Trip Report Disney Loving Couple and Their First Trip With Kids

Hi All! Long time Trip Report lurker, first time writer...I was inspired by @akneeconnors and figured I'd come out of the shadows and give my first trip report a whirl. My hubby and I both love Disney World and usually make a trip (just the two of us) every year. This year we decided it was time to introduce our three kids to the magic. Do you think we survived? (Spoiler alert: We did. Hence my ability to write this trip report )

Who: Me (Sarah), Hubby (Brent), Big Brother (3 years old), Sister (2 years old), and Baby Brother (9 months old).
Grandma and Grandpa also tagged along because Grandma was NOT going to miss "her babies' first trip" (you won't see much of them...they preferred relaxing at the hotel)
When: August 23rd-30th
Where: Polynesian Resort (Hawaii building)

Note: The kids (especially the older two) were happier than my photopass photos would make you believe.

Stay tuned to see how we fared!!

 

[PacNWTigger]

Following along. Looking forward to hearing more about your adventure.

 

[Brwneyedgirl72]

Count me in! By the way, your daughter’s hair is gorgeous!

 

[Mchugs7]

Day 1 (August 23rd):

Our travel day was long. We live about 2 hours from the airport, so we left our house at around 11 am for our 3 pm flight. I chose this flight with the hopes that the kids would nap in the car on the way to the airport and be rested (aka pleasant) for the flight. Well, shocker...none of them slept. Not a wink.

We made it to the airport and somehow managed to get the kids and the luggage in from the parking lot. I'd say we look reasonably organized and well behaved here. Am I right?

We made it through security with relative ease and the big kids passed some time watching the planes. It wasn't long before we boarded and got everyone situated on the plane. I sat in a row with the big kids and Brent and Baby Brother rode in the row behind us. Of note, I have a crippling fear of flying. I force myself to do it, but I dread it every time and prefer to spend the duration of the flight gripping the armrests and staring at the flight attendants to monitor for any signs of distress on their faces. They must think I'm a total weirdo.

After the plane was fully boarded and the doors were closed, the pilots discovered a problem with the plane's landing gear. After about 30 minutes of sitting at the gate, they had us all de-plane and re-board a different plane. The kids were getting antsy by this point and it was becoming quite apparent that naptime had been missed. Like any good mother, I bribed them with giant suckers (hey, whatever will keep them occupied so I can maintain my death grip on the armrests).

I found that my necklace served as a perfect place to hang my hand sanitizer. Why do kids have to touch EVERYTHING?!?

The flight was thankfully uneventful and it was just a few short hours before we landed at MCO. We did not get any great arrival pictures because we were losing control of our circus at this point. We opted to take a Minnie Van from the airport to the Poly. This was AMAZING! Our driver, Steve, met us at baggage claim and helped us get the luggage to the car. He already had two carseats installed for the big kids and so all we had to do was install Baby Brother's seat and hit the road. It was so pleasant and stress free. I highly recommend it if you have little kids!

 

[Mchugs7]

Count me in! By the way, your daughter’s hair is gorgeous!

Thank you!! If only she'd let me style it!

 

[Mchugs7]

Day 1 (Continued):
We arrived at the Poly just in time to catch the new Halloween party fireworks from our balcony.

After the fireworks it was straight to bed for everyone. The kids are not used to sharing a room, so it was a bit tricky to get the big kids to stop talking to each other. They woke Baby Brother up several times. He was not happy. Threats of missing the Magic Kingdom were made (as if I’d ever follow through on that one ). Thankfully, it wasn’t long before everyone was asleep.

 

[krisri18]

Day 1 (August 23rd):

Our travel day was long. We live about 2 hours from the airport, so we left our house at around 11 am for our 3 pm flight. I chose this flight with the hopes that the kids would nap in the car on the way to the airport and be rested (aka pleasant) for the flight. Well, shocker...none of them slept. Not a wink.

View attachment 405904

We made it to the airport and somehow managed to get the kids and the luggage in from the parking lot. I'd say we look reasonably organized and well behaved here. Am I right?

