Proving the Critics Wrong: Taking our 18 month old to WDW for 10 Days! Update- Chapt

[dizziedupbaby0127]

im joining in! i hope the dr apt goes well. i love your title, i got it all the time why i was taking my baby to disney. he went for his 1st bday last oct and to mnsshp. i loved it and i noticed you used the same decorations as he did at his party but with mickey! I told people thats why he is free under 3 cause he wont remember and we will go to as many places as we can while he is free because im a single mom and need to save. I took him to disney a few months after his first visit in dec all alone and i loved it. we go back twice this year. so just have fun and enjoy the time with your little one while shes young which i know you will.

I just read your TR, your son is adorible! I'm so glad you had 2 great trips! We loved the landscaping at the Poly on our honeymoon, but mousekeeping left much to be desired! It will be a while before we go back there. Do you have any advice for MNSSHP? I am thinking of adding the 7 dwafs on my list of must dos!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

So, the day we brought DD home from the hospital she has been a sleeper! She slept through the night atleast 6 hours. Currently she will go to bed around 8-8:30 and wake up around 7 or 8/8:30. Occasionally on weekend we let her stay up till 10, she has no problem going this long usually because she will take little cat naps in the car. and will be right back up at 7 the next morning. Normally she will nap around 10-11am for about 1.5/2 hours. She has done this routine since about 10 months, when we took away the afternoon nap (all she did was fight us to get her down for the nap, then we could't get her to sleep at night) so we stopped trying to force her and voila it worked! But now here is my concern.... Since she likes to nap at 10/1030/11 do you think has she gets a bit older, say closer to the 18mos will this start to move closer to noon or one PM? I really don't want to worry about her needed to nap at 11 while in the parks, 1pm would be perfect. Do kids typically change this nap time, as they start needing more energy later in the day?

 

[jp'smommy]

I have been thinking about this as well. DS goes down for a nap at 10:30 and will sleep for 3 hours give or take. We hope that he will at least have shorter naps by then.
How did your DD's appt go yesterday? Hope everthing is ok.
I have just found a website that has a good bit of Disney custom outfits that are actually cute for boys! I think I may go broke ordering an outfit for each day.

 

[leshunlenese]

I just read your TR, your son is adorible! I'm so glad you had 2 great trips! We loved the landscaping at the Poly on our honeymoon, but mousekeeping left much to be desired! It will be a while before we go back there. Do you have any advice for MNSSHP? I am thinking of adding the 7 dwafs on my list of must dos!

Thank you! and it most certaintly will be a while befor ei ever go back. Definately take the advice here on the boards. Don't do anything before the party and go to get in exactly at 4pm. We were there for a short weekend and that was the only time we spent at MK but i think we got much done. We ate early like 230 manily because it was on our arrival day and we had not eaten. if i would change one thing it would be dont do the party on arrival day. we were so tired. The 7 dwarfs were cool but it was 1st time my son saw a character and he whined for a bit but did not cry, so just dont throw all those characters up at once that fast. If you do the dwarfs get in line early. i got in line i think like 6:30 and only had like 4 or 5 people in front and by the time it was 7 the line was tooo long.

So, the day we brought DD home from the hospital she has been a sleeper! She slept through the night atleast 6 hours. Currently she will go to bed around 8-8:30 and wake up around 7 or 8/8:30. Occasionally on weekend we let her stay up till 10, she has no problem going this long usually because she will take little cat naps in the car. and will be right back up at 7 the next morning. Normally she will nap around 10-11am for about 1.5/2 hours. She has done this routine since about 10 months, when we took away the afternoon nap (all she did was fight us to get her down for the nap, then we could't get her to sleep at night) so we stopped trying to force her and voila it worked! But now here is my concern.... Since she likes to nap at 10/1030/11 do you think has she gets a bit older, say closer to the 18mos will this start to move closer to noon or one PM? I really don't want to worry about her needed to nap at 11 while in the parks, 1pm would be perfect. Do kids typically change this nap time, as they start needing more energy later in the day?

