Should I take my infant with us, or leave her at home with grandma???

[pigletforever]

I vote for bringing both Grandma and the baby if that is possible.

This is my vote. We are in the process of adopting another baby and she will be about a year old when we go back in Jan of 2008. MIL and my kids Godmother (who is bringing her husband and 2 grandkids) are coming with us.

 

[java]

Wow I have trouble leaving the dog behind I can't imagine leaving my baby behind. But that is me. You have to do what feels right for you. I have taken all 4 of my children as babies and yes it is a TON of packing(one time we actually got to the airport and had the baggage guy say "Hey let me get you a box" And he threw all the extra stuff we had into it and put it on the plane(like the huge pack of diapers ) I LOVED that man. But only you know what it best for your family. Have a great time whatever you decide to do.

 

[mrsltg]

I've done it both ways. I would leave the baby at home and concentrate on the older children.

We took our then 7 mo. old in January with our 5 year old. It was a great trip but it was also a trip where there was a lot of, "Ok, you take Dierdre (5) on this ride (or to this show). I will take Caroline back to the hotel, (sit on a shady bench, for a walk, etc)." We spent a lot of time seperated. Granted we also took the baby on lots of rides that were age appropriate, as well.

We went again in August when the girls were 5.5 and 14 mos. If my mother had offered to keep the baby I would have done so in a New York minute! Again, there was a lot of seperation and the baby was much more determined to do things her way. We slowed down to her pace often meaning one of us stayed with her while the other took Dierdre to do something she was interested in. We had a really good time, though.

This December both girls are staying with Grandma and Grandpa. I CANNOT WAIT!!! We have left older dd with them before when we went on vacations and it has been great.

If you leave the baby at home you will miss them. You will long for them when you see another baby sleeping in their stroller or smiling and clapping at a show. You will smile an evil little smile when the same baby begins screaming and one parent has to dash out of the restaurant or show... You will end up buying the baby more Disney merchandise than they will ever need and you will actually be glad when it's time to go home because you have something so wonderful to look forward to. Meanwhile, Grandma and the baby will have had some wonderful time together.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[whogirl'smom]

Take grandma and the baby with you.

I vote for this too! Six months is the perfect age to travel and they are content looking at anything and everything. They can also finally sit (propped up a little )in a high chair at restaurants and nibble a cracker for an hour! This was my favorite baby time with DD5--we went to Charleston, SC, with her at this age.

 

[barbie78]

I've done it both ways and DH and I agree that babies should be about a year before we bring them. I was not ready to leave my second DD for this last trip, but it was the right thing for us. Just imagine pouring rain and a cold, wet, hungry infant and you are trying to fight the crowds to get indoors to feed her. That always works for me.

 

[my2minnies]

I say leave her with grandma! Dont really think of it as leaving her behind, but as giving her an opportunity to really bond with grandma and more importantly as a way to have a really great time with your older dds. They are at a great age to do everything there is to do. It will be nice to be able to do things together without either you or dh staying behind to watch the baby.

I just went in Sept with my dd 5 and dd 4 and left my twin ds (14 months) home with dh. It was the toughest decision, but I am so glad I did. I had such a great time with my older two without the stress of the babies and their sleep schedules. I think of it as a special gift that I was able to give to my dds. Babies are extremely demanding (especially twins) and the girls had a tough year adjusting to the addition of their brothers.

I plan on taking everyone next year, but I will never regret leaving the babies home during this past trip

 

[robinb]

Here's a picture of our then 4-month old DD's first trip to WDW:

 

[ksjayhawkfan]

On our last trip our DS was 6 months old, we left him with grandma. And we wouldnt change our decision. We are planning a trip in November 2007 when he will be almost 3 for his first trip.

I know people take their infants, but we decided it would be better for him and us and the other people around us, that he stay home that trip.

Good luck

 

[Stacy_C]

We left our youngest child 2 times last year for WDW trips. She was 6 months the first time and 1 year the second time. She really would have been miserable and would've therefore made the rest of us miserable. She does not like to go places. She is very much a homebody. Yes, we missed her, but when the heat was beating down on us or the rain was flooding us, I would think in my mind "Thank goodness we didn't bring Kylie". She was much happier at home than she would've ever been at WDW. No one will ever convince me otherwise. I know my child and I know her personality. I don't even take her grocery shopping with me unless I have no other choice. Now, my older two kids would've done great at WDW at 6 months and one year, but not this one. I feel no guilt about leaving her.

 

[Steve's Girl]

Take grandma and the baby with you.

This is my vote. Personally, I don't think I could leave a 6 mo. old for more than a day or two. This gives you the best of both options.