View attachment 405905

We made it through security with relative ease and the big kids passed some time watching the planes. It wasn't long before we boarded and got everyone situated on the plane. I sat in a row with the big kids and Brent and Baby Brother rode in the row behind us. Of note, I have a crippling fear of flying. I force myself to do it, but I dread it every time and prefer to spend the duration of the flight gripping the armrests and staring at the flight attendants to monitor for any signs of distress on their faces. They must think I'm a total weirdo.

After the plane was fully boarded and the doors were closed, the pilots discovered a problem with the plane's landing gear. After about 30 minutes of sitting at the gate, they had us all de-plane and re-board a different plane. The kids were getting antsy by this point and it was becoming quite apparent that naptime had been missed. Like any good mother, I bribed them with giant suckers (hey, whatever will keep them occupied so I can maintain my death grip on the armrests).

View attachment 405908

I found that my necklace served as a perfect place to hang my hand sanitizer. Why do kids have to touch EVERYTHING?!?

View attachment 405910

The flight was thankfully uneventful and it was just a few short hours before we landed at MCO. We did not get any great arrival pictures because we were losing control of our circus at this point. We opted to take a Minnie Van from the airport to the Poly. This was AMAZING! Our driver, Steve, met us at baggage claim and helped us get the luggage to the car. He already had two carseats installed for the big kids and so all we had to do was install Baby Brother's seat and hit the road. It was so pleasant and stress free. I highly recommend it if you have little kids!

First off, your kids are adorable! Second, we were exhausted with one baby on our trip to like 4 adults so I don't know how you managed a baby and 2 toddler/preschoolers, most impressive! Third, love your luggage!!!

 

[KellBelle]

Following along!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Looks fun! I'm sure you had some interesting adventures with the little ones.

 

[Mchugs7]

First off, your kids are adorable! Second, we were exhausted with one baby on our trip to like 4 adults so I don't know how you managed a baby and 2 toddler/preschoolers, most impressive! Third, love your luggage!!!

Thank you! They can be pretty cute from time to time, but they are definitely a handful.

And thanks for the luggage compliments. My hubby could not for the life of him comprehend my undying “need” for this luggage set.

 

[NessNewt]

I'm following along! Your kids are adorable and I am already impressed by your mom juggling act!

 

[Rista1313]

Can't wait to read more!

 

[DryerLintFan]

Day 1 (August 23rd):

Our travel day was long. We live about 2 hours from the airport, so we left our house at around 11 am for our 3 pm flight. I chose this flight with the hopes that the kids would nap in the car on the way to the airport and be rested (aka pleasant) for the flight. Well, shocker...none of them slept. Not a wink.

View attachment 405904

We made it to the airport and somehow managed to get the kids and the luggage in from the parking lot. I'd say we look reasonably organized and well behaved here. Am I right?

View attachment 405905

We made it through security with relative ease and the big kids passed some time watching the planes. It wasn't long before we boarded and got everyone situated on the plane. I sat in a row with the big kids and Brent and Baby Brother rode in the row behind us. Of note, I have a crippling fear of flying. I force myself to do it, but I dread it every time and prefer to spend the duration of the flight gripping the armrests and staring at the flight attendants to monitor for any signs of distress on their faces. They must think I'm a total weirdo.

After the plane was fully boarded and the doors were closed, the pilots discovered a problem with the plane's landing gear. After about 30 minutes of sitting at the gate, they had us all de-plane and re-board a different plane. The kids were getting antsy by this point and it was becoming quite apparent that naptime had been missed. Like any good mother, I bribed them with giant suckers (hey, whatever will keep them occupied so I can maintain my death grip on the armrests).

View attachment 405908

I found that my necklace served as a perfect place to hang my hand sanitizer. Why do kids have to touch EVERYTHING?!?

View attachment 405910

The flight was thankfully uneventful and it was just a few short hours before we landed at MCO. We did not get any great arrival pictures because we were losing control of our circus at this point. We opted to take a Minnie Van from the airport to the Poly. This was AMAZING! Our driver, Steve, met us at baggage claim and helped us get the luggage to the car. He already had two carseats installed for the big kids and so all we had to do was install Baby Brother's seat and hit the road. It was so pleasant and stress free. I highly recommend it if you have little kids!