My son changes a lot. since im not in school this summer i took him out of daycare to save money and he sometimes sleeps his normal time about 11:30/12 and for about 2 hours. for a few days this week however hes been not taking a nap till like 6 and its too late i have to force him up or to sleep later on. He did not even take a nap on monday which is odd but he was not cranky at all, all day, he just slept longer that night. i wish i had to professional answer for you but i do not. I just let my son sleep in his stroller

 

[Disney9.9.10]

I love your PTR! Your family seems to be a lot like mine. We always had Disney themed parties like you did for your daughter (soo adorable, by the way!!!) and we all went to Disney as young children. My parents could always take us places and we behaved and had a great time! So I am all for you guys proving the critics wrong!!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

I have been thinking about this as well. DS goes down for a nap at 10:30 and will sleep for 3 hours give or take. We hope that he will at least have shorter naps by then.
How did your DD's appt go yesterday? Hope everthing is ok.
I have just found a website that has a good bit of Disney custom outfits that are actually cute for boys! I think I may go broke ordering an outfit for each day.

I would think if he sleeps well at night, he might shorten his naps by the time you take your trip. I refuse to look at all the Disney custom clothing! DH would KILL me I have picked up a lot of cute things here and there and filled in with these cute shorts from Kmart for $2!

DD's apt went great! The neurologist said that she had a weakened nerve and muscle due to trama during labor and told me that if I hadn't had the C-section it would be A LOT worse. He said that since it has made a huge improvement in the past 2 months on its own, you can barely notice it now, that he would say to do some physical therepy to work the muscle and he will see us in Sept! There shouldn't be any issues with it down the road, besides the possible looking a little funny when she pulls or pushes something.

Thank you! and it most certaintly will be a while befor ei ever go back. Definately take the advice here on the boards. Don't do anything before the party and go to get in exactly at 4pm. We were there for a short weekend and that was the only time we spent at MK but i think we got much done. We ate early like 230 manily because it was on our arrival day and we had not eaten. if i would change one thing it would be dont do the party on arrival day. we were so tired. The 7 dwarfs were cool but it was 1st time my son saw a character and he whined for a bit but did not cry, so just dont throw all those characters up at once that fast. If you do the dwarfs get in line early. i got in line i think like 6:30 and only had like 4 or 5 people in front and by the time it was 7 the line was tooo long.




My son changes a lot. since im not in school this summer i took him out of daycare to save money and he sometimes sleeps his normal time about 11:30/12 and for about 2 hours. for a few days this week however hes been not taking a nap till like 6 and its too late i have to force him up or to sleep later on. He did not even take a nap on monday which is odd but he was not cranky at all, all day, he just slept longer that night. i wish i had to professional answer for you but i do not. I just let my son sleep in his stroller

We plan to do Chef Mickey's for a late breakfast 10am i think and go back and swim and relax then head to MNSSHP I hope to stay to atleast 11! I really don't have any intentions of doing rides, its all about the special activities for us! Characters, costumes, Photopass pics, villians show, parade, hallowishes, dance party My DD will do the no nap thing every once in a while, then usually she will sleep a ton the following day! I am praying for the sleeping in the stroller! Just worried about the noise.

I love your PTR! Your family seems to be a lot like mine. We always had Disney themed parties like you did for your daughter (soo adorable, by the way!!!) and we all went to Disney as young children. My parents could always take us places and we behaved and had a great time! So I am all for you guys proving the critics wrong!!

Thanks! BTW I checked the links in your sig and LOVE your dress! and how lucky to be married at Disney! Some day I hope to do a vow renewal there! and DH would die to stay at AKL!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

We decided to do our research on strollers, after getting a travel system and hating it! Too heavy, too big and just a big pain! We decided on a Peg Perego Si. It’s wonderfully light weight, has an umbrella fold, carry handle, almost full recline, AMAZING SUNSHADE! I can not rave enough about the sun shade, it comes completely down to cover DD! Adjustable handles, pushes great and my only complaint is that it doesn’t have a child tray.

