Disney with your Threenager

[DrummerAlly]

Have you done WDW with your Threenager? Did disaster strike when they asked for a vanilla ice cream cone, received it, then throw a huge meltdown because they wanted chocolate making you wish you just waited a year?

Or was your Threenager a transformed Mickey loving angel?

 

[SAV]

None of the above. My kids pretty much acted like they do at home while at WDW. I wouldn't expect anything different. If they got cranky, it was nap time in the stroller. If not, then we went about our touring. I think the biggest thing was the DW and I had to have a bit more patience because the kid is going to be a kid.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I assume a threenager is a 3-year-old?

I've been close -- my daughter was 4 on her first visit. As @SAV indicated, she acted the same way that she does at home. (In other words, if she was overtired, hot, uncomfortable or hungry, she got whiny and petulant. Otherwise, she was good.)

We kept the whiny moments to the bare minimum (and I mean, the bare minimum - she did amazingly well and we had no meltdowns whatsoever), by keeping fatigue, discomfort, heat and hunger at bay. We made sure that she got to bed around the same time as at home, every single night (except for the last night when we all stayed up for the MK fireworks). We kept up a daily schedule that included getting to a park at rope drop (we didn't use morning EMH, as that would have required the kids to get up earlier than usual, but rope drop was within reach using their typical wake-up time) and touring for about 4 hours, stopping for a snack or for lunch when our tummies dictated, then heading back to the hotel for 3-4 hours of naps and swim time in order to stave off fatigue and bypass the worst heat of the day. (The kids stopped napping at home at age 2, but the entire family always naps daily at WDW, and enjoys it!) Then we'd spend a more leisurely evening in a park of our choice, with a reasonable bedtime. We also managed expectations so there would be no big disappointments: we educated her and her brother before we left about what attractions and dining fit into our plans and budget, and which items did not. We let her choose 3 attractions and 3 characters that were "must-do" items for her, so she got to feel included in the planning and decision-making. We also had lots of talks (and shared stories) about the fact that vacations always include hiccups -- a favorite attraction might be closed, a desired snack might have been taken off the menu, or a late bus might mean missing a parade -- and that we need to be able to shrug and say, "Oh, well," when those things happen. (She took this lesson to heart a little too well -- for the next few weeks, whenever she was caught in the act of doing something wrong, she'd chirp, "So now we just say, 'oh well,' Mommy, right?") She also know that, just as at home, if she was disobedient, there would be negative consequences, like going to bed early or losing the privilege of selecting a small souvenir to take home.

It worked well, for us. Our daughter still acted like a 4-year-old, but a pretty well-behaved 4-year-old at that.

 

[jaklgreen]

I assume a threenager is a 3-year-old?

I've been close -- my daughter was 4 on her first visit. As @SAV indicated, she acted the same way that she does at home. (In other words, if she was overtired, hot, uncomfortable or hungry, she got whiny and petulant. Otherwise, she was good.)

We kept the whiny moments to the bare minimum (and I mean, the bare minimum - she did amazingly well and we had no meltdowns whatsoever), by keeping fatigue, discomfort, heat and hunger at bay. We made sure that she got to bed around the same time as at home, every single night (except for the last night when we all stayed up for the MK fireworks). We kept up a daily schedule that included getting to a park at rope drop and touring for about 4 hours, stopping for a snack or for lunch when our tummies dictated, then heading back to the hotel for 3-4 hours of naps and swim time in order to stave off fatigue and bypass the worst heat of the day. (She stopped napping at home at age 2, but the entire family always naps daily at WDW, and enjoys it!) Then we'd spend a more leisurely evening in a park of our choice, with a reasonable bedtime. We also managed expectations so there would be no big disappointments: we educated her before we left about what attractions and dining fit into our plans and budget, and which items did not. We let her choose 3 attractions and 3 characters that were "must-do" items for her, so she got to feel included in the planning and decision-making. We also had lots of talks (and shared stories) about the fact that vacations always include hiccups -- a favorite attraction might be closed, a desired snack might have been taken off the menu, or a late bus might mean missing a parade -- and that we need to be able to shrug and say, "Oh, well," when those things happen. (She took this lesson to heart a little too well -- for the next few weeks, whenever she was caught in the act of doing something wrong, she'd chirp, "So now we just say, 'oh well,' Mommy, right?") She also know that, just as at home, if she was disobedient, there would be negative consequences, like going to bed early or losing the privilege of selecting a small souvenir to take home.

It worked well, for us. Our daughter still acted like a 4-year-old, but a pretty well-behaved 4-year-old at that.

Same here. It is important to be in tune with your kids. Make sure you take it slow and give them plenty of physical and mental breaks. We always let everyone sleep in until they are ready to get up, got a good breakfast and then headed out. That way we did not start out tired and cranky. Its kind of crazy how many families we see at WDW that just are not paying attention to their little ones. You can just see when a meltdown is imminent if you know the signs.

 

[DrummerAlly]

Sounds like you guys have (had) some pretty well behaved three year olds!

Mine has moments where she's a perfect angel and then times when I wish we never left the house. I feel like at this age its so unpredictable sometimes. She has some medical needs and developmental delays which complicate things for us. From a wonderful suggestion from all of you, we opted to go to a smaller theme park this summer as a practice run to return to Disney and she did wonderfully at the park. (She still can't sleep away from home, however, which made night time pure hell). She had so much fun at the park that she was actually better behaved than average, which made think perhaps that would translate to a good trip to WDW as well.