Out of curiosity, how much did that Minnie Van run you?

 

[Katiekitten]

Your kids are adorable!

 

[Mchugs7]

Out of curiosity, how much did that Minnie Van run you?

I believe it was around $100 for a one way airport transfer.

 

[NickPytlinski]

im in!

 

[Mchugs7]

Day 2 (August 24th):

I woke up early this morning and snuck out of the room to grab our refillable mugs and enjoy a little peace and quiet before things got crazy.

I filled our mugs and then sat at a table outside of Captain Cooks and listened to the soothing resort music. I love the Poly when it’s quiet...to me it just feels like vacation. As I was sitting there, a mama duck waddled by with her six babies. The babies were running all over the place and the mama looked like maybe she’d been at Disney too long .

After enjoying my view for about 30 minutes, Brent texted me to tell me that Sister was awake so I headed back to our room. She and I sat on the balcony for awhile and chatted.

Once her brothers were up, we all headed to the club level lounge for some breakfast. Unfortunately, I never managed to grab a great picture of the lounge this trip (it was always a bit hectic when we were in there), but trust me...it is beautiful! They have cereal, fruit, bagels, croissants, and various meats and cheeses every morning. There is also a nice Nespresso machine that looked super complicated and fancy. I am not a coffee drinker, but I overheard one of the cast members giving a lengthy tutorial on how to operate it.

The lounge is a solid quick breakfast option that is especially great when you have kids (apparently it’s frowned upon to not feed your children in favor of getting to the parks earlier ).

After breakfast, the kids played in the sand for a bit to let Baby Brother crawl around and explore.

“Guys, could you look at me and smile? Hello?? Anyone??” Pictures like this will be a trend throughout this report .

More to follow...stay tuned!

 

[Darstarr]

This is going to be good, I can tell!

 

[fizzieee]

Love it so far! ☺ Your family is just precious. The matching shirts in your last post are adorable!

 

[Mchugs7]

Day 2 (continued):

When planning our trip, I tried to make it a slower paced trip to avoid as many Disney meltdowns as possible. Because I knew we would be getting to Orlando late on Day 1, I opted to keep us out of the parks on the morning of Day 2. While I knew in my head that this was a good plan, I have to say that it really physically hurt my heart to stare at the castle all morning without actually going to one of the parks. Our childless trips are pretty much nonstop so this was a big departure for us!

After the kids played around the resort for awhile, we ate a late breakfast (basically lunch) at Ohana. Brent and I had never eaten breakfast at Ohana so we were excited to check it out. After checking in at the front desk, we stopped to meet Pluto. Sister was soooo excited when she saw him from a distance, but then changed her mind about meeting him once we got up there. Big Brother had no worries and ran up to give him a big hug.

Sadly, we were uncooperative for our photopass photo.

After Pluto, we waited for our table in the Tambu lounge. I enjoyed a delicious Island Sunset (OMG...does anyone else absolutely flip for anything with POG juice???) and Brent had a beer.

"Hey kid...back away from Mommy's juice"

We didn't have to wait very long before we were seated at a perfect table, right by the window. The food arrived quickly and we all dug in. The characters were all on the other side of the restaurant so we had to wait awhile for them to get to us. After Sister's reaction to Pluto, I was assuming that she would opt out of all future character interactions...but she proved me wrong.

Lilo came to our table first. My kids aren't huge Lilo and Stitch fans, but they still enjoyed meeting her. They were most excited to meet Mickey. When Mickey got to our table, Big Brother jumped out of his seat and gave him a huge hug. He was so happy. I may have shed a few tears of joy. Why does Disney make me so sappy?!?

Baby Brother was pretty indifferent to the characters this trip (he is pretty indifferent to most things actually )

Stitch was still across the restaurant and the kids were losing steam, so we headed back to the room for their nap. They needed to rest up for our evening at Magic Kingdom!!

More to follow...