 

[Mommaof3]

This really is a hard one. We opted to leave our twins at home with grandma and concentrate on the 5 year old. I knew the boys would not remember the trip , but the 5 year old would. And too, the boys were born early and had medical problems. I wanted to spend extra time with the 5 year old to remind her that she was still special too and not expose the boys to all the germs and such. You really have to think about your family situation and what you want to accomplish with the vacation time. We did take the whole family when the boys were 5 and then again and again.........Now we are considering a trip for next year after our daughter gets married. The boys will be without her. Guess life is just a big circle! Have a great time no matter what you decide!

Melissa

 

[leighe]

We have left DD9months with Grandma twice. My parents loved getting to spend time with her (they live about 2 hours away from us and don't get to see her as much as DH's parents) and we had a great time by ourselves. I missed her like crazy but it was the right choice for us.

 

[3DisneyBuggs]

We left our 18 month old home this trip. My DD was turning 4 and DS is 8. I really wanted us to enjoy all the big rides together and we did. I did miss my baby but we did have a great trip. We called everyday and text our pictures to him! It was so nice to have a diaper, sippy cup free trip. We weren't slowed down by the baby as my DH said.

That said I am planning on a trip this summer, which will include him. I think at 2.5, he will really enjoy it. Esp since he already knows Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy. So enjoy the trip with your older ones.

 

[kellera]

Thank you so much for all the valuable information!! I had originally invited my mom and her new DH to go with us, but they said they can't afford it. That being said, if I just took my mom and paid her way, I would have to KILL HER...don't get me wrong, I love her to death...but she is the kind of person who likes to make things about her. She can be loud and demanding in public and drives my husband INSANE because she is always criticizing everything I do (Amy...put on some makeup, Amy...tell your girls to behave, Amy...Amy...Amy...).

It just would NOT be fun with her there. I know that sounds mean, but this is our first time to WDW, and probably our last for a few years. Even the fact that we could have some "time alone" is not worth the trade off.

I guess we have some debating to do, but I really appreciate all of the input. Ultimately, I will probably take her with us, just because it makes me sad to think she wouldn't be included in the "family" pictures at WDW. Not to mention the fact that DD's ages 11 and 5 would miss her terribly!! Maybe I will run it past them and see what they would like us to do.

Amy

 

[GSDRescuer]

Take grandma and the baby with you.

Most definitely this has my vote. (I'm a grandma and I'd want to go, too).
However, reading your last post...maybe it would be best to leave grandma at home with the baby......

 

[Bird-Mom]

I couldn't do it. I took my older dd when she was 6 months, and we all had a blast! She is 4.5 and will be taking her 7th trip in February. She is a Disney fanatic! We very rarely even leave our dds for a date night; we have had a handful since the older one was born. I hate leaving them. Of course, I am still nursing my 2 year old, so it would be very uncomfortable to leave her for a week! I just think it is sad to leave one child behind on a family vacation. If you feel like you want to do something special with just the older children, you could do a special day trip or similar. I quite often take my 4.5 year old for afternoon tea. That is special mommy-Miranda time and I don't end up leaving the 2 year old for very long (and she gets special papa time too).

 

[emh1129]

Take your little girl with you. Not only is 6 months a *great* age for WDW, but you will miss her terribly if you leave her behind. IMO, Walt Disney World is a family destination. That's all of the family ... not just the older kids.

I agree..
DH and I went on a cruise when my ds was 11 months old (he stayed with G'ma) and I was absolutely miserable. I missed him so much

 

[Not so Dumbo]

I'm some what in the same boat. I'm taking DDwill be 6mo. with us. I have a hard time leaving her long enough to have a night out with DH. There's no way I'd make it 11 days. Best luck in your decision. I understand how hard it is.

 

[tanyaandallie]

I think Disney is one of the best places to take a child that age. So many other vacation spots are not as kid friendly. We took my ds to Disneyland last year at 7 mos and we had a wonderful time!!! He was still versatile enough that he napped in the sling so we didn't have to worry about running back to the hotel.

I am super attached to my kiddos and could not leave them at such a young age. I'd vote for taking your little one with you!

 

[MATTERHORN]

If you can't take a child that age to Disney, where can you take them? It is a perfect family vacation for kids of all ages. Take her with you, 6 months is a great age to go. They aren't eating constantly anymore, but don't need to get down and be mobile all the time yet either.

I am with some other PP's in the boat of "I couldn't ever leave one of my kids behind" My kids get one on one time occasionally at home with either DH or I, they don't need it on a family vacation. Then again, I might not be the best to take advice from because I seem to be the minority amongst most people I know. I spend all my time with my kids and I don't mind it one bit. People don't usually believe me, but it's true!

Take her and make some memories with the entire family. After all, the older kids had your attention more than she ever will being the 3rd! Have a great trip, and I know what you said about your mom, but the reasons you listed would also be reasons I wouldn't want to leave her behind with her, Just MHO!


Andrea