 

[LdyApxr]

Nope, because my kids were 6 before I took them(and I have 9yrs between my kids so the third trip for the oldest one was quite a gap because we went when he was 6 and then 7 and then not again until he was 16) because I was not going to push a stroller or carry a kid around Disney. It's just not in my nature(and if that makes me a bad parent then so be it LOL)

 

[jaklgreen]

Sounds like you guys have (had) some pretty well behaved three year olds!

Mine has moments where she's a perfect angel and then times when I wish we never left the house. I feel like at this age its so unpredictable sometimes. She has some medical needs and developmental delays which complicate things for us. From a wonderful suggestion from all of you, we opted to go to a smaller theme park this summer as a practice run to return to Disney and she did wonderfully at the park. (She still can't sleep away from home, however, which made night time pure hell). She had so much fun at the park that she was actually better behaved than average, which made think perhaps that would translate to a good trip to WDW as well.

3 year olds are nuts! LOL It is not about how good/bad behaved they are because they will all have their moments. It is about learning to read your child's behavior and heading it off. Especially at an over stimulating place like WDW. A lot of people, I think, feel that they need to get the most out of their money and go go go. With little ones you need to be realistic. Take it slow, don't over stimulate them, let them run off some of the energy, make sure they get plenty of good, nutritious food. You would be surprised that what kind of food the child eats makes a big difference in their behavior. Kids will be kids, it is how the parent deals with it that makes the difference.

 

[DrummerAlly]

Thanks everyone!

My husband and I thought this over and decided that my three year old is still not ready for Disney World. She still can't sleep in a hotel and is very easily over whelmed and over stimulated, has variable medical needs, and probably just not up to this yet. Even with a DAC, I think there's a 50% chance its a week of misery. My one year old on the other hand would do awesome!

My mom has offered to watch the kids for a long weekend trip and just my husband and I are off to WDW in January! Are we the worst parents ever? As soon as she can go and enjoy herself there, we'll be back with her. Hopefully around her 4th or 5th birthday.

 

[Mawg]

A little off topic, but I'm always seeing fights between parents and small children and even more so in the evening/night. I have a rule for myself and wife, if our kids act out at home or when they are on their proper schedule then this is bad behavior and needs rectified. If our kids act out because we have pushed them beyond their limits and their normal schedule then this is bad on us and we need to correct our behavior. Luckily, even when our kids are past their limit their melt downs have never been that bad.

 

[Mamaof2QTs]

Thanks everyone!

My husband and I thought this over and decided that my three year old is still not ready for Disney World. She still can't sleep in a hotel and is very easily over whelmed and over stimulated, has variable medical needs, and probably just not up to this yet. Even with a DAC, I think there's a 50% chance its a week of misery.

I have a similar yet different situation. My threenager is a drama queen, but she can handle DW. It's my 2-year-old that's in therapy 3 days a week. We went in May and she was terrified of over half the rides. Winnie the Pooh was too much (noise, lights and shaking).

We are headed back in 3 weeks anyways. There is plenty of stuff at DW for even an overly sensitive kid. Daddy and my older kid can ride the dark, loud indoor rides while my little girl and I will keep riding Dumbo, the Carousel, it's a small world, the train, the petting zoo, the safari ride, the jungle ride, etc.

When you travel with little kids you have to expect you won't get to do everything you used to do.

 

[Mamaof2QTs]

 

[LdyApxr]

Thanks everyone!

My husband and I thought this over and decided that my three year old is still not ready for Disney World. She still can't sleep in a hotel and is very easily over whelmed and over stimulated, has variable medical needs, and probably just not up to this yet. Even with a DAC, I think there's a 50% chance its a week of misery. My one year old on the other hand would do awesome!

My mom has offered to watch the kids for a long weekend trip and just my husband and I are off to WDW in January! Are we the worst parents ever? As soon as she can go and enjoy herself there, we'll be back with her. Hopefully around her 4th or 5th birthday.

Yes you are! NOW GO and ENJOY YOUR TIME WITH HUBS! LOL

 

[DrummerAlly]

A little off topic, but I'm always seeing fights between parents and small children and even more so in the evening/night. I have a rule for myself and wife, if our kids act out at home or when they are on their proper schedule then this is bad behavior and needs rectified. If our kids act out because we have pushed them beyond their limits and their normal schedule then this is bad on us and we need to correct our behavior. Luckily, even when our kids are past their limit their melt downs have never been that bad.

I don't disagree with you, but sometimes its not that easy or cut and dry. Bad behavior can also happen in children with special or unique needs who have trouble functioning throughout the day for one reason or another. We keep our 3 year old on a good schedule, we parent to the best of our abilities, work with her school, her occupational therapist, play therapist, speech therapist, and medical specialists. Her brain doesn't process everything like a normal child's brain does and she often has bad behavior as a result. It's very tiring to be a parent of a special needs child and "rectifying" bad behavior is a complex and long term goal far beyond the typical strategies of a sticker chart or time out chair.

 

[DrummerAlly]

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I have a similar yet different situation. My threenager is a drama queen, but she can handle DW. It's my 2-year-old that's in therapy 3 days a week. We went in May and she was terrified of over half the rides. Winnie the Pooh was too much (noise, lights and shaking).

We are headed back in 3 weeks anyways. There is plenty of stuff at DW for even an overly sensitive kid. Daddy and my older kid can ride the dark, loud indoor rides while my little girl and I will keep riding Dumbo, the Carousel, it's a small world, the train, the petting zoo, the safari ride, the jungle ride, etc.

When you travel with little kids you have to expect you won't get to do everything you used to do.

Absolutely! For us, when we go with her, it won't be a matter of "doing" anything. We'll actually be happy with just a pleasant day at the parks regardless of what gets "done".