Since the stroller cost around $250 I am obviously a little nervous about having it stolen at WDW. Not just because of the money, but also because it’s such a wonderful stroller and DD would not do well in a rented stroller if we lost it! I know they have the buggy guard locks, but you can’t lock your stroller at WDW to things as the CMs need to move the strollers. I have read about people locking the back wheels so the stroller can be moved but makes it hard to steal, atleast without drawing a lot of attention. But I also don’t want the hassle of locking and unlocking it EVERY time we move it.

Too bad someone did make a tiny GPS chip you could put inside the seat and link to a cell phone to track the stroller! They do make those GPS bracelets for children you can rent!

I do plan on tagging our stroller probably with our name and phone number in case someone takes it by MISTAKE.

Here are a few things stroller related I have picked up:
We purchased a rain cover for our specific stroller that attaches to the hood.
A mess bag to hand on the back, I’m planning on keeping a baggie with diapers, wipes, and a sippy cup and snacks in it (anything that IF STOLEN I won’t cry over)

A gate check bag (I didn’t pay over $200 for my stroller to have it look like our luggage after our last Southwest flight )

A pop on snack tray

If you can tell, the green knob twists to open and close the black bracket and it just grips onto the child bar on our stroller! I think it was $12 at Babies r us! Great Idea!!!!!!

 

[peachydreamyxx]

Im in, as well as a fellow september traveler I took my DS last year right after his first birthday and he LOVED it. I was told going in that it was going to be pointless, he wont remember, we are wasting our money, etc. Im sure youve heard it all too! Truth be told, it was the best vacation DH or myself have ever been on! He was the happiest little guy the entire 8 days we were there. In fact when we got home, he cried for three days straight I took that as a sign that he needed to go back to WDW because its much better than being home!

We were on the DDP and had a sit down meal every night, some days we had two sit down meals and he was so well behaved! We eat out a lot at home so I knew going in he would be alright. He could not get enough of the characters, I should have planned a character meal every day, if only I had known! He slept so well in his stroller, in fact when we tried to take him back to the room to nap, he refused and we wasted a huge part of a day. We learned that he loved to nap in the stroller and than go back to the resort only to swim, not sleep! We also managed to attend MNSSHP and he stayed up till midnight, still happy as can be! He took two naps most days, and we only made one rope drop, but we made it till every park closing which was better for us anyways!

I could go on and on about how amazing that trip was, but Im sure youve figured that out already! We will be taking him back again two weeks after his birthday so hopefully he will love it just as much! This time around he will be walking and talking so Im sure that will make this trip a little more interesting!!

Cant wait to read more about your plans!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

Im in, as well as a fellow september traveler I took my DS last year right after his first birthday and he LOVED it. I was told going in that it was going to be pointless, he wont remember, we are wasting our money, etc. Im sure youve heard it all too! Truth be told, it was the best vacation DH or myself have ever been on! He was the happiest little guy the entire 8 days we were there. In fact when we got home, he cried for three days straight I took that as a sign that he needed to go back to WDW because its much better than being home!

We were on the DDP and had a sit down meal every night, some days we had two sit down meals and he was so well behaved! We eat out a lot at home so I knew going in he would be alright. He could not get enough of the characters, I should have planned a character meal every day, if only I had known! He slept so well in his stroller, in fact when we tried to take him back to the room to nap, he refused and we wasted a huge part of a day. We learned that he loved to nap in the stroller and than go back to the resort only to swim, not sleep! We also managed to attend MNSSHP and he stayed up till midnight, still happy as can be! He took two naps most days, and we only made one rope drop, but we made it till every park closing which was better for us anyways!

I could go on and on about how amazing that trip was, but Im sure youve figured that out already! We will be taking him back again two weeks after his birthday so hopefully he will love it just as much! This time around he will be walking and talking so Im sure that will make this trip a little more interesting!!

Cant wait to read more about your plans!

Welcome! And what a PERFECT excuse to go back! DH know's I want to go every year if possible, we might not be able to start that tradition for a few years, but I am already planning a 2013 trip when the new fantasy land is opened!

I'm so glad to hear your DS did great with everything! I hope DD will nap in the stroller so we can spend more time in the parks, but I hope she will nap at the resort too, DH and I like our naps too! I think the walking and talking will be such a great new adventure! I would love DD to run upto mickey and hug him, she will prob be too shy tho. Silly kids!

