make ADR's. it will save you head aches, cause you don't want to go around to several different restaurants TRYING to get in, cause that is a waste of precious WDW time in the parks!! . So take it easy, but i would start thinking of which restaurants you would like to eat at, it is a very popular plan, and i would hate for you to miss out Thats just my suggestion, but hey, worrying only about food isn't so bad now is it!?

Enjoy your trip by the way!! And we'll see you there in Sept

 

[misslilysmama]

You guys are awesome! Thank you for all of the fantastic advice. I'm definitely going to take a more laid back, go with the flow approach to this trip. I'm just sooooooooooooo looking forward to watching Lily get up close and personal with the characters that she loves so much-- Minnie might just never get rid of her!

I'm checking out the park hours today while my kiddo is napping and am attempting to come up with a mini plan of where we'll be each day so that I can make my ressies. I didn't realize that MNSSHP will be going on when we're there so I'm even MORE excited now!

Any suggestions for more toddler friendly restaurants? I'm thinking that we'll more than likely stick to the louder, buffett styles........ and seeing characters is always an added bonus!

Thanks again for all of your sweet hellos and suggestions!

 

[Leggo my Eggo]

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[hmdavid]

My DD's LOVED the Crystal Palace. We did dinner there with Pooh and friends. Food was not bad and the character interaction was great. I think a toddler would surely love this meal!!! Also, try to do a breakfast at Cape May Cafe. Minnie is there and decked out in her island clothing. It is so fun, the food is yummy and your daughter will get LOTS of Minnie time!!!

Have fun planning and a wonderful trip!!!

 

[Metro West]