Pushing Children To The Limit

[cornflkgrl]

I don't think it really matters WHEN your kids go to sleep (early or late) but rather having a specific routine for when they do 9ie. around the same time everyday) because small children tend to be creatures of habit and when their routine is changed it can make them anxious and cranky.

 

[lclark0621]

If my DS is happy & having a good time (which he usually is), we stay.

If he is tired and cranky, we leave. Simple as that.

My DS usually LOVES the late nights though. The later the better for my kid.

If we do a late night in the parks, we sleep in the next day. We also, always go back to the hotel for a nap mid day. At home my DS naps about 2 hours a day. At Disney, he sometimes naps 4 hours or more. And that is fine. After his nap we head back to the parks & can do the EMHs, because he had such a long nap. And he is thrilled to keep going.

I dont know why people keep going when their kids are obviously tired & not enjoying themselves.

I mean, if your kid is up for it, go as long as they will. But if they are crying, cranky, or worse, it is time to call it a night. Simple as that.

We did the EMHs when we were there last week. MK EMHs started at 9:00pm. By 10:30pm (9:30pm our time), we had ridden everything we wanted to & headed back to the dock for the boat back. DS was having a great time. But we had ridden everything, and we could tell, he was just starting to get tired (some of those cranky signs were starting to show). So rather then push through for another hour & a half, with an increasingly cranky & tired toddler, we called it a night. Went back to the hotel, DS fell right to sleep & was well rested for our next day out.

Even if it is a "once in a lifetime trip", there is no reason to push a kid to where they are so tired, they are just in complete meltdown mode. What fun is that for kid or parent?

If you miss a ride, you miss a ride. But your kid is happy & the memories of a happy kid for a lifetime, are better then a stressed out parent & an incredibly tired cranky kid at that moment.

And when you look back, do you want the happy "Remember when little Timmy had so much fun in the MK?" or the "Remember that night Timmy was so cranky he cried so hard he threw up from exhaustion"?

My DS is a natural night owl, like his parents. So we can always stay late in the parks. He just loves it.

But if he is tired, we go back to the hotel.

Everyone needs to be happy for the trip to be a good one.

 

[NotUrsula]

Last June we went to a late night on a trip with DH, myself, our just-turned 8 yo, and my 17 yo niece. One a.m. and the young one and myself are going strong, but my pumpkin husband and my teenaged niece are draggin their axles. It's all in what kind of personal clock you're on. DS has inherited my night-owl tendencies, but once the excitement stops he can literally fall asleep in a few seconds, sometimes mid-sentence on a bus, etc. He will also sleep anywhere and through absolutely anything, so when he was little we would just let him snooze in the stroller while we grownups kept going; honestly, he slept just as well there as anywhere else, so we were not being cruel. (He is impossible to wake once out, however, so we used to bring his toothbrush and jammies to evening events so that he could put them on before going to sleep. Kind of the way our folks used to do the drive-in movie routine.)

We also usually prep for very late nights by resting in the afternoon. As DH likes to say, if I never see another afternoon in Fantasyland, it will be too soon. We almost always visit in the off-season, and the biggest meltdown fests I see at WDW are folks w/ preschoolers who are trying to skip naps while at MK. At that age, even a child who never normally naps will usually get tired enough for a stroller snooze after lunch -- pushing it is a BAD idea.

 

[RobInBigKC]

If my DS is happy & having a good time (which he usually is), we stay.

If he is tired and cranky, we leave. Simple as that.

My DS usually LOVES the late nights though. The later the better for my kid.

...

I dont know why people keep going when their kids are obviously tired & not enjoying themselves.

I mean, if your kid is up for it, go as long as they will. But if they are crying, cranky, or worse, it is time to call it a night. Simple as that.

ITA!