 

[leshunlenese]

I got the strooler bag for my last trip and it was good casue it was a little drizzle and i could see my stroller out my window in the airplane. All that stuffs looks so familiar. Mostly becasue i work at BRU.

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

I got the strooler bag for my last trip and it was good casue it was a little drizzle and i could see my stroller out my window in the airplane. All that stuffs looks so familiar. Mostly becasue i work at BRU.

Oh no I wouldn't even bring home a paycheck! I was delighted to see the stroller bag was a decent fabric, didn't seem too thin like I was worried about.

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

So we got our MNSSHP tix today

I wish they were themed for MNSSHP I couldn't be more excited! We are so close! 3 months, 24 days, 16 hours!

I also wanted to post a pic of DD with her Pooh and Tigger, and a couch full of stuffed pals!

 

[KELLY]

Joining in. We took both of our girls at 6 months with no issues. We will be at pop from 9/17 to 9/26 10 days!!! we go every year so we seem to have found a home at pop fits the budget when you are a SAHM.

Plus we do alot of extra's. MNSSHP, PL a couple OP Ts meals. We do the QSDP beacuse it just fits are needs better. But I gave my girls the option Arkshurs or T-rex they picked T-rex. So our Op meals are T-rex with build a dino and Tusker house breakfest.

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

Joining in. We took both of our girls at 6 months with no issues. We will be at pop from 9/17 to 9/26 10 days!!! we go every year so we seem to have found a home at pop fits the budget when you are a SAHM.

Plus we do alot of extra's. MNSSHP, PL a couple OP Ts meals. We do the QSDP beacuse it just fits are needs better. But I gave my girls the option Arkshurs or T-rex they picked T-rex. So our Op meals are T-rex with build a dino and Tusker house breakfest.

Welcome! for another POPer! I am so excited to stay at Pop, I thought about checking to see prices on CRB or CSR but I just love the look of Pop, I am almost more excited about seeing Pop than MK OOH I want my DD to be old enough to do the build a dino! I have always wanted to do a build a bear but never did Can't wait to live vicariously through my child!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

Since this is our 3rd trip with the dining plan, I feel like we are food experts. This is our 2nd free dining trip and we LOVE food! We wanted to eat at our favs along with a few character meals for DD and to save time in the parks and we wanted to try a few new places. So here’s our list:

Crystal Palace – we have been here 1 time before. This is for DD and to get that early entrance to MK!
Mama Melrose- This is new to us. Main reason for this is the fantasmic package, I really didn’t want to wait in line for 60+ minutes with DD. But we have to see fantasmic. Dh and I will both order the chicken parm. So I hope its good!
Boma- We have been there before and like the food and atmosphere
Whispering Canyon Café- New to us also, looking forward to trying the skillet, I love corn bread!
Chef Mickey’s- Previously we tried dinner here, I was not thrilled with the food, but loved the character interaction! So this time we figured we would try breakfast, you can’t mess up scrambled eggs! Plus we love breakfast and I plan on bringing a baggie and stashing a few mickey waffles for later!
Teppan Edo- This is a must do every trip! We love the food and the show! We might have to order DD her own meal here or feed her before we get there
Big River Grille and Brewery- We have been here before DH really like the BBQ burger and I had the pasta alfredo, I think I will get the burger this time, but it was very good and the dessert! To die for, the chocolate confussion! Yummy
Tusker House- New for us, +characters, +early entrance to AK!
Kona café- This is a must every trip, I love the tonga toast, even tho I make it better, and the press pot! We got a press pot at home after our first trip to Kona!

Other dining plans:
On our arrival night we will end up eating at Pop, there are a few things I want to try on the menu. I am interested to compare to the Allstar’s. I love the Allstar/Pizzafari breadsticks, I pray they are the same here! I am looking forward to the big sundae’s for dessert.
Colombia harbor house- this will be a first this trip, I think I’m going to try the fish/chicken combo
Pizzafari-Can you guess what I’m ordering here? I would most likely get a pizza to split with DD and a side of yummy yummy goodness! I hope you can still get the frozen lemonade for dessert!
Pecos bill- We tried this on our first trip, I think ii had the ckn caeser wrap, but didn’t like it, I am most likely getting a burger this time!
Yak & yeti- New also, I am looking forward to trying something different.
Earl of Sandwich-DH and I liked this on our last trip.
Main street bakery- we have yet to try this, I hoping for a breakfast goodie one morning!
I do plan on splitting a few CS credits at Pop getting a pizza, drink and dessert. Since I plan on purchasing the mugs we can use the drink to get DD milk or a water bottle for later.
I am also packing a medium size soft sided cooler to take with us and keep in the room and refill with ice to keep a few bottles cold. Dh and I like drinks at night or in the AM when we wake up and don’t want to run and get a drink. And I don’t want to pay for a fridge!

Must have snacks:I swear this trip I will try a dole whip! I chickened out last time since I was preggers I was afraid I would hate it.
Hot fudge sundae with chocolate chips and chocolate sprinkles from Pop
Tye-die cheesecake
Waffle with powdered sugar
Mickey bar
Frozen lemonade
Popcorn
Pretzel
Brownie hot fudge sundae

 

[leshunlenese]

you are making me hungry! i did not know you could get a hot fudge sundae at pop. i want one!

 

[MommaMouse411]

OMG what a dining plan!

One of these days I will have eaten at all the restaurants...

I had the PIzzafari breadsticks yesterday...they were good.

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

you are making me hungry! i did not know you could get a hot fudge sundae at pop. i want one!

According to the boards here, I have seen a few pics, they are HUGE and AMAZING!

OMG what a dining plan!

One of these days I will have eaten at all the restaurants...

I had the PIzzafari breadsticks yesterday...they were good.

We try and go all out! Some day that's my goal too! But I love my favs! YUMMY I miss those breadsticks! I swear I can taste them!

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

Sorry for being MIA the last few days. My SIL had her bridal shower Saturday so I have been running around all week trying to prepare for that and DH's cousin flew in from Michigan for the shower and stayed with us, so we had cleaning and such. Now I have to finish wedding stuff this week since SIL's wedding is June 3rd! 2 weeks away so I hope to have a new post this week/weekend, since I won't next week! It's going to be a long 2 weeks! The whole family (except prob SIL) wants this darn wedding over with! It has been a hecktic, pain in the butt, everything has gone wrong and SIL is not organized and no one knows where or when is the rehearsal dinner, if we are getting our hair done and where, we absolutely have no idea about what going on for this wedding its a disaster!!!

So once this silly thing is over back to my beloved DISNEY planning

 

[dizziedupbaby0127]

Ok, so I mentioned a while back that on occasion DD sleeps with us, her crib is still in our room and normally at night she will snuggle with DH in our bed till she falls asleep, then we move her to her crib.

Now I believe Pop has a certain number of King rooms, some of which are disabled rooms with roll-in showers, some regular tubs. Now this number is greatly decreased when you look at preferred rooms (which is what we booked). So in a perfect world we would get: a king room with tub, 60’s building preferred, ground floor! I can almost bet you we won’t get that!

My concerns:
1-What if DD is fussy and wakes up in the middle of the night, those double beds just won’t fit 3 –So here’s our need for a king room!
2-DD may/may not sleep in a pack n play, we are going to test it out really soon with DH’s sisters wedding in June. But here’s a potential reason for needed a king room.
3-DD obviously takes baths, Im not sure how an 18month old would do with a shower :/ -Heres our reason for a tub room.

Keeping all that in mind, I really want to stay in the 60’s building near the pool. We have never had a pool side room and while I know it will be louder I really want to try!

I think I will put my request in on both reservations (and have them linked) to say:
King room-with tub
60’s building
First floor

I will do online check-in for the room only reservation, since it is one night we will deal. Then since we can check-in at 6am the next day, just do regular check-in and see if they can accommodate us, letting them know we are willing to wait as long as needed to get our requests. And if they can’t I will ask for a double room, 4th floor, 60’s pool side with bedrails and a pack n play as backup.


Any opinions on my plan?