Not excited about DL trip.

[Iggipolka]

I don't know what is wrong with me, but I am just not excited about our upcoming trip to DL July 31st - August 3rd. I'm a Disney nut and we're going with friends of ours and their kids who are 2, 7, and 12 and they are all Disney freaks too. Sounds like a great trip huh? I'm so stressed about it that it is not seeming like fun at all.

The biggest stress is that we're bringing our then 14 month old daughter and while she's traveled a lot (been to WDW 3x, on a Disney cruise in March, to see family in other states), she's a lot more mobile and opinionated now than she used to be! She's not walking yet, but may be by the time of our trip. She's a very easy going kid, but I just can't picture her being happy in her stroller or in the Ergo Carrier I wear her in for long periods of time.

She's up at 7am and down for morning nap from 10:00 - 1:00 and then she's up for the rest of the day. I can't see heading into the parks with her in the morning, so I probably will only be in the park from 2-6pm. Everyone wants to see WOC, but Lil's bedtime is 7pm, so I will probably have to skip WOC too.

Dealing with the crowds and the heat and the upset to her schedule, just seems way more stressful to me than it's worth. We're staying in a 1bedroom at VGC, so I figure that if it gets to be too much, I'll just hang at the pool, DTD and in the villa with her.

It just feels like I should just stay home. Sucks.

 

[jenniferrose]

I took my daughter when she was 14 months old and she had been walking for 4 months and she did great. I did not think she would sleep in her stroller because she is very particular about where she sleeps, how she goes down, quiet, etc. But we just went with our schedule and she did great. She napped in the stroller. I brought her blankie that she sleeps with and another thin blanket to lay over the sunshade on the stroller for when she fell asleep. She wouldn't sleep as long as her normal nap, but she napped.

I would not conform your schedule to match her sleeping. Honestly. At least not everyday. If she gets over exhausted and over stimulated then yes, take her back, otherwise, just go with it. The days we did plan to go back to the hotel during nap time for her to sleep, she was so wound up she didn't sleep anyway.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

Sorry you are not feeling excited about your trip. I have had that feeling occasionally before a trip too even though I love, love, love Disney. What's kind of funny is that the trip I was feeling most down about before going and tried to tell DH that maybe we should just cancel turned out to be one of our very best trips. I'm not really sure why either. I was completely unhappy about everything all the way through the packing and the getting in the car to go, but by the end of the 7 hour drive even through the frustrating LA traffic, I was somehow feeling better, glad to leave everything else behind and be at Disney. We didn't really make plans for that trip, just let our mood at the time direct us, and it was great. I felt so relaxed and just happy to be on vacation, to be with my family, to be not rushing around anywhere, to just be taking things in and having a good time. We didn't worry about whether we rode this ride or saw that show; we just did what worked. Not that I'm saying going without a plan is a great idea, but we've been a bunch of times, so planning is a lot more minimal for us these days. And we don't mind if we don't do everything there is to do every time we go since we go several times a year.

We never took our boys when they were quite as young as your daughter, so I can't speak from experience of that age in Disney, but I would highly recommend that you not just give up on mornings in the park. Early morning is the best opportunity to ride things, and you will so love the lesser wait in the Fantasyland ride lines. You're so worried about what your daughter will have patience for; well 45 minute to 1 1/2 hour lines are something many adults barely have patience for, and that's what you're going to see if you go into Fantasyland at 2 or 3 PM on a summer afternoon.

If your daughter is up at 7 AM everyday, go straight to the Disney gates and start having fun. Take advantage of MM on the days it's available too so that you can get more park time in before naptime. I know how sacred naptime is too many parents, so go ahead back for a morning nap break if that's what's going to be best for your child's temperament. Maybe leave your ticket with your husband so he can get some fastpasses for you guys for when you go back to the parks later. With family around, maybe you and your husband will get a chance to ride some of the bigger rides without your daughter, or if that doesn't work out there's always child swap passes. You already seem to feel like you won't get to do anything anyway, so turn that around and just be excited about whatever you are able to ride and see since it's likely to be more than you think it will be. If you have to be in the parks at 2-6 PM, those are good times to use fastpasses collected from earlier in the day, people-watch, eat snacks or a late lunch or early dinner, and to get some air conditoning by watching shows like the 3D movies in both parks, Abe Lincoln, and stuff in the Animation building. If you don't mind waiting and can stake out a shady spot and have a cold drink, you might try the afternoon parade. You can probably also ride IASW, Pirates, and Winnie the Pooh without overbearing waits.