I've ate ice cream cones on Main Street at 1:00 a.m. with some of my DS's. At times, some have gone back to the room at 7:00 p.m. or so with my DW. At other times, we've let the kids sleep in the stroller and stayed in the park and I've ended up carrying them from stroller check-in to their bed back at the room. But never (that I can recall) have any of my 4 DS's been a late night problem for any other park or resort guests (now, daytime issues/meltdowns is a whole different story!).

-- Rob

 

[goingback]

We just got back today from 4 days at Disney. I have to say what our kids are talking about the most (their favorite memories) are not the parades, the character greetings, the buying of merchandise, or even the rides. What they are talking about is goofing off on the side street of New York at MGM Studios and taking pictures on the walk up steps. My son bought himself an Oscar (after the backlot tour) and kept giving an "Oscar" thank you speech thanking himself, me and I and more of myself! It was so funny!

I hated pushing them along just to do a fast pass or see something we just thought we had to do. We had memorable times just sitting in the rocking chairs and talking with the banjo player about how he came to work there and what it was like. Then he gave our girls buttons to pin on their shirts. Boy that made them happy!

Disney to me is all in the details. The details really matter. For us, when we stop and enjoy those little details, we really find out what it's all about.

 

[Pluto's Honey]

When we go Mk is open til 2am but we will nap during the day, my Ds is 12 and could stay up til 6 am if you let him. My DD is 9 and sometimes is out at 9, 11 or later, if she has a nap she will go later. If she gets ready to go to the room, my DH or myself will go with her and the other stay with DS. I agree with melt downs can be anytime, if you skip lunch it could even be you. I do think some people in the world treat ther cildren differently than I do. We have never been on a set schedule, ball games can keep you up late. But don't think that just cause my son will turn into a teenagernext year that he is at the magical age to stay up late. I have a SIL that has to go to bed at 9, like clock work. She is 31 years old...We will always have to deal with others, but enjoy what you have with your family.

 

[lorrainesy]

The great thing about staying on property is that you can have the park work around your schedual. There is no reason to keep the kids up crazy hours.

 

[FreshTressa]

My kids are fine out late. We always keep them up...they seem to keep going and going. They can't do it consecutive nights, but we do stay up one or two nights of the trip to see fireworks and stuff.

My husband on the other hand.....

 

[Gaiusrex]

My kids don't need to be tired to melt down. They do it on a whim. I think it's silly that some people automatically assume that crying kids are too tired. Kids are kids. They cry, they stomp, they pout. They can do it anytime.

 

[Stitch65]

My parents and I closed out Epcot, (not that late, I know) and I was 18 and we were there spending magical time with my mom since she was losing a battle with terminal cancer, so I was holding her hand as we were walking out. So, a mom behind me who had a sulking teenager with her, very loudly said, "See, why can't you be like her? She acutally LIKES being with her mom!"

It was a bittersweet moment for us, and it sure did make my mom feel kinda good.

 

[RoyalCanadian]

Regardless of the reasons many posters have suggested there is simply no excuse for what DW and I saw at the MK EMHs on March 12th. The EMH went from midnight to 3am. Our second ride after EMH began was BTMRR and each bench near the ride exit was filled with parents holding their sleeping children. I didn't think much of this immediately -- save for the one child who was curled up on a bench. I figured that many of these guests were sensible parents who had just stayed to the park closing with their children and would be heading back to their comfortable hotels.

Not so.

For the remainder of our time in the park during the EMH we saw more and more children sleeping in strollers, on benches, in the arms of their parents. There simply is nothing magical about any of that when those children should have been allowed the courtesy of sleeping in a bed at their very nearby resort hotel -- as each one of those guests were wearing the EMH bracelets.

 

[DisneyMim]

Well, I too am not going to judge anyone. Everybody has different reasons for doing what they do. I just have an observation. Last week we were at the MK until 3am. This is something that my kids(older) have wanted to do forever and we never had the chance. Well, last week the MK was opened for EMH until 3 am and we all thought that now was our chance! We all could not believe how many little ones were out till that time. I felt bad for some of them because the parents were dragging and yelling. Not fun in my book. Even my kids commented. We've always planned our vacations around the age of our kids, but them we visit WDW often. I'm guessing that for some of these people their vacation was a less frequent experience and they wanted to do as much as possible. I think I would rather be up earlier with young kids than out past midnight. You really can't do both.

