Pixie Dust to help kids be brave for rides?

[labdogs42]

I have heard this idea and I wanted to see if anyone here had tried it or had any ideas on hos to present this to my son. I was thinking of making up a little shaker of glitter (pixie dust, excuse me ) for him to take with him to the parks to be used when he might need a little extra nerve to go on a ride (like Splash). I figured he could sprinkle a little on himself before he tried the ride. Has anyone done something like this? Did you kid like it? How did you present the dust? Just looking for ideas! Thanks!

 

[worm761]

I had a green glow bracelet that I gave to a little girl that was scared to ride something. I told her it was from Tinker Bell and had special pixie dust in it. It worked for her and her mother was very grateful!

I would think that glitter would be very messy. No other suggestions for you though.

 

[Akmayeli]

I've never heard of that but what a very cute idea. My DD9 is still afraid to go on lots of rides, especially TOT but I don't think the Pixie Dust thing would work for her. Usually, the CM can tell that the kids are a little scared and they will reassure them and give them something else to occupy their minds. My daughter was scared out of her mind when we were in line for the Safari. I have no idea why, but kids imaginations run wild sometimes so there is no telling what she was imagining the ride to be like. Well, the CM told her to come back and tell him if she saw any poachers and to remember what they looked like so she could describe them. So that was all she was doing the whole ride, looking for poachers. It definitely made her forget about being scared.

 

[Hannathy]

IMO if a child is that afraid or young that they need fake pixie dust to ride they just shouldn't be riding. Sorry I think you should want to ride and yes sometimes you are a bit apprehensive waiting in line but not so much that you can't convince yourself to ride. I would just wait until they are mature enough to want to ride on their own without more than a bit of light convincing.

 

[brergnat]

IMO if a child is that afraid or young that they need fake pixie dust to ride they just shouldn't be riding. Sorry I think you should want to ride and yes sometimes you are a bit apprehensive waiting in line but not so much that you can't convince yourself to ride. I would just wait until they are mature enough to want to ride on their own without more than a bit of light convincing.

DITTO THAT!

 

[labdogs42]

Well, this is a kid that likes Test Track but isn't sure if he wants to ride Big Thunder or Splash. I'm confident that he will love these rides if he would try them. He was tall enough for them on the last two trips and we didn't push him to go on them. I still won't push him to go, but if something like a little pixie dust gives him the little confidence he needs, I'll try it. My son also rides his scooter at top speed downhill in the neighborhood and loves everything that goes fast. He just isn't sure about the unknown. It is more about that than the ride itself, I think.

Like I said, I really believe he would love these rides or I wouldn't be encouraging him to try them. I wouldn't try the pixie dust deal on something actually scary like Stitch's Great Escape or anything. Even I'm scared of that ride!

 

[Akmayeli]

If it would've been up to my DD9 in the beginning we wouldn't have rode anything. She had it in her head that every ride would have a huge surprise and be scary. Of course this was her first time there so she really had nothing to base her thoughts on other than her wild imagination. On the ones she was most scared, Splash Mountain and Kali River Rapids, when we got off of the ride she wanted to grab a fast pass for a second ride later, she loved them so much. So yes, I do agree if a child is scared out of his wits that parents should not "make" them go, but there are children like mine that are literally scared of EVERYTHING and you have to teach them to get out of their little shell every once in a while. Needless to say, she now can't wait to go back again. She has turned into a huge Disney fan.

 

[Akmayeli]

Well, this is a kid that likes Test Track but isn't sure if he wants to ride Big Thunder or Splash. I'm confident that he will love these rides if he would try them. He was tall enough for them on the last two trips and we didn't push him to go on them. I still won't push him to go, but if something like a little pixie dust gives him the little confidence he needs, I'll try it. My son also rides his scooter at top speed downhill in the neighborhood and loves everything that goes fast. He just isn't sure about the unknown. It is more about that than the ride itself, I think.

Like I said, I really believe he would love these rides or I wouldn't be encouraging him to try them. I wouldn't try the pixie dust deal on something actually scary like Stitch's Great Escape or anything. Even I'm scared of that ride!

Yep, being scared of the unknown sounds just like my DD also. I think a lot of kids are like that. I would never make my children ride something that even I think is scary, but you as his parent know him and what he would enjoy. Good luck and have fun!

