Taking our "Maiden Voyage" on 4/27 - advice/tips for traveling with a 2 year old !

[MICHELLENDEAN]

Hi,
We are so looking forward to this trip...we took advantage of the springtime magic fares and of course instead of trying to do it as cheaply as possible we decided on a room with the varandah.
So, we are traveling with our two year old who is usually in bed by 8:15 pm...we're a little worried that we're going to be "trapped" in our room, so that was another reason to opt for the varandah, at least while she sleeps we can sit out there and be "tropical"...anyway for those with two year olds...mine is a little attached to Mommy..she does attend full time daycare at home and LOVES it..loves kids, games, etc..I worry that she will freak out and not let me leave her in the nursery for an hour or two...I also saw plenty of info on what they do with the 3 and ups crowd, but really nothing about the twos...does anyone know if they lock them in a room with just videos or if they do music, dance, crafts, etc...just wondering what the "nursery" is like.

Also, we booked the later seating, so that she will enjoy the 6 pm show..we figure we can take her to dinner at 5ish someplace and then see the show and then hopefully stroll her around for awhile until she falls asleep then go to dinner ourselves (are we kidding ourselves??)
I don't know just wondering what you parents of those terrific two's did, didn't do and would definatly do again .
Thanks, any info appreciated..
ALSO FOR YOU people in the know..are the seas generally calm in the spring again we travel 4/27, I get car sick and I'm so afraid of getting seasick..(I'll also be in my 18th week of pregnancy) What months are considered the rougher weather? I would guess hurricane season which is usually SEPT?
Thanks!!!
I CAN'T WAIT!

 

[GoofyDisney]

When we cruised our DD was 2 yr 4 mos. She is still talking about it!

We spent a lot of time in the Mickey Pool. She loved to go to Shutters to look at the pictures. She loved seeing the shows.

Next time I would be more diligent about going down to greet the characters. BIG TIP: Especially on formal nights (and especially the second formal night) go down dressed for pictures a full HOUR before dinner. If you are early, the lines wil be short and you will have a better chance of getting a good picture. The second formal night, everyone on the ship has figured this out and is down there early especially since on the second formal night, Mickey and Minnie are in their formal wear. The first night, they are in the Captains clothes. And the photographers will be happy to use your camera to get a family photo of you after they take their professional picture. But we did buy several of their pictures anyway!

We liked Flounders Reef. Our DD is not in daycare, so the closest thing we can compare it to was church nursery.

The Reef: There is a small waiting room out front with a split door to the nursery and a large porthole with one-way glass so you can come and peek anytime without getting caught.

The first room is large and brightly colored. There is a tv always playing Disney movies. Some rocking chairs, some pads and soft chairs on the floor for the kids. There is a bookshelf with lots of books. There are tons of toys, though they tend to be aimed at the younger children (understandable). The changing table is right out in the open, and CMs wear gloves to change diapers. There is a a large play area. Then there is a smaller, back tv room with some rocking chairs and another tv so, as was the case with our DD, kids who didn't want to sleep, but just wanted to veg out and watch tv in a quiet area, could do so.

Then there is the crib room, for children who go to sleep while being rocked by CM, fall asleep on the mats watching movies, or its nap time.

When we were there, the child to CM ratio was 2:1 sometimes even 2:4. It just depends.

The trick is to be at the Reef door when it first opens on Saturday. (If not open yet, go ahead and form line along the wall.) Then when you can go in, book every single night. And then cancel as you do not use it. Just make sure you know the cancellation policy and remember to make the call! You may not get every time you request, but they call you everyday to confirm the next day if they are expecting you.

Also, when we were on the ship, there were no Reef times that coincided with Palos brunch on days at sea. Check it out to see if that is still the case.

M.M.'s Magical Guide talks about the nursery and how safe it is as far as no one being to be alone with your child without being noticed and about the background checks and training on Reef staff.
http://hometown.aol.com/entropym/pages/index.htm

They give you a pager. They are SUPER diligent about paging you if your child needs you. We appreciated this. One time, our DD started asking for us. They were seconds away from paging us when she got interested in something else. But I appreciated them telling us this, and them being willing to page us just cause she wanted us.

We took our umbrella stroller on the cruise. When not in use it was folded up in the closet, but otherwise, we took it everywhere. It really helped when it came to not wanting to wear DD out!

CAN'T MISS: Make sure you get a wake up call every morning! You just dial it into the phone and when it rings, it is Mickey Mouse calling to get you out of bed! This was one of DDs favorite things to do was answer the phone and have it be Mickey Mouse who was calling her. We ended up doing it several times even after we were all awake. We just dialed in 7:45, 8:00, etc. She loved it!

Any other questions? Let me know!
Have a great cruise!

P.S. Check with your OBGYN, but last time I checked, my OBGYN said it was safe for me to use Dramamine for traveling. And I was a high risk pregnancy. Check it out, and if it is okay, have some one hand for yourself. Our seas were so calm, but you never know.

 

[MICHELLENDEAN]

This is great, getting tips etc...How was she when you first dropped her off...my DD is used to her daycare and loves it...did yours cry? Did you go to the early or late dinner? I guess a lot of this is going to be playing it by ear..thanks for the wake up call, and character tips!!

 

[GoofyDisney]

Our DD did not cry at first, but was a little freaked out about the other kids who were. This happened more frequently when the Reef first opened at night.

We had early dinner. We would eat, then go to the show, then go to bed. Sometimes, on Mousketeer night for examle, we ate together, then DD went to the club while we went to the show and then we went to the comedy club after dinner and then went to get DD at 11pm. We would go back to our room and go right to sleep. We would usually find DD vegging in the dark tv room on a rocking chair. (We did this twice.)

You should know that you can link your reservation with someone if you choose and that way when they are making the dining chart, they will put you at that table with the people you requested. (someone from these boards for example.) But if you choose not to, you will be placed at a table with other people. These people will most likely have children around your DDs age.

Considering the age of your child, you will probably have the APLAPLA rotation. Which means that you eat in Animators Palate first. Don't miss AP the first night. THis is the only night the walls change color, better known as the "Animation Show".

Did I leave anything out?