Another thing you might want to experiment with is seeing if your child will sleep in the stroller. My younger son wasn't napping anymore by the time he went to Disneyland for the first time (both my boys stopped napping before the age of 2 no matter how much I might have wanted them to take a nap), but he was the kind of kid that would simply go to sleep no matter the circumstances when his bedtime rolled around. So he would simply konk out in the stroller in the evening during our first trip no matter what was going on around him. We had to collapse our stroller while waiting for Fantasmic so DS simply lay down on the bricks and cement as we were waiting for the show and went to sleep and slept through the entire show, music, mist, fire effects, fireworks, everything! I don't know your kid, so I don't know if that would be a possibility for you, but they do allows strollers into the WoC viewing area, so maybe your daughter will be willing to sit or lay back in the stroller as you wait, and if she falls asleep, she won't really know she's missing anything. You could always test it out by staying out late in the parks the first night and seeing how your daughter reacts to the stimuli, stroller, and her own feelings of tiredness. If it turns out she'll sleep in the stroller, you may want to give WoC a shot on one of the later nights of your trip.

Good luck. Hope it's better than you think it will be.

 

[DizNee Luver]

I agree with napping in the stroller.......we took our special need twins last April when they were 23 mos. they both napped in the stroller & they usually wouldn't do that.

We're going again in less than 3 weeks & plan on taking nap breaks & trying to get them to bed at the normal time since they are both autistic as well. We ARE doing the WoC & that is the only scheduled time that is past their bedtime but we're going & keeping our fingers crossed that it goes well.

Best thing to do is have a back up plan, but try to just go with the flow the rest of the time.

It will all work out & you will feel the Disney magic!!!

 

[brenda1966]

I'm not sure I follow why you wouldn't head right into the parks when your daughter wakes up! That's the perfect time to take her and let her toddle around Fantasyland and then head back to Toontown. Why wait until the heat of the afternoon. NO WAY! Take advantage of the mornings when your little one is fresh!

Some kids will sleep in a stroller, some won't. If she won't, then certainly head back to the room for a nap for everyone. You'll be escaping the heat of the day. Go back in the evening and enjoy a parade and a few rides like HM and Pirates.

 

[Mary09]

I remember feeling that way. Sometimes drastic changes to the kids' sleep schedules just makes mom miserable. Try to be open-minded about her flexibility level and the chance of in-stroller naps. The heat and crowds will almost surely bother you more than her. Basically, just be aware that you having your own schedule disrupted, and missing cool parts of a DL trip, might be a big part of your disinterest. Don't make it a self-fulfilling prophecy that neither of you will have a great time!

 

[momtotwolittleones]

It took my halfway through my 2nd child's toddlerhood to stop planning around their nap schedule. If it was easy to do, fine, but otherwise, just taking them on the run and letting them figure it out is way easier in the long run, and makes mommy less resentful. I would definitely head out in the morning, and try to get her to sleep in the stroller at naptime. Maybe go sit in a quiet shady place somewhere and nurse her down if that's how she goes to sleep - maybe even head out to Tom Sawyer's island or something like that. There is a babycare center on Main Street - maybe that would be a quiet place to get her to sleep and the into the stroller. I'd do the same for bedtime - get her into the stroller asleep, and then go watch WOC.

My first child was an awful sleeper, and would scream every time he woke up, and I was a nervous wreck planning everything around his naps. Looking back, I think I would have been happier if I'd just gone with the flow and dealt with it in the fly. They really will sleep when they need to, and you can find a shady quiet spot almost anywhere when you get creative.