 

[DISNEYNV]

I feel for you all!!! I have the opposite problem though. My DD loves rides (she takes after us) and so does DS (1)! I loved that they both rode Mansion and POTC, DD rode TOT, Big thunder, Test Track, Splash, etc without a flinch, but Dinosaur was a different story!!! Do not take your child on this ride! I thought my poor DD was going to have a heart attack...and she loves the scary rides. I felt so bad!

 

[DISNEYNV]

I have heard this idea and I wanted to see if anyone here had tried it or had any ideas on hos to present this to my son. I was thinking of making up a little shaker of glitter (pixie dust, excuse me ) for him to take with him to the parks to be used when he might need a little extra nerve to go on a ride (like Splash). I figured he could sprinkle a little on himself before he tried the ride. Has anyone done something like this? Did you kid like it? How did you present the dust? Just looking for ideas! Thanks!

Oh, I've tried the monster spray idea for DD5 to sleep on her room (this has been a major problem for years) and that didn't work too well pixie dust idea Made me think of that! Doesn't hurt to try though, right? Have a great trip and he will most likely surprise you with what he will/will not do once he is really there

 

[Ronni]

I think it could work if your son is simply waffling about the ride and just needs a little bit of encouragement. Good luck!

 

[Schmeck]

If you control the bag or shaker of 'pixie dust' so that it does not end up all over the place,then yes, if you think it would help your son, go for it. But I'd never hand a kid his own shaker full of glitter in a public place...

 

[crisi]

I'm not sure if I like the idea of anyone having a shaker of glitter in a public place. Poor next guest who sits down in a seat you "pixie dusted" with a back end full of glitter.

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

I love this idea!

 

[CLR4321]

I would suggest pulling up Youtube videos of the rides and explain to him whats going on on the ride, so he knows what to expect. Whatever you do, do not tell your son the ride is scary or anything like that. Tell him it is a good, fun ride...this way he won't be expecting it to be scary. Some people make the mistake of telling their kids it is scary a ride, and their kids will be too scared to ride. My son got upset on Splash when we, well, got splashed LOL. He started crying a bit, and I started singing alone to the music really loud and rocking back and forth to the music. My son started laughing and got really excited, and in turn decided he loved the ride. To this day, it is his favorite ride at WDW. He was 3 the first time he rode it (at Disneyland) and is 5 now.
As far as your idea for a pixie dust shaker....I think it is a great idea but I do not believe that it will benefit your son any in getting him to ride the rides. Have a good trip!

 

[holz99]

I think it is a good idea. However, I like the glow stick bracelet idea or just a bracelet or maybe a special shirt for each day. If you can't get that many new shirts, you could have a "Mickey Spray" that you spray on his shirt each morning. I don't have a problem with it. We actually may do something like this for my niece and nephew on our trip.
My nephew is 7 and is a very picky eater. He wouldn't eat anything but chicken fingers for a long time. When we made him try something different, he figured out that he liked a lot of it. Otherwise, he would still be eating chicken fingers all the time. Like it was said you have to just give your child the encouragement and they will find that they can do so much more. I would rather them experience it for themselves and decide rather than cower in the corner their whole life afraid of anything that might be a little scary.

I say go for it! If you come across any other ideas, let us know. I may use one for my niece when we go.

 

[antsss]

My DS7 is very wary, very cautious and not willing to try new things. But when he does, he usually loves them! So we walk this fine line between letting him opt out of a ride and "forcing" him to go on. Our agreement is that we don't "force" but if we're in a park as a family, sometimes he needs to try some things out of his comfort zone. And we're not talking Tower of Terror...its more like Peter Pan (very suspicious of a ride he can't see). I like the idea of checking out youtube to give him ideas about what's involved in a ride. It just makes me crazy when I know he'll LOVE something, but he's reluctant to try it!

 

[holz99]

My DS7 is very wary, very cautious and not willing to try new things. But when he does, he usually loves them! So we walk this fine line between letting him opt out of a ride and "forcing" him to go on. Our agreement is that we don't "force" but if we're in a park as a family, sometimes he needs to try some things out of his comfort zone. And we're not talking Tower of Terror...its more like Peter Pan (very suspicious of a ride he can't see). I like the idea of checking out youtube to give him ideas about what's involved in a ride. It just makes me crazy when I know he'll LOVE something, but he's reluctant to try it!

I agree. I don't think that you should force a kid to ride. It will just cause a scene and that can be embarrassing for the whole family when the child has a meltdown. However, a little coaxing and encouragement and little tricks are fine when you know that they will love it.