When do you start counting down?

[Maggie at the Fort]

Me personally? I start the day I book the vacation. My phone says we have 107 days left. But my 3 year old is starting to get very interested in this trip. Wondering when to start counting down with her. I can't wait but I want it to be fun, not a chore and not overwhelming.

 

[RVinMomma]

We too start the day I book our vacation!! I have a countdown on our printer table for the kids to look at everyday!

 

[Missy29]

I start the day I know my dates, but I will make a vacation count down and put it up on the laundry room door with Mickey heads, last year I started around 80 days to go and it was a LOT of Mickeys so maybe next year I will start at 50

 

[FiggieFan]

Pretty much a week after I get back from my trip. Working on my next trip is the only thing that keeps me surviving my job and my fiance thinks it makes me a more pleasant person. I started with 344 days to go and now have 224! Moving right along!
I have a big Mickey head at work and just update the dates with post-it's and torture everyone else!

 

[GoldieLocks5]

I start on my phone with an app once I have it booked. With the kids we start when we tell them. First trip was 4 days. Last trip was 32days which was JUsT long enough. I wouldn't do any longer.

 

[StuckInKS]

For just myself, when I book the trip. For the kids, when we are about 10-14 days out. There have been many trips that we have had to cancel and reschedule for several reasons (work, good investment opportunity, emergencies, etc) plus they are so young that even 60 days seems like forever to them (heck, when it comes to Disney anticipation, 60 days is forever to me LOL). My oldest does ask things like "when are we going to Disney again? How many days/weeks is that?" periodically, so I guess she does her own countdown in a way.

 

[Svhadden]

We book Bounceback every year, so on the drive home, we're planning and counting down the days until we go back.

 

[Maggie at the Fort]

We book Bounceback every year, so on the drive home, we're planning and counting down the days until we go back.

Trying to smother my jealousy! Maybe someday we will go every year!!

For just myself, when I book the trip. For the kids, when we are about 10-14 days out. There have been many trips that we have had to cancel and reschedule for several reasons (work, good investment opportunity, emergencies, etc) plus they are so young that even 60 days seems like forever to them (heck, when it comes to Disney anticipation, 60 days is forever to me LOL). My oldest does ask things like "when are we going to Disney again? How many days/weeks is that?" periodically, so I guess she does her own countdown in a way.

60 days does seem like forever when it comes to waiting for Disney doesn't it. For anything else, time flies by these days!

I start on my phone with an app once I have it booked. With the kids we start when we tell them. First trip was 4 days. Last trip was 32days which was JUsT long enough. I wouldn't do any longer.

I was thinking a month would be good.

Pretty much a week after I get back from my trip. Working on my next trip is the only thing that keeps me surviving my job and my fiance thinks it makes me a more pleasant person. I started with 344 days to go and now have 224! Moving right along!
I have a big Mickey head at work and just update the dates with post-it's and torture everyone else!

I am right there with you on having something to plan to stay pleasant. I have to have something or I drive my husband crazy!

We too start the day I book our vacation!! I have a countdown on our printer table for the kids to look at everyday!

I think when my kids are older I will start further out for them. I need them to help me remember or I would never keep up with it!

 

[RedHeadedFairy]

For me, immediately upon booking the trip.

When DD was 3 we got her interested about a month ahead of time since she couldn't really understand that big gap between planning & going too far in advance.

We used a countdown chain to help her understand the timing better & 6 years later she still insists on using a countdown chain for every trip, lol.

 

[lnuss1988]

I have a countdown calendar on my fridge right now ... 606 days to go!!

 

[SciTeach713]

We wanted to surprise our daughter with her first Disney trip, but at the same time, I wanted her to be able to have some input about rides for FP+ and talk to her about what she might want to do and not want to do. We did a "present reveal" at Christmas with a bunch of Disney stuff, and I had made a countdown calendar with PostIts to pull off each day. It was 80-something days when she opened the present, now we're at 60, and she still loves pulling off the PostIts. I think it has helped a lot with the "Mom, how much longer until we go to Disney?" nagging that I think there would have been otherwise.