 

[Brady's Mom]

When we went to DLR the first time as a family our youngest was just barely 2. He was able to sleep in the stroller when he was tired. One of our days he was soooo tired he slept for 4 hours in his stroller. He wasn't a normal stroller napper - but I think he was just too tired. We watched fireworks that trip and both of our younger boys crashed in the stroller right before they started.

We had a light weight receiving blanket that we draped over the stroller sun shade to keep him from baking in the sun and it worked great - no sunburn or anything. You could also see if you can find one of those little battery operated hand-held fans on a cord and drape that over the sun shade and turn it on if you're afraid your daughter will be too hot. Just tie the cord at the top so it's the right height and it can move the air. Ours has fabric blades so if it hits someone it stops and it doesn't hurt. Just google it - a bunch came up when I did it.

One of the other tricks I've used before is to get an umbrella that attaches to the pop up camping chairs and use it on the stroller - that way I can block the sun if we are walking directly into it. (They are usually about the size of a small-ish umbrella and I've found them at sporting good stores or WalMart)

 

[Brancaneve]

OK OP....let's look at the bright side:
1) You get to stay in a 1 bedroom VGC!!! You are so close, you can easily come back to your room.
2) You have a healthy baby girl with a good schedule. In fact, her sleep schedule is my ideal Disney day. Wake up early, hit the parks, come back by 12 for a nap, and return later.
3) Also, our small children don't know how lucky they are to be in a stroller! Can you imagine having shade when it's hot, a sippy cup within reach and a place to doze off when you're tired? If only I could invent the adult stroller.
4)If she wants to move around, she can do that while waiting in line. It's a nice, confined place for her to move around a bit. Toontown is also a nice place to explore for the little ones.
5)Finally, you get to go to Disneyland!


Everything will be fine, but maybe different than what you are used to. Have fun and don't worry about it!

 

[ChickenCarlos]

Maybe you should leave the little one with Grandma and enjoy yourself.

 

[smiley_face2]

You'll be ok! I agree with everyone else, get over to the park first thing after she gets up, she'll be happy and ready to go, it will be cool then, and the park will be almost empty compared to the afternoon. If you are really uncomfortable with her napping in the stroller, try to extend her nap time by just one hour to 11, that's about when the park starts to get really busy anyway, and you can both go back to the room for a nap! then maybe spend some play time in the pool to refresh, and head back to the park for a little while, maybe for something to eat. Because nap time was a bit later, bed time can maybe be a bit later too...say 8. Then maybe someone in your group can take a turn with you one night and stay at the villa with her while you go watch WOC. other than that, like you said you can use the time she's sleeping to relax (moms NEVER get enough time to relax!!) being there, you won't have chores to do, no cleaning or anything, you can actually just relax!! in the evening when she's gone to bed, you can even sit out on your balcony (if you have one) and just enjoy the leisure time, maybe read, or just watch the world go by. Even if you only have a few hours each day at the park with her, if you time it right, you'll have lot's of wonderful memories for the future. It will be different than what you've experienced before, but that's what life is all about. We've done the trips with little ones, then with teens, then with our grown children, and now do lot's of trips by ourselves, and soon with our grand children! Each stage has very special memories that make it impossible to decide which is/was the best! Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[Iggipolka]

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions. Lil has never slept in the stroller, but I guess we'll give it a try around home first and see how it goes. We've decided to get a baby sitter for our WOC night so we can actually have a date night! Woo! Grandma isn't an option because she lives in a completely different area of the country. That's a major bummer. I'd love for my mom to live closer.

Anyway, thanks again!

 

[wdwfan22]

She probably wont sleep in the stroller around the house or familiar areas. She know that she has a crib and a routine waiting for her, but at Disney you might be surprised.

As others have said, when she gets up at 7, that is by far the best time to head to the parks with her. You will be amazed how many fun rides you can do with her by the time she gets tired. Then put her in her stroller and see what happens. she might fall asleep, if so, great. If not, you are so close to the hotel.

I know it seems stressful and overwhelming thinking about it. But I think you will have more fun with her than you think.