Stroller and an child w/Atusim.

[Sunbeamblue2002]

Please help as I have been debating this for weeks in my plannig. We are going to Disney March 29th-April 1st. We will have 4 kids DD15 DS9 DD5(she the one with Atisum) DS13months. I say we should take 2 strollers but my mother said we don't need to she can sit down and rest on a bench when she's tired. We will be driving to Disney and we have 3 grown up for 4 kids so thats a good ratio. She dose pretty good at staying with me and never uses a stroller at home any more (cause she's not the baby). I jus worry about etrax waits and parades and stuff as she could sit in there. I could always rent a stroller but I do have 2 and just would rather save the money for other things as were driving. But do you think she'll need it and is 2 strollers too much of a hasell if we should use disney tras. We are on the DDp and will be sitting down to dinner every night so she will get a rest that way. Just please give me your thoughts as the moms in the know.
Thanks Sunbeamblue

 

[livndisney]

Please help as I have been debating this for weeks in my plannig. We are going to Disney March 29th-April 1st. We will have 4 kids DD15 DS9 DD5(she the one with Atisum) DS13months. I say we should take 2 strollers but my mother said we don't need to she can sit down and rest on a bench when she's tired. We will be driving to Disney and we have 3 grown up for 4 kids so thats a good ratio. She dose pretty good at staying with me and never uses a stroller at home any more (cause she's not the baby). I jus worry about etrax waits and parades and stuff as she could sit in there. I could always rent a stroller but I do have 2 and just would rather save the money for other things as were driving. But do you think she'll need it and is 2 strollers too much of a hasell if we should use disney tras. We are on the DDp and will be sitting down to dinner every night so she will get a rest that way. Just please give me your thoughts as the moms in the know.
Thanks Sunbeamblue

I would say bring it. If you don't need-fine. But better to have it in case. My DD doesn't do well in crowds-but having a stroller seems to help her. It gives her her own "space". Plus it is a lot of walking. If your DD has "space" issues a stroller for the parade can be very helpful!

 

[SmallWorld71]

I would definitely bring it. My DD5 does not have autism (she does have asthma and some sensory issues) but she did use a stroller a lot during the week, particularly during the 2nd half of the week as she became more tired. Also, she is definitely a child who is easily distracted (who wouldn't be in Disney!) and I felt that at night it was much safer to have her in the stroller than to worry about losing her. She is also a dawdler, and a stroller helped if we needed to get somewhere quickly. FWIW, she hasn't used a stroller for years at home.

 

[bookwormde]

I would think that you would definitely want to bring it and probably use it some of the time. It greatly depend on if she has sensory overload issues or any anxiety from crowds. Also nothing brings on a “melt down” faster than being overtired.

An opinion from a dad.

bookwormde

 

[mechurchlady]

You do not want to be part of the Pooped Parent Parade at the parks at closing time. Try carrying your child 3 blocks while you are tired and then you will realize that you will be better off with a stroller. There are some nice rentals out there that you can get. If you have a disabled placard then you can park in the disabled parking areas and avoid the trams. The two older kids can help by carrying things or even have the 15 year old help with the strollers.

Strollers make good carts for hauling diaper bags, snacks and stuff. Autistic kids often like that cozy stroller for respite from the maddening crowds. I say that it is 10 rides with 10 minute wait each adds up to 100 minutes in line and on your feet. Some people walk 3 to 5 miles in one day in a park. As for resting at dinner you do not want a tired kid at dinner time. You want a happy and fun dinner time.

Good luck on the trip
hugs
Laurie

 

[blondietink]

Take the stroller. There is a lot of stimulation at WDW that even a typical child has trouble dealing with: loud music, crowds, waiting, characters, lights, parades, fireworks, temperature, etc.. Both your child and you will enjoy yourselves much more.

 

[Sunbeamblue2002]

Thanks everyone, Thats what I told my mom and now I'll tell her that the Disney pro's agree with me.

 

[zumbergc]

i've seen posts on the budget., and family boards about 5-6 old range using strollers. I even advised a friend who recently went that 5 & 6 year olds need a break, and to bring their stroller. The disney strollers look bigger than the ones i see in regular life, however i'm not a parent, so looks could be deceiving.

Make sure dd still fits comfortably in the stroller. I seem to see lots of kids sleeping during the day, or during a parade, or during the mad rush out of the park, basically the kids get all played and excited out, and need a break. So, having a comfy place to crash, and then wake-up happy seems like a better way to go then a kid who needs a nap.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

I agree with the others, bring the stroller - children can get very tired walking around the theme parks, especially in hot weather.