 

[RoyalCanadian]

Well, I too am not going to judge anyone. Everybody has different reasons for doing what they do. I just have an observation. Last week we were at the MK until 3am.

Sounds like we were at the same place at the same time and saw the same stuff happening.

 

[KimR]

We did EMH one night at MGM and my youngest DD (3 at the time) slept in her stoller. I guess some people think I'm a bad parent but I honestly don't see anything wrong with this? She was comfortably sleeping and didn't know the difference anyway. Meanwhile, we took turns sitting with her while the others split up to ride the rides. She's always been the type to sleep anywhere at anytime probably because she is the youngest and has learned to go with the flow. At any rate, I haven't noticed any permanent damage from our EMH night although she is 4 now and too big to sleep in the stroller anymore so this year we'll have to adjust accordingly.

 

[Windy City Heather]

There simply is nothing magical about any of that when those children should have been allowed the courtesy of sleeping in a bed at their very nearby resort hotel -- as each one of those guests were wearing the EMH bracelets.

My dd3 would much rather sleep in my arms than in a bed by herself.

Also, I would think it is much more magical falling asleep watching a parade or fireworks or just being in the mk (or where ever in disney you are) than falling asleep in a boring hotel room most likely after you screamed about having to leave Disney to go back to your room.

 

[Hannathy]

Windy City I totally agree with you ! My goodness these are kids not 50 year olds they can sleep anywhere. Once most kids are asleep sleep is sleep. they don't get arthritic necks or krooks in their backs if they don't have a perfect bed. Most daycares put them on thin mats on a floor and this is better than a stroller. For heavens sake if they aren't bothering you by screaming let them enjoy themselves. My children have never been asleep at 8 PM in their life and I mean even as babies. My kids will tell you about how much fun it was to be at MK really late, or swam at midnight, but I've never heard them say boy that night we went to the room and went to bed early was fun. Not everyone is a morning person, you should be glad or the parks would be crowded at 8 AM.

 

[frankenpooh]

We just got back today from 4 days at Disney. I have to say what our kids are talking about the most (their favorite memories) are not the parades, the character greetings, the buying of merchandise, or even the rides. What they are talking about is goofing off on the side street of New York at MGM Studios and taking pictures on the walk up steps. My son bought himself an Oscar (after the backlot tour) and kept giving an "Oscar" thank you speech thanking himself, me and I and more of myself! It was so funny!

I hated pushing them along just to do a fast pass or see something we just thought we had to do. We had memorable times just sitting in the rocking chairs and talking with the banjo player about how he came to work there and what it was like. Then he gave our girls buttons to pin on their shirts. Boy that made them happy!

Disney to me is all in the details. The details really matter. For us, when we stop and enjoy those little details, we really find out what it's all about.

Going back, thanks for reminding me that the best Disney magic can occur when you slow down. We leave in a few days, and I need to remember that there's more to it than racing around to ride the rides.

 

[SWVA BGSU Fan]

Windy City I totally agree with you ! My children have never been asleep at 8 PM in their life and I mean even as babies. My kids will tell you about how much fun it was to be at MK really late, or swam at midnight, but I've never heard them say boy that night we went to the room and went to bed early was fun. Not everyone is a morning person, you should be glad or the parks would be crowded at 8 AM.

Hannathy, I totally agree with you! I am a night person, and my DS10 and DS6 are the same way. They have NEVER been asleep at 8 PM in their lives, either. DS6 can stay up later than I can on some occasions. As long as they are having fun, we will stay in the parks as late as we can. Likewise, I agree with the posters who say it's all relative. If they aren't having a good time because they are tired, we don't hesitate to go back to the resort.