 

[Tinker*Shell*Bell]

Said kindly and lovingly from the mom of a HFA child... This is your child, you know more than grandma. (my mom is often in denial about son's abilities.)

Bring the stroller if you think there is even a chance of needing it. Boy oh Boy do I wish I listened to my own advice!!!

Grandmas think they know it all, but that is not always the case. (I could insert my current rant with my mother re: my son...but it is not worth repeating...she is wrong. )

 

[toodycat]

Keep your options open and bring the stroller. If your child poops out, it won't mean you have to go back to your hotel. You didn't say if your daughter is an eloper, but if she has any tendency to wander off, I would definitely bring the stroller. Disney can be very visually overwhelming and confusing to a young kid. Also, I always dressed my son in something vibrant when he was younger, so that if he did wander away, I could find him easily. I also got one of those hospital ID bracelets and put my name, cell # and hotel on it, so if we were separated, someone could contact us. Have a great trip.

 

[LauraVV]

Around the age of five or six it becomes difficult to fit into most strollers. If you regularly need to use this for distances I'd ask your doc about a script for something like a Convaid Cruiser. These are sold as wheel chairs and they fold up and are light weight. We call ours an umbrella stroller on steroids.We take it with us but our daughter only uses it when she needs it.

 

[disneydeb]

we just got back with dgs whos gonna be 5 on saturday, my daughter did not want to bring stroller i did, i won, daughter was glad i did, we did not use it the first day we were at hollywood studios, we used it the 2nd day at epcot and when we got backto room daughter said she was glad i brought it for grandson cause that would have been too much walking for him, we used it 3rd day at magic kingdom, dgs did not mind it and even buckled himself in, 4th day we went to animal kingdom and did not use it but we knew we were only going on a couple of rides then leaving, ak was hard on my feet and legs. also the GAC was a lifesaver as dgs has autism -high on spectrum, and it provided an alternative place to wait which on one of the days we were there was more than obvious why we neeeded the card. we were also celebrating his birthday so he wore a birthday button every day and when he went to alternate place to wait people just thought it was cause of his birthday. all in all we had a truly magical trip!

 

[wendygrace]

Bring it! We just got back and it was a the only way for us to get so much done. Ds is an eloper (even with the stroller he got lost at least twice), gets over stimulated easily and has difficulty waiting. We used the stroller and even used it as a wheelchair (he also has low muscle tone issues and breath support issues). We were able to sit in the wheelchair section for parades when we needed to which was often (sometimes we had to be in "position" an hour before a parade) and he could sit in his stroller and wait without being jostled and he could lay back and "rest" (close hs eyes and tune out). He also wore his ear phones (highly recommend it if your child has ANY noise issues). We used a double jogging stroller (I have a four yr old as well) and it was great since they had plenty of room and we didn't have to worry about finding two strollers when we didn't use the stroller for waiting on rides. If you have two strollers, consider getting those connecting strips to connect your stroller.

 

[1stluvispooh]

Said kindly and lovingly from the mom of a HFA child... This is your child, you know more than grandma. (my mom is often in denial about son's abilities.)

Amen sister!!!!

 

[DisMomAmy]

Definitely bring it - or rent one of theirs. My DS8 with HFA & ADHD - who was almost 7 during our last trip spent quite a bit of time in the double stroller with his brother. It was great for parades and at the end of the day or if we needed to cover any distance quickly. We are trying to decide whether to rent a single or double for our next trip. His brother is now 5 (most likely ADHD with some sensory issues as well). Good Luck - Have Fun!

 

[lucigo]

A picture is worth a thousand words...this is my 5yo taking a vacation from his vacation...pretty sure he had a game boy under there LOL

 

[pilgrimr]

We have DS age 6 who is autistic and I would also agree what the others have said and bring the stroller. Better to have it and not need it than not have it and need it. But I would like to add our experience from our trip last month. We had gotten him a new stroller and on the first night we went to MK for a couple of hours without the stroller. He did not want to sit in it. That night he had a meltdown and it took a while to calm him down. The next day he got on the stroller and for the rest of the trip we did not have a meltdown. The stroller really helped him.

 

[Disneylvr]

My answer is a BIG YES to the stroller!!! We won't go to Disney without it for our DD with autism. She will be turning 6 in March.

 

[SueM in MN]

A picture is worth a thousand words...this is my 5yo taking a vacation from his vacation...pretty sure he had a game boy under there LOL

Love the picture. I have seen more than one